“Please urge your friends to not attend this concert, which helps normalize bigotry in our community” “Please urge your friends to not attend this concert, which helps normalize bigotry in our community”
Two University of California-Los Angeles professors are trying to derail an upcoming symphony performance because Dennis Prager will be the guest conductor.
A public letter signed by four members of the Santa Monica Symphony, including UCLA professors Michael Chwe and Andrew Apter, urges readers not to attend the August 16 concert, even implying that the signatories will personally refuse to participate.
“Please urge your friends to not attend this concert, which helps normalize bigotry in our community, ” the professors plead, calling Prager “a right-wing radio host who promotes horribly bigoted positions” and adding that he “is not a trained conductor and there is no musical rationale for his participation.”
While the letter has been public since March, Prager brought it to national attention Tuesday with an op-ed for National Review, explaining that conducting orchestras is his little-known pastime, and that he’s been studying classical music since he was in high school.
