Jewish fan met with anti-Semitic abuse from fellow Arsenal supporters after North London Derby
An Arsenal fan has called for a ‘culture change’ in football after she was subjected to antisemitic abuse from supporters of her own club.
Katie Price, 26, had enjoyed two matches on Sunday – Arsenal Women v Chelsea Women in the morning and Arsenal v Tottenham in the evening.
She and her friends visited the Cally pub in Islington for the second fixture, where they had an interaction with a group of older men.
Katie, who is Jewish, claims the fellow Arsenal supporters hurled antisemitic abuse at her after she asked them to stop chanting ‘yiddo’.
Yiddo, and yid, are antisemitic terms for a Jew, and are often used to refer to Spurs fans.
Katie says she was called a ‘dirty f** yid’ and ‘Tottenham supporting yiddo’ by the men.
She claims the group then reached for her Arsenal strip to try rip it off, before making threats of violence.
After raising the issue with bar staff, it was Katie and her friends who were told to leave the premises.
She told Metro.co.uk: ‘It was the first time I’d ever experienced such violent abuse. What was shocking was the amount of people taking part, as well as the people who did nothing.
‘They also tried to rip my shirt off, which fits into the wider narrative against Jews that we aren’t who we say we are.
‘I was left really shaken. Football is a big part of my life, my family is from Eastern Europe and football was a way for them to integrate.
‘You get told at games to report abuse or situations like this, to “kick it out”‘.
‘But that’s a broken window solution, football doesn’t start and stop in the stadium.’
Katie posted about the situation on Instagram – and word soon reached Arsenal bosses.
A spokesperson from the club said: ‘We recognise the impact this behaviour has on our many Jewish supporters and others and condemn the use of language of this nature, which has no place in our game or society.
‘We will not stand for this kind of behaviour and will take strong action against any supporters who we establish are responsible for such acts.
‘Anyone identified will receive a lengthy club ban and their details will be passed to the police to commence legal proceedings.’
Rabbi Schiff executive director of Aish, JRoots and Jewish Futures said the incident reflected a need for greater education around the Holocaust.
He told Metro.co.uk: ‘The attack against Katie is shocking, and disturbingly, part of a bigger picture of growing antisemitism in the UK.
‘Sadly, this reinforces the need for the Holocaust education we continue to undertake at JRoots.
‘We hope that the approaching Holocaust Memorial Day will also serve as a stark reminder of the dangers of unchecked antisemitic incidents such as this.’
Katie, a comedian, says antisemitism can be ‘in people’s blind spots’ and is sometimes ‘not seen as racism’.
The lifelong Arsenal fan hopes by sharing her story that she can help raise awareness of the abuse Jews in the UK still face in 2023.
The 26-year-old added: ‘This is more than just football. A culture change is needed.’
Both Islington Council and the Met are investigating following the incident at the Cally Bar.
Cllr John Woolf, Islington Council’s executive member for community safety, said: ‘We stand with our communities against hate crime, and will not tolerate hate crime in Islington.
‘We are investigating this very disturbing incident, are in close contact with the pub, and working closely with the police.’
The Cally Pub declined to comment.
In a statement, the Met Police told Metro.co.uk: ‘On Monday, 16 January, police received a report from a woman regarding an anti-Semitic incident that took place at a pub on Caledonian Road, N7 on Sunday, 15 January.
‘Officers have spoken with the woman and remain in contact with her.
‘Detectives from the Central North Command Unit are leading the investigation and are carrying out a number of enquiries, including reviewing CCTV footage.’
To read more about Katie’s experience, detailed in the Jewish Chronicle, click here.
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