We point the finger at other countries but the poison and hate of racism is here, infecting our shiny new grounds
IT FEELS like Groundhog Day because of the latest racist incident with Antonio Rudiger.
I’ve written an open letter about this on Twitter and when it’s Bulgaria against England, it’s a very easy thing for us to say ‘it’s them, it’s Italy, it’s Spain’.
But when we reach out this long finger to point at other countries, it makes us feel good that we are some kind of tolerant oasis, a nirvana free of racism.
We got to a point where we kidded ourselves because organisations like Kick It Out exist, because the Premier League dedicated a full two match days to putting out banners on the pitches, that we didn’t have a problem, where, putting it in the vernacular in the crudest terms, we thought our s**t don’t stink.
What Sunday proves finally is that the political poison that has been allowed to seep into society over the last three-anda-half years has re-awoken the tensions, the spite and hatred I grew up with as a kid.
It’s now got to the point where people like me have been denied work and branded a rabble rouser for talking about it. I was accused of playing the race card for speaking out. Yet, everything I said 10 years ago
– that this was a growing problem, that glossy brochures, hashtags, or two-week campaigns would not work – has been proven to be true.
The racism of the far right is knocking on the door of our shiny new grounds and asking to be part of the discourse of our football life.
I will happily criticise broadcasters or newspapers, as I have done over this, even if I lose another job.
But let me give you a comment from one of our most high-profile black broadcasters and this will sum up where we are. They sent me a message which said ‘great piece and let me tell you something privately, your point about presenters is closer to home than you can imagine. I was asked to remove a tweet calling out racism and with the risk of losing my home if I do not work, how can I criticise my bosses? Racism to many is an opinion, not a crime’. So we have to rely on people like Gary Neville (above), high-profile white ex-players and white broadcasters because the landscape now means there’s very little diversity.
Neville saying what he said and then having this public disclaimer by Sky – saying those are the views of Neville and not Sky Sports – was just the final kick in the teeth on a day when if you were a black player, black fan or any reasonable fan, you just thought can we end this facade that our problem is any less than that of Bulgaria or Italy or any other country?
Everything is reactive, nothing is proactive. We have a two-day period, and this must be the 15th or 20th time it’s happened, where everyone gets offended and says it’s a disgrace and then nothing happens.
Instead of after two days doing nothing, why not make these two days the start of something?
If these players get racially abused in the future, let’s encourage them to walk off now. Let’s put the spotlight on the Premier League, the FA, the PFA and Kick It Out.
Instead of turning a blind eye to it and putting out statements and brochures and banners, let’s say now the next time this happens at a ground, forget the protocol, off we go. Then actively see these people ejected from the ground before we go back on to the pitch.
Please, please, please can everyone come together and do something because I am sick and tired of this cancer really taking hold in our game.