O2 Arena Under Fire After Staff Confiscate Pro-Palestine Attire
The O2 arena in London has issued a formal apology after security staff confiscated football shirts displaying the word 'Palestine' from two separate attendees at a Lorde concert on Sunday night. The incident, which the venue has attributed to a 'wrong judgement call', has sparked criticism and raised questions about the consistency of its policies.
Francesca Humi and Chloe Grace Laws, both 30, were individually approached by security personnel during the New Zealand pop star's performance. They were informed that their FC Palestina shirts violated venue policy and were given the ultimatum to either remove the garments or face ejection from the event.
Conflicting Accounts and a Double Standard
Staff members justified their actions by claiming that wearing clothing bearing the names, flags, or emblems of individual countries was against O2 policy and could potentially cause offence to other concert-goers. However, Francesca Humi reported seeing a man wearing an Irish Gaelic football jersey who was not asked to remove it, suggesting an inconsistent application of the rules.
Ms Humi was escorted to a confiscated items desk, while Ms Laws was instructed to deposit her shirt in the cloakroom, for which she was charged £5. According to Laws, the security guard accompanying her was sympathetic and revealed that at a previous Haim concert on 28 October, Israeli flags had been banned.
Venue Admits Error and Offers Compensation
In a statement to the Guardian, a spokesperson for The O2 directly contradicted the staff's on-the-ground assertions. The venue confirmed it does not have a policy prohibiting clothing that highlights social causes, religion, politics, or nationality. While exceptions are sometimes made for sports team attire as a risk-control measure, no such restrictions were in place for Lorde's two concerts this month.
The spokesperson admitted that a misinterpretation of policies and a failure to follow escalation procedures led to the mistake. 'We don't get every decision right, all of the time,' the statement read, 'and regrettably on this occasion, the wrong judgment call was made.'
In emails seen by the Guardian, Steve Sayer, senior vice president and general manager of The O2, apologised to both women. He offered to reimburse their tickets and expenses for the night and extended an invitation to a future event at the venue free of charge. Humi stated she would donate any reimbursement to a Palestinian organisation.
Lorde's Stance and a Pattern of Incidents
The incident is particularly notable given Lorde's own vocal support for Palestine. The 29-year-old artist has previously called for a 'Free Palestine' at her shows, and her stage lighting often flashes red, white, and green – the colours of the Palestinian flag. She is also among the artists who have removed their music from streaming services in Israel.
This is not the first time The O2 has faced controversy over this issue. In August, the venue issued an almost identical statement after a man wearing a 'Free Gaza' shirt was denied entry to a Peter Kay performance. The O2 has now committed to reviewing its procedures and staff training to prevent a recurrence.
For the fans involved, the experience was unsettling. Chloe Grace Laws said the situation 'put a dampener on my evening' and highlighted the problem of leaving vague policies to the subjective interpretation of individual staff members. Francesca Humi emphasised that her support for Palestine is a matter of human rights, not politics, rooted in her own family history of her Jewish grandfather finding refuge there during the Second World War.
