Boris Johnson and Priti Patel have been called ‘total hypocrites’ for their condemnation of racist abuse against England players – as critics pointed to ministers’ ambiguity over whether football fans should laugh at the squad national for taking the knee.
following England defeat against Italy in the Euro 2020 Finally, the police have opened an investigation into offensive and racist comments on social media directed against Three Lions players.
Both Prime Minister and the house secretary have since condemned the abuse of English players.
Still, critics have questioned Mr Johnson and Ms Patel’s previous lack of support over the England side’s decision to kneel before matches to show their opposition to racism.
Boris Johnson and his wife Carrie attended the Euro 2020 final
Last month, before the Euro 2020 tournament, the Prime Minister told English fans not to boo footballers taking the knee.
But it came after he had previously failed to criticize supporters who mocked the racial injustice protest.
Meanwhile, Ms Patel described kneeling as a “politics of gestures” and said England fans had a “choice” of whether or not to boo the players when they protested.
And Education Minister Gillian Keegan said last month that the protest – which footballers started after last year’s Black Lives Matter protests – “was creating a divide.”
Speaking to Sky News on Monday, former England defender Gary Neville said dealing with racism “starts at the top” while highlighting some of the Prime Minister’s past comments.
“He said Muslim women look like letterboxes,” the Sky Sports specialist said. “Shouldn’t we be emphasizing this more often?
The former Manchester United player described Mr Johnson and England manager Gareth Southgate as “absolutely poles apart”, adding: “You can be a leader and a gentleman, you can be ruthless but have empathy and .. .
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Source: news.sky.com
This notice was published: 2021-07-12 09:08:00
