Instead, she would fly poi flags in honor of Māori.
P!nk’s current stage show is anything but subtle. The program of their “Summer Carnival” tour includes gymnastics acrobats, gigantic disco balls and brightly colored costumes. But now another prop is causing a stir. The pop star is rumored to be waving Israeli flags on stage. Now the singer wants to eliminate question marks, but in the process she is also distorting a few facts.
“I get a lot of threats because people mistakenly believe that I wave Israeli flags on my show. That’s not true. I’ve been using poi flags since the start of this tour,” P!nk clarified in an October 16th X (formerly Twitter) post. The flags in question represent the Māori – the indigenous population of New Zealand. The pop musician would use the flags because “they and the Māori people are beautiful to me,” she says in her social media post.
But even though the blue and white flags do not represent the country of Israel, which has been under attack by the Islamist terrorist group Hamas since October 7th, the singer somewhat confuses the meaning of the flags. Kaupapa Māori researcher Dr. Karaitiana Taiuru told New Zealand news website Stuff that Māori traditionally do not use poi flags. The art form “Poi” is a type of dance of the indigenous people. A ball attached to a string is swung in a circle. In her homage, P!nk was probably referring to the fact that the flags that her background dancers wave are attached to a poi-like ball.
Whether it’s a Māori tribute or not: P!nk makes it clear in her current posting that she doesn’t wave flags unless they empower the LGBTQ+ community. “I don’t show any flags in support of anything or anyone on my show except the rainbow flag,” the “Just Give Me a Reason” singer said. “That will remain my position. I am a human. I believe in peace. Equality. Love. I am deeply saddened by the state of the world. I’m praying for all of us.”
P!nk has been on her world tour since June 7th, which will take her to New Zealand in March 2024. The singer TRUSTFALL’s ninth studio album was released in February 2023. The deluxe version of the record will also be released on December 1st with two unreleased tracks and some live recordings.