Sterling: We’re tired of no one listening
CITY STAR LEADS FOOTBALLERS IN ANTI-RACISM MESSAGE
BLUES star Raheem Sterling has joined a host of footballers past and present in a campaign to demand change in the wake of the Black Lives Matter movement.
City’s Kevin de Bruyne and former players Vincent Kompany and Gael Clichy also take part in a social media video, alongside Jadon Sancho, Jordan Henderson, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Lucy Bronze, David Alaba and Gary Lineker.
Collectively, they read a message which says: “We are tired. We are tired of no one listening. We are tired of screaming for help.
“We are tired of discrimination. We are tired of protesting. We are tired of demanding social equality.
“We are tired of demanding social inclusion. We are tired of asking for change, for a better society, for a better life.
“We are tired of seeing black men die. We are tired of saying, ‘What if it was me, falling asleep like George Floyd?’ We are tired.”
The video concludes with Sterling saying: “I will never tire of being black.”
Sterling, 25, posted the video to his social media accounts with the hashtag #timeforchange.
It comes amid Black Lives Matter gaining momentum in recent weeks following the death of black American George Floyd on May 25.
Sterling said: “I feel like I speak for most black people, everyone is tired. With the protesting that is going on you see what is happening in America transferring to the UK.
“A lot of people have been in silence and is using this opportunity as a moment to be one and try to get not just answers but changes to society.”
The City forward has been on the receiving end of racial abuse from fans in England and Europe, but has revealed that it has not been confined to just the terraces in the past. He told of team-mates making ill-judged comments in the dressing room.
“Yes, sly remarks for sure. It goes on today,” he said. “It is in a jokey way but at the same people have to understand if you haven’t felt it you don’t know what it means to the person you’re saying it to.”
Premier League bosses have ordered teams to have the Black Lives Matter message on the back of shirts instead of names for the first round of matches, which kicked off last night.