UK rapper Stormzy let down a lot of people this week after he deleted all his pro-Palestine posts from social media, before dropping an advert with McDonald’s in which he introduced the brand new ‘Stormzy Meal’; a collaboration which no doubt netted him a pretty penny.
For Stormzy’s fans, a collaboration with the Israel-supporting, IDF-feeding McDonald’s is bad enough, but the idea that part of the contractual agreement was for Stormzy to delete all signs of his prior support for Palestine seriously rubbed people up the wrong way, and boy did they let him know it.
Now, Jeremy Corbyn himself has called for Stormzy to end his collaboration with McDonald’s due to the company’s ties with Israel.
In an open letter to the rapper, the Peace and Justice Project, which was founded by Corbyn in 2021, says it is “hugely disappointing” to see him partner with the fast food giant.
The full letter states:
Stormzy’s new collaboration with McDonald’s is hugely disappointing, especially given the musician’s otherwise proud and solid record in supporting great causes and campaigns for social justice.
The Boycott, Divestment & Sanctions committee supports a global boycott of McDonald’s until it cuts ties with Israeli franchisees over support for Benjamin Netanyahu’s campaign of ethnic cleansing and genocide against the Palestinian people.
The call for a global boycott of McDonald’s restaurants followed the chain’s decision to provide free meals for the Israeli military personnel.
Under the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, parent and holding companies can be held liable for failing their due diligence duty in cases when their subsidiaries, franchisees, or any other suppliers within their value chain are implicated in grave human rights abuses and violations of international law.
In addition, an arrest warrant for Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was issued by the International Criminal Court in November 2024 for war crimes and crimes against humanity committed against the Palestinian people.
Furthermore, the International Court of Justice has ruled that Israel’s entire occupation of Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, is illegal and violates the prohibition against apartheid.
Israel’s sustained oppression of the Palestinian people has been well-documented for many years, and worldwide attention to the movement for a free Palestine has peaked since the start of the genocide in Gaza. Stormzy’s decision to partner with McDonald’s allows them to culture-wash their reputation as caterers of genocide in Gaza.
We are therefore asking Stormzy to stand in solidarity with the Palestinian people in their hour of need and respect the BDS committee’s call for a global boycott of McDonald’s by ending his new partnership with them.
I can’t even begin to imagine how much McDonald’s paid Stormzy to go through with this collaboration, given he must’ve known that the backlash was coming and that he’d let down his old pal Jeremy Corbyn in the process. Remember, Stormzy was a big help to Corbyn on his political run, even if the Tories did end up wiping the floor with him:
It’s hard to know what Stormzy will be thinking right now. After all, the advert’s been filmed and circulated, the Stormzy Meal is on the menu, and he may have even already bought himself a new house with the proceeds.
What, is he going to ask McDonald’s to pull the ad, remove his meal and then send them their money back? I don’t think it works like that.
Either way, it can’t be a good feeling for Stormzy to know that he’s let down his uncle Corbyn, not to mention the legions of fans who are expressing their disappointment online. I wonder what his ex-girlfriend Maya Jama makes of all this? He’s already let her down enough times already.
