Kick It Out, the organisation aimed at eradicating racism in football, is facing its biggest challenge in its nineteen-year history as players and fans alike begin to lose faith in its ability to tackle racial discrimination. Rio Ferdinand, Jason Roberts and Joleon Lescott have all recently turned their back on the movement, deciding not to wear ‘Kick It Out’ warm up t-shirts as is customary during a specifically targeted K.I.O fortnight. This comes on the back of two high profile cases, those of Luis Suarez and John Terry, whom many feel were not dealt with severely enough by the F.A.
At the end of last season, Joey Barton, a player perpetually hounded by both the media and the public for his aggressive manner, lashed out at Sergio Aguero, receiving a red card and a 12-match ban. The punishment was questioned by few; though his reputation might have proceeded the length of the ban, the F.A sent a clear message that such behaviour would not be dealt with lightly. After all, a game which showed children everything that was right about competitive sport was threatened to be tarnished by an act which offered a glimpse of the everything that isn’t.
The problem is not the length of Barton’s ban; it is the ludicrous inconsistency when it is compared to the punishments dished out to Luis Suarez and John Terry, both found guilty by an F.A. tribunal of racially derogatory behaviour. Suarez received eight games, Terry, who at the time was the captain of our national football team, got just four. There is simply no justification for treating kicking the back of somebody’s leg as an act three times worse than racially abusing another player.
English football should be proud of its efforts to eliminate racism both from the domestic and international game. The Premier League stands at the forefront of world football in this regard; a league built on a firm basis of multiculturalism and racial tolerance with players from 73 different nationalities competing. When other countries fail to meet England’s high standards, as occurred only too recently in Serbia where England under-21 player Danny Rose was on the receiving end of monkey chants, the F.A. should lead calls for FIFA to enforce tough punishments.
But this position is seriously weakened if the F.A. continues to act toothless in the face of domestic racism. Change must come from the top, there is no way the problem can be eliminated unless those in charge radically alter the way they look at the actions of players like Terry. If our very own captain can be found guilty of racially abusing a black player and handed a ban only one game worse than that earned by a bad challenge, how much weight does a call for Serbia to be banned from international football hold?
Though the decision not to wear the ‘Kick it Out’ t-shirts is borne out of an understandable intention, it is entirely the wrong thing to do. The organisation is not to blame for the weak punishments handed out by the F.A, in fact its aim is to bring about the exact opposite. Rather than shun Kick it Out, Ferdinand et al. would have had a far better, and more positive impact if they actively endorsed it. Their actions have seriously threatened the long term future of the movement and its effectiveness in dealing with a problem which is showing no sign of disappearing. Going forward, Kick It Out needs the support of each and every player in the football league and below if it is to achieve its aim.
Moreover, there is talk of the creation of a black football players association, similar in organisation to the Black Police Officers Association. Clark Carlisle, current chair of the PFA, is right in his assessment of such a move as being divisive. It would almost certainly be a step backwards in efforts to end racial intolerance.
Much has changed since the 70’s and 80’s, when racism was systemic and black players were forced to endure brutal hostility from fans and players alike. But there should be no complacency within the game that the problem has been solved, recent events are surely enough to make it clear this is not the case.
Kick It Out has had terrific success and will continue to do so if it receives the backing, both financial and otherwise from the F.A. and the Premier League. Not wearing Kick it Out t-shirts may have highlighted the problem, but wearing them alone is not the solution.