Barbra Streisand said Tuesday she mistakenly attributed a quote to William Shakespeare during her performance at a fund-raising concert for the Democratic Party.
The singer recited lines she believed were penned by the 16th century playwright during her Sunday appearance, which raised about $6 million for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.
The quotation was given to her by a friend who found it, attributed on the Internet to the Shakespeare play “Julius Caesar,” Streisand publicist Dick Guttman said.
Streisand, a longtime Democratic supporter, urged the party’s leaders to stand up against what she considers to be misplaced Republican aggression toward Iraq and the erosion of civil liberties under President Bush.
The quote began: “Beware the leader who bangs the drums of war in order to whip the citizenry into a patriotic fervor, for patriotism is indeed a double-edged sword. It both emboldens the blood, just as it narrows the mind.”
The misquote was originally reported Tuesday by Internet reporter Matt Drudge.
Streisand said she didn’t realize she was misattributing the remark – but still believes in the statement.
“The authorship of this is important. But it doesn’t detract from the fact that the words themselves are powerful and true and beautifully written,” she said in a statement.
