The Last Dinner Party pull out of Victorious in protest of censorship

The Last Dinner Party withdrew from their Victorious Festival appearance in Portsmouth in a show of solidarity with the Mary Wallopers, whose set was cut short after the Irish band unfurled a Palestinian flag and called for “Free Palestine.” The move followed a sequence in which Victorious officials said the Mary Wallopers’ performance ended after a chant perceived to carry a discriminatory context, while the festival noted a no-flags policy in place for safety and management reasons. Several other acts also pulled out in protest over what they described as censorship of political expression on stage.

The incident at Victorious on Friday August 22 began as the Mary Wallopers performed their opening numbers. Video widely circulated by the band shows them displaying a Palestinian flag on stage and addressing the crowd with a call for freedom for Palestine. Moments later, a member of the festival crew confronted the band and removed the flag, and the sound was cut shortly afterward as the band began a chant of “Free Palestine.” The Mary Wallopers published the footage and a lengthy statement accusing the festival of silencing their message and of mischaracterizing the event in...