Especially given the fact that one band, Hatari representing Iceland, made a true effort, and succeeded, at doing what the Eurovision is all about: Bringing people together.
Hatari's show from the get-go was all about love and unity. Here are some translated excerpts from their performance: "Hate will prevail / Europe’s heart impale / Burn off its web of lies / The void will swallow all /Every joy derail." Truly poetic words.
In the same fashion, their performance, characterized by satanic visuals and ear-shattering phonetics, really brought tears to the eyes of any spectator with an open heart.
However, the most beautiful aspect of Hatari performance was the moral courage they displayed throughout the entire Eurovision process. Ever since they were elected to represent Iceland, they vowed to raise hell about Israeli apartheid. And boy did they follow through. The moment it was all over.
It was evident that these straight descendants of Vikings inherited their ancestors bravery, ready to achieve their objective at any personal cost. That is why they waited until their defeat was cut in stone to deliver their blow. Too easy and predictable would an early disqualification for disregarding the contest's rules have been. No, that is not the way of Hatari.
Unrolling Palestinian banners at the same moment the Zionist moderators announced Hatari hadn't won is reminiscent of the most heroic of history's legends. Think Joan of Arc or Braveheart.
This heroism became clear already leading up to the competition. Touring Hebron they proclaimed, "the segregation so visible." Wow.
It's a shame their busy schedule prevented them from visiting Gaza, as well. Maybe they could have gotten ready for the show early and hopped over to the coastal enclave in their show outfits for a quick tour, but the Zionist aggressor probably prevented that feat. Maybe because they were worried they wouldn't make it back.
Another move that will likely be the subject of folklore for centuries, was the Palestinian flag they published during the contest, in not one, not two, but three full Instagram posts. God knows what fury they would have encountered had the event's organizers scrolled through their Insta feed during one of the show's intervals.
But all the above is not even noteworthy in the face of the one true goal they wanted to achieve from the beginning, and did: Unite Israel and BDS.
As is common for artists ahead of their time, Hatari drew condemnation from all sides.
Puzzlingly, Israel and the European Broadcast Union condemned the band for biting the hand that fed them. As if that wasn’t enough though, even the BDS movement condemned the band for their overt display of piousness. The movement that called on Hatari to boycott the Eurovision because they would have rather seen the event turn into a Burka catwalk in Ramallah, does not appreciate hypocrisy. Who likes psychological projection anyway?
So Hatari really put itself in the crossfire in the name of love. It sacrificed itself, just to show Israel and BDS that they can agree on something. They truly brought people together. And they would have deserved to win the award for that.
Of course, had they won they would have never shown those banners.