Olayemi Olurin
Role at the time: Lawyer and political commentator, appearing as a guest on the Even More News podcast
Statement summary
Olayemi Olurin said she believed Macklemore's support for Palestine was genuine, while acknowledging concerns about his 2014 costume. Read her exact words and the surrounding discussion.
“I think that Macklemore’s support of Palestine and his speaking out against the genocide in Gaza is genuine. I do believe that. I don’t believe it’s motivated by anti-Semitism. However, I think it is valid for people to give the side eye … based on the fact that you’ve done something that could be read as blatantly anti-Semitic before. … So I can understand why, if I’ve seen you quite literally dress up as an anti-Semitic caricature before, I can understand why someone would be skeptical of his speaking out in support of Palestine.”
Why we used this label
On Macklemore’s conduct in giving the speech, Olurin holds two positions that pull against each other. She accepts the speech itself as sincere and not antisemitic, and separately treats the “Free Palestine” remark as legitimate, which would point to “Defended or excused”. But she declines to dismiss the critics, saying their scepticism is valid given the 2014 costume and comparing it to having seen someone dress as a Klansman. That is a substantive reservation about the speaker rather than a polite qualification, which is what makes it mixed. She also separates the two matters expressly, noting the costume is not why he was removed from the tour.