Boiler Room New York event disrupted by anti-KKR protest, activists allege assault
Protesters staged a mass "die-in" and disconnected equipment during the event at Under The K Bridge in Brooklyn
Protesters disrupted a Boiler Room event hosted in New York last weekend.
On Friday 10th July, the major live music platform and event organiser had been hosting a session at Under The K Bridge in Brooklyn. Proceedings were interrupted by multiple actions from demonstrators linked to the Boycott Room movement, which protests against Boiler Room's parent company Superstruct Entertainment, itself a subsidiary of the major American private equity firm KKR.
Protesters camped outside the entrance gates to hand out leaflets about Boiler Room's ties to KKR, which is known to have significant stakes in Israeli tech and data centres , the Coastal GasLink Pipeline, and weapons manufacturing.
Another group accessed the event itself, where they staged a mass "die-in" wearing t-shirts and holding pictures depicting victims of Israel's genocide in Palestine. Videos posted to social media at the time and subsequently appear to show several members of the protest being verbally and physically assaulted by attendees.
Actions against the party continued on Saturday (11th) as the event opened for a second day. One protestor managed to get on stage where they unplugged equipment and revealed a t-shirt that read: "Boiler Room is Owned By Israeli Arms Investors”. They were quickly removed by security.
A counter-rave was also held close at Trans-Pecos in Ridgewood, Queens, run by Boycott Room, Cultural Solidarity Project, and Heads Know. A number of artists who had been approached but turned down sets for Boiler Room were on the bill which spanned two stages.
“No matter what Boiler Room claims are their values, this is the reality of what and who they support. Under its current ownership, the only meaningful thing Boiler Room can do to support a Free Palestine is disband, otherwise, they will meet resistance everywhere they go."
In a statement shared with Resident Advisor, Boiler Room said: "We're aware of footage from Boiler Room New York over the weekend that appears to show an attendee acting towards a protester in a way that has no place at our events. We respect the right to peaceful protest, and the wellbeing of everyone at our events matters to us. We’d encourage anyone who believes they've been a victim of a crime, or has information on this matter, to make themselves known to the police."
Last year, Boiler Room issued a statement about its sale to Superstruct Entertainment , emphasising its "unapologetically pro-Palestine" stance and stating that KKR "has investments that categorically do not align with our values".
The Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI) subsequently issued a statement responding to Boiler Room's post, calling on "other Superstruct-owned live music events to distance themselves from KKR’s investments in Israel’s complicit tech sector".
