Players taking the knee

That's not what I'm saying at all. Read my post properly before spewing your sarky, paranoid, knee-jerk responses.
I said that 'only a handful' of overtly racist far right morons - ie the kind that go on EDL marches with fascists like Tommy Robinson - would boycott matches. The rest of the supporters, whether or not they agree with taking the knee, would still attend matches.
I have never said that all Brexiteers are racist and I never said that all those opposed to the knee are either. You have completely misinterpreted my post, which was actually designed to counter the insinuation that large numbers of supporters would boycott games, out of racist motives, because of taking the knee.

 

I wouldn't be too sure about that. You'd think that in 2020/21 supporting anti-racism wouldn't be even slightly controversial. Yet, as taking the knee has highlighted, it's far from an homogenous mass of enlightened views.

 

If you think you are speaking for the majority of people about this issue, you are deluded.

 

Bullshit. You are saying out loud what most other people you mix with think. You persistently have this idea that you are representative of the majority of people in this country. You most certainly are not. The country is almost equally divided between those with broadly liberal views and those with broadly conservative views. I suspect that you neither know or mix with very few liberals just as I know or mix with very few conservatives. But, even amongst those people who are broadly conservative, your views are towards the more extreme end.

 

* See above poll

 

* See above poll

 

I have thank you. I won't begin to argue with you about valid research findings or the interpretation of statistics.

 

One of the main problems with 'taking the knee' is that there is a wide range of reasons why people support / are opposed to it. Its not an entirely binary decision and reducing it to that just polarises society further when actually we should be bringing people together.

Saying it is not political is one thing, but I don't believe the current government supports it which has made it political.
Saying it is in no way affiliated with BLM is one thing, but last season the players had all replaced their names with Black Live Matter on their shirts - I don't think enough has been done to distance the gesture from the BLM movement which is clearly unpopular / divisive.

There's a reason why no-one has ever booed 'Kick it out' or any other anti-racism campaign in football.

FWIW, I don't think we should boo but the gesture should stop.

 

And you think this forum is representative of the general views of the population, do you?

This is a football forum FFS. That alone makes it a select group with a bias towards social conservatism. It is massively male-dominated for a start. Almost certainly it is predominantly white. It's overwhelmingly northern (obviously). Its class and occupation composition is unlikely to be anywhere near representative of the general population makeup of this country.

Nearly all of my friends and acquaintances are liberal in their views. The vast majority of them have no interest in football whatsoever. There are huge swathes of society with very different views from yours that you clearly have no idea even exist, much less come into regular contact with. The idea that this forum is an accurate snapshot of what 'most people think', is laughable.

 

they could but it wouldn’t count as the game hasn’t started

 

Well said, totally agree with this.

 

Why? What is disgusting or filthy about a simple gesture designed to highlight the issue of racism in football?

 

Good post. So much of the narrative around sensitive matters such as race and gender is creating more division, not less. Personally, I'm generally of the view that political/social matters should be kept out of football and whilst I have no issue with players having the choice whether to take the knee, I think its a largely hollow gesture that's run its course. I also don't buy into the narrative that booing the gesture automatically categorises someone as racist - i think that's a lazy assumption to make.

 

Sorry 1975 but I must disagree with your comments about the Zigger Zagger chant.
I, along with a large group of fans was involved with this in the Bradford End as a teenager (1964 - 68?)
In fact sometimes I started the chant going.
I can remember it as if it was only yesterday.
It went: Zigger Zagger, Zigger Zagger, Oi Oi Oi (x3) Whatsi Wha Wa - Woooooo
At no time ever was the N word or any other offensive word used - never ever.
I believe that we got it from some film or other (Zulu??). Maybe Bronco can remember?

 

The particular chant may not have been longstanding but did happen. I remember that even in those days I was quite shocked by it.

 

I never missed a game in those days and can categorically state that I never heard the chant quoted by @1975citygent. It was exactly as @Bantam-in-Greece recalls.

 

So in summary is there a good reason for a fan to stick their oar in and boo or not

I get players and teams who won't do it because they don't think it's effective and doesn't address the issue of racism enough fair enough that's a fine reason no problem with that each to their own

But on that score what's the reason fans don't respect other people's opinions on this matter is it just because they're naive enough to think politics and sports don't go together

 

The idea that taking the knee is an offensive gesture is bizarre. It has a history going back to the 60s and was reintroduced by an American sportsman.
It seems that some, such as our resident right wing curmudgeon, consider the knee to be offensive, because it has been adopted by a group that is totally unrepresentative of the anti racism movement. By the same logic, you'd have to regard flying the English flag of St George as an offensive gesture, because it has been adopted by various brands of neo-fascists and white supremacists, which would be ridiculous.

 

Personally I'm sick of racism. Of course it can stop.