Reaction to banner can turn it into a positive - PFA man
IFFY Onuora hopes the offensive banner flown over the Etihad Stadium on Monday night will act as a catalyst for further conversations about the Black Lives Matter movement.
Onuora, a well-travelled former footballer in the English lower leagues, is now the Professional Footballers’ Association equalities officer.
He was reacting to the plane which flew above the ground trailing the words “White lives matter Burnley” just after kick-off between Manchester City and the Clarets.
It occurred just moments after all players had taken a knee in support of the Black Lives Matter movement.
Burnley issued a strong statement condemning the banner during half-time, and captain Ben Mee spoke passionately about the incident after the match.
Former Huddersfield and Gillingham striker Onuora said: “The words themselves aren’t offensive, it’s just the context. It’s the rejection of the conversation we’re having at the moment. That’s what it represents.
“I guess people have the right to do it. For me it’s just proof again that these things can lead to positive things because all that’s been said in the 12 hours since the game finished has been, again, a catalyst, another conversation to have.
“I think the good thing is that we are at such a transformative point now in the year and in football, all that’s gone on, that this just expands it again and hopefully leads to more conversations.
“For everyone out there these are uncomfortable conversations and we’ve got to have them. There’s nothing wrong with doing that, being comfortable with being uncomfortable.”
Mee told BBC radio after the game: “We as a group of players condemn it, we’re ashamed. We are embarrassed that our name was in it. That they tried to attach it to our club - it doesn’t belong anywhere near our club. Fans like that don’t deserve to be around football.”
Burnley said the perpetrators would be banned for life if identified.
“We wish to make it clear that those responsible are not welcome at Turf Moor,” their statement read. “This, in no way, represents what Burnley FC stands for and we will work fully with the authorities to identify those responsible and issue lifetime bans.”
Kick It Out, English football’s anti-racism charity, said the sentiments of the banner represented a misunderstanding of the BLM initiative.
“The point of Black Lives Matter is not to diminish the importance of other people’s lives,” said chairman Sanjay Bhandari.
“It is to highlight that black people are being denied certain human rights simply by virtue of the colour of their skin. It is about equality. We shall continue to support the Black Lives Matter movement and the fight for greater equality for all in football.”
Burnley never got going after the plane fly-past incident. Already weakened by injuries, they lost 5-0.