“It was always a song of peace, that’s why it resonated with us. When you live in a country like Pakistan and are constantly hearing about attacks it is really soothing to hear a song that unites us.”
Source/Credit: RT News
By RT News | August 27, 2018
A private school in Karachi has dropped John Lennon’s classic “Imagine” from a student concert following complaints about the song’s “atheist lyrics.”
Students at Karachi Grammar School were due to sing the Beatle singer’s 1971 solo hit at an annual event in a tradition stretching back decades. However, school administrators were forced into a late change over fears they could be liable for prosecution under Pakistan’s blasphemy laws.
Newspaper columnist Ansar Abbasi highlighted the song’s lyrics in a tweet Wednesday, sparking a widespread debate over whether the “controversial” lyrics were appropriate for a school event.
A private school in Karachi is holding a concert on Friday. Students will sing John Lennon's lyrics- no heavan, no hell, no religion too .TV talk show host Orya Maqbool Jan then joined the debate, saying that the students’ parents were “slaves to Western thought.” He also claimed that the Karachi Grammar School was “imposing” the song on the students.
— Ansar Abbasi (@AnsarAAbbasi) August 23, 2017
“The song questions our belief in God and encourages an atheist mindset,” Jan said on the nationally televised program. He then accused the school’s principal Dr. C.E. Wall, a British citizen, of introducing secular values into the school.
“The school is run by an Englishman and that is where the problem lies,” he added.
Pakistani conservatives so offended by lyrics of John Lennon's Imagine, its only a matter of time before someone gets lynched for singing it pic.twitter.com/R2XksiL4jxSpeaking to the Daily Telegraph, former student Daanika Kamal said that Mr Abbasi was ignoring the message of “Imagine.”
— Fahad Desmukh (@desmukh) August 25, 2017
“We were introduced to [‘Imagine’] by the school” she said. “It was always a song of peace, that’s why it resonated with us. When you live in a country like Pakistan and are constantly hearing about attacks it is really soothing to hear a song that unites us.”
Abbasi celebrated the dropping of the song from the concert in a tweet Friday.
Good news. Following protest from students, school has dropped controversial lyrics of the song. Peaceful protest matters. https://t.co/hzfa96Zxdh
— Ansar Abbasi (@AnsarAAbbasi) August 24, 2017
Read original post here: Pakistan: School drops John Lennon’s ‘Imagine’ over blasphemy fears stirred by extremist TV personality
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