Robert Kraft bans Macklemore from performing at Gillette Stadium over "hate speech"

An unexpected kerfuffle emerged on Monday, between Patriots owner Robert Kraft and Macklemore.

It started when Macklemore said he has been dropped from Ed Sheeran’s current tour. Via Jon Blistein of Rolling Stone, Macklemore claimed that “Kraft had rallied some of the other stadium owners and collectively they gave him an ultimatum: if Macklemore stays on the tour, you will not be allowed to play in our venues.”

In a statement, Kraft later confirmed that Macklemore would not be permitted to perform at Gillette Stadium, which Kraft owns. He explained that the venue “has a longstanding commitment to providing a welcoming environment for all guests and ensuring that events held at our venue do not provide a platform for hate speech.”

Kraft based the decision on “recent actions, material shared from the stage during Ed Sheeran’s shows in New Jersey, and a broader history of antisemitic rhetoric and imagery that we believe has been deeply offensive and hurtful to the Jewish community.”

During his September 4 and 5 shows at MetLife Stadium, Macklemore yelled “Free Palestine” onstage, and he performed a song (Hind’s Hall) that in part describes Israel’s action in Gaza as “genocide.”

As Blistein notes, Kraft’s statement didn’t address Macklemore’s contention that Kraft “rallied” other owners to insist that Macklemore be dumped from the Sheeran tour.

“I would welcome the opportunity to sit down with Macklemore and discuss the facts, because ultimately our goal is the same -- peace for all people, an end to suffering, and an end to all hate,” Kraft said.

Discussion would be good. We currently don’t have enough of it when it comes to the political issues that continue to divide the nation. Still, there’s a difference between having a disagreement and being disagreeable. As to Macklemore, Kraft concluded that “a line has been crossed.”