Proud to support the players’ stand over racist abuse

DURING this year’s Labour Party Conference, just a couple of weeks ago, I was proud to take part in the Mirror’s Boot Out Racism panel.

Over recent decades, while the methods of abuse may have changed, racism is still very much present in sport and, at matches across the world, it rears its ugly head.

We would not stand for racism or any other form of discrimination in our workplaces, so why should our young footballers put up with it any longer?

I commend young players such as Tammy Abraham for speaking up on this issue ahead of international games this weekend. The pressure and responsibility on their shoulders is immense as it is – it is disgraceful that in

2019 young players must also contend with how they react to racist abuse from the stands.

Enough is enough.

Strong leadership is incredibly important to support young players – Gareth Southgate deserves credit for standing shoulder to shoulder with his team by announcing England are ready to walk off if they are racially abused.

No player should have to act in isolation if they suffer racist abuse. For the game to move forward, players must know their teams will support them every step of the way.

It is crucial to tackle racism in football once and for all – this is wider than just the game and it also impacts people’s views in wider society.

It is therefore crucial to change people’s attitudes, not just give out arbitrary punishments.

While there is likely to be a backlash to England players walking off en masse if a player experiences racist abuse, we owe it to our younger generations to show they have allies in the media, in Parliament, in the FA and our leagues.

On the pitch, the players need to know they have allies up and down their country.

We must all publicly back players when they take the brave position to walk off the pitch together in solidarity.

Without a doubt, in Westminster, they have an ally in me.

I would 100 per cent support any player or team if they decided to walk off the pitch in protest.

We owe it to society to make a stand.