Lives matter.

Eight years ago, Black lives matter was founded in response to the acquittal of the man accused of Trayvon Martin’s murder. Martin was a seventeen-year-old black man, living in Miami. Martin was visiting his father’s fiancé when a member of the local neighbourhood watch, shot him. The man accused of the murder, George Zimmerman, claimed he acted in self-defence. Zimmerman was not initially arrested, but was later charged, following a high profile media campaign. Following Trayvon’s death, marches and protests were held across America, and an online petition calling for an investigation into his death, received over 2 million signatures.

In the Aftermath, BLM was formed with its mission to eradicate white supremacy and state-sponsored violence against black people. In the UK, this was often used to promote awareness of some of the issues faced by black people around the world, as well as celebrating famous black people’s achievements. In 2016, an organisation calling itself BLMUK were formed. Their website says their aims are to dismantle imperialism, capitalism, white supremacy and the state structures that disproportionately harm black people.

In 2020, an article in the right-wing publication, The Spectator published a list of things the organisation now stands for politically. It said BLM not only want to dismantle capitalism, but also want to abolish prisons and scrap our borders. It went on to say that BLM was against stop and search procedures, and wanted to get rid of the Police.

In May 2020, George Floyd was murdered by a serving Police officer in Minneapolis. Derek Chauvin, the officer that killed Floyd, was convicted and sentenced to twenty-two years in jail. Video clips of the events leading to Mr Floyd’s death were shared globally sparking protests around the world. Since June last year, footballers have been taking the knee before kick-off. It is generally seen as a symbol of support for the Black lives matter movement, and a further commitment to tackling racism in the game and in the broader society.

In simplistic terms, it is difficult to argue with the fundamentals. What normal, decent person doesn’t want to see their fellow humans treated fairly? What sane person wouldn’t be outraged by people being treated less kindly or not offered the same opportunities in life, based purely on the colour of their skin? In binary terms, if you don’t support anti-racism, then you are clearly part of the problem.

But life isn’t binary, and some people that are against what their perception of taking the knee symbolises.  Many feel the original message has been lost and that the gesture now equates to social media hashtags and extremist views. Some believe it is a tribute to Floyd, who has been portrayed in the press as a thug and a criminal.

In the recent European Championships, loud boos could be heard echoing around the stadiums during the act. Almost as soon as fans were allowed back in the grounds last season, fans began booing the taking of the knee. Some teams have chosen not to do it. Many football fans believe rightly or wrongly, that politics has no place in football. Indeed, football’s governing body FIFA prohibits political statements, and teams can face sanctions for breaking the rules. Manchester City manager, Pep Guardiola was fined by the FA for sporting a yellow ribbon in solidarity with the independence movement in his native Catalonia, and Celtic were fined when their fans flew a banner depicting Bobby Sands.  Much has been written about the hypocrisy of the football hierarchy.

Taking the knee originated in America, when Colin Kaerpenick took the knee during the US national anthem in protest against police brutality and racism. He said, “I am not going to get up to show pride in a country that oppresses black people and people of colour.” The NFL were quick to introduce fines for players who followed Kaerpenick’s actions. Kaepernick’s teammate, Eric Roberts, who also knelt, said  “We chose to kneel because it’s a respectful gesture. I remember thinking our posture was like a flag, flown at half-mast to mark a tragedy.”

Protests in sport are not a new thing. It can be traced back as far as the Romans. Athletes and sports stars have protested over all kinds of issues – money, gender, and of course, race.  In 1961, basketball player, Bill Russell and several of his teammates were refused service in a restaurant, while on an exhibition tour in Lexington, Kentucky. The players boycotted the game, in a ground-breaking statement. Two years later, when civil rights activist – Medgar Evans was assassinated, in Jackson, Mississippi, Russel flew to Jackson and arranged integrated basketball games.

At the Mexico city games in 1968, Tommy Smith and John Carlos refused to wear shoes during the medal ceremony and raised their fist to protest against racial discrimination.

Many people who claim not to be racist (some of them may not be), think that the gesture has gone on too long, and that it’s not needed because we are not a nation of racists. It is true. We are not a nation of racists, but it is also a fact that many people that live here are racist. It is also true that many people and many organisations indeed believe that they are not racist.

When England lost on penalties, many fans will have watched the shootout and thought ‘bloody hell, we missed three/ we lost again.’ Some of them won’t even have noticed that all three were missed by black players. The last of the three was missed by nineteen-year-old Arsenal player, Bukayo Saka. He told the BBC this week that as soon as his penalty was saved, he “knew instantly the kind of hate,” he was going to receive. Marcus Rashford, the young Manchester United star, respected and loved by many for his campaign that forced the government into a Uturn, also suffered vile racist abuse on his social media, within minutes of the defeat. All three of the young, black men that missed have received racist abuse since the tournament. Black England fans, who were watching the game have reported how they immediately knew that they would need to take a different route home, to ensure their safety.

Gareth Southgate, the man that chose the penalty takers, and Jordan Pickford – who didn’t save enough penalties for England to win, did not face the same kind of abuse. White fans watching the game didn’t have to take evasive action to get home safely, because of the colour of their skin.

Whether white people realise it or not; that’s white privilege.

Black footballers have faced racism for decades, both from the terraces and on the field. In the bad old days, bananas were thrown onto the pitch and monkey chants bellowed around the ground when a black player touched the ball. There have been several high profile campaigns, such as ‘kick it out’, that have led to some improvements, but there is still a long way to go. There are very few black managers in the game and even fewer black people in the boardrooms. The few black managers that have been successful enough to get a role in the game, are often not afforded the same leniency when performances are poor.

It’s not just a problem for football, it’s a societal problem. Yet in our other sports – rugby and cricket for example, there is not the same kind of blatant vile racism that their often is in football.

When footballers take the knee, they are doing it because they support BLM, they are not saying they want to defund the police, nor are they saying they want to over throw capitalism. They are not paying tribute to George Floyd.

They are saying that the way black people are treated is not the same as the way white people are treated. They take the knee to raise awareness, and remind fans around the world or in the stadiums that racism will not be tolerated in the game.

The phrase, Black Lives Matter is not a movement or a political organisation. It is a statement.

‘But all lives matter!’ shrieked the racists.

This week, the RLNI has been overwhelmed by huge levels of support and a considerable boost to their coffers, as donations flooded in. The son of a former stockbroker and now redundant Former Ukip leader, Nigel Farage criticised them – calling them a taxi service for illegal trafficking gangs. There will no doubt have been a segment of society, cheering Farage’s comments. The decent people of the UK however, responded with their wallets. On an average day, the RNLI received around £7,000 a day in donations. In the 24 hours after Farage’s comment was made public, the charity saw a 270% increase.

Chief executive Mark Dowie acknowledged that the migrant issue was polarising but insisted the work his volunteers do was humanitarian work of the highest order. The all lives matter brigade have been remarkably quiet.

Presumably, the people who abuse, insult and attack those that risk their lives to save those of others think it’s a waste of time, and all lives matter as long as it doesn’t interfere with their privileged lives. Yes, the criminals that prey on vulnerable people, desperate to escape poverty and war should be brought to justice and punished with the harshest possible sentences. In 2019, less than 2000 illegal immigrants entered our shores by crossing the treacherous waters of the channel. So far this year, over 8000 have made the journey – over 600 this weekend alone. Home secretary Priti Patel vowed to make crossing the channel unviable, stating her unwavering determination to stop them.

Whilst it is clear that this tiny island cannot indefinitely provide refuge to infinite numbers of people, the alternative cannot be to let them drown or perish in countries hundreds of miles away either.  If we are to hold the rest of the world to account for the way they treat people, it not good enough to sit back and say it’s not our problem. All lives do matter.

All lives matter; not just those of people that look like me, dress like me, act like me and have the same beliefs as me.

Portsmouth football club this week confirmed it had released three of their academy players after it emerged they exchanged racist messaged in a group chat. The messages followed England’s defeat to Italy. The abuse was aimed at Rashford, Sancho and Saka and included monkey emojis and other racist slurs. That is racism coming directly from inside the game. Anyone who thinks politics and sport should remain separate is naïve and misguided. If we want to stamp out this abhorrent cancer that is destroying not only our game but our society and the lives of many that live in them. If we want to stamp it out, it’s vital that it is tackled publicly, regularly and decisively.

No one is born racist, just like no one is born sexist or violent. The worst behaviours of humans are learned behaviours. We see children copying their heroes all the time. On any given weekend there are hundreds of children up and down the country copying the goal celebrations or skills and tricks that they’ve seen their heroes perform. Seeing their heroes taking the knee in gesture that says ‘racism is not acceptable and I wont tolerate it’ on a Saturday afternoon does no harm at all. That’s why we cant simply say you’ve made your point now, give over.

Similarly though, if taking a knee just becomes part of the ritual – like tossing a coin, or getting a pie at half time, it will lose the message. For this reason, I am in favour of trying different gestures. If all the players were to form a circle on the halfway line and link arms, I would not object – as long as it was accompanied by the message that racism will not be tolerated. There can be no deviation from that message, no dilution of the gesture. It needs to remain strong and uninterrupted at our games until the message is heeded and things change for good. Words alone are not enough though. Clubs need to actively try to carve out the disease. Any fan caught making racist gestures or using racist language must be banned for life from attending games. I’d also like to see them prosecuted. Fans need to be empowered to call it out too. Technology presents many options; an app that fans could use anonymously in the ground for example.