Some have questioned what would be achieved by removing the players from the pitch in such circumstances. Well it would publicise the issue for a start. Yes the players could play on and ignore the vile abusive chants. But it’s easier said than done. And even if the team goes on to win by a landslide margin will that very fact deter the abusers from giving it another go the next time around? Well history has proven the answer to be no. I could guarantee that the racist taunts that were given out in Macedonia will resurface again in the future by the same crowd. And they lost against England.
The only way to address an issue is to publicise it and bring it out into the open and then tackle it head on. By removing the players from the pitch Gerard Houllier would be highlighting the problem. And he would be putting these backward people with their archaic views into the spotlight. All the world’s media would pounce on the story and the trouble causers would be exposed. Yes Gerard Houllier might lose his job. Yes Liverpool FC might face a hefty fine or even expulsion. But the problem would be highlighted.
Racism is a form of bullying. By ridiculing and goading someone because of their race the perpetrators are acting as a bullies. A bully spots what is deemed a weakness and then plays on it. The news recently has had a case where a poor kid being bullied at school took their own life. I personally know people who were bullied badly at school. The abuse they were subjected to on a daily basis was disgraceful. Yet I did nothing and I said nothing. I turned a blind eye. That poor kid has since made something of his life and is now happy. But not everyone can deal with abusive behaviour in the same way. For some it’s like water of a ducks back. For others each abusive word is like a red-hot knife thrust into the heart. In the end it becomes too much and they take tragic steps. Which is a fact.
This is why I can’t buy the notion that a player is paid vast amounts of money so they should accept the abuse. Are we to wait before a player takes his own life in much the same way? Do we have to wait until such tragic circumstances occur before we decide enough is enough? In all walks of life it seems that tragedy has to occur before something is finally done. There has been an ongoing campaign in my neighbourhood for a reduction in the speed limit in built up areas. The residents were concerned for their children. They wanted something done to combat the rat run their roads had become. Yet their pleas and campaigns fell on deaf ears. However, the changes the residents had campaigned for feverishly during the previous 5 years have now been introduced. The speed limit has been reduced and speed bumps installed. The area is now much safer. The unfortunate thing is though that a child had to die first before these changes were implemented. It took a tragedy before the authorities took notice.
Now I know that racial abuse aimed at a player does not fall into the same category. At least not yet. But do we really have to turn a blind eye and do nothing? Should I behave like I did at school and not do a thing? Even though the kid I knew was not adversely affected (at least I am assuming he has had no emotional side-effects) the fact remains that some kid somewhere has endured similar and been pushed over the edge. I could have done something back then but chose not to because I was cowardly and afraid of what reprisals I would face. Even though Gerard Houllier knows there would be recriminations the fact is he is prepared to do act speaks volumes fro the man.
Do we really have to ignore what is being chanted in the stands just like the local authorities ignored residents regarding speeding motorists? If a black footballer was to commit suicide on the basis of the abuse he had suffered would it then become an issue? Well I say it would be wrong to wait for such a circumstance. The time to act is now, before anybody is injured or hurt. And make no bones about it somebody may well get hurt. It’s not just the players being affected here. The very people hurling the abuse are winding themselves up more and more with each hate-filled abusive chant. The Macedonian crowd were seen to be near riotous with all the abuse they were chanting. If the players were to just play on, and a black player scored a decisive goal that could lead to an uncontrollable pitch invasion, the players could be placed in serious danger. This is something that could well happen one day.
We could brush under the carpet what is happening and ignore the abusive chants. Like some have argued racism has always been around. But that does not mean we should do nothing. The same can be said of crime. It has always been there and always will. But the police are at least attempting to fight the crime. If the police had the same attitude as some have then crime would spiral out of control. So the answer to a problem is to try and solve it. And part of finding the solution is acknowledging the problem is there in the first place. Just turning a blind eye or playing on in the face of this abuse is not addressing the issue. Gerard Houllier has explained his intentions should there be any abuse hurled at any of his players. He isn’t doing this to make himself look good. He acknowledges such a move could lose him his job. He is doing it because he sees the cause as a good one. And a just one. We should all be backing such a move.
The thing I have noticed more though is that this issue is not just about racially abusing people with darker skins. It is also about abusing people who come from England. Or even Britain. I am English. And I have to carry the slurs around with me wherever I go in the world. I am also from Merseyside. And I also have to carry around the slurs that go with that wherever I go. But in this case it’s not just about where I live in England. It’s the fact that I am English where I am singled out. What took place in Macedonia will probably result in a fine. Had that been in England or even English fans who had perpetrated the crime then England would be out of the Championships. No debate. No investigation. They would be out. UEFA are against the English. When you see problems occur in other countries and nothing is done you know that UEFA are biased against England.
If Gerard Houllier did take his team off the pitch UEFA would have to act. And whichever way they acted would show them up for what they are. They claim to be against racism. Well if Gerard was to remove his players from the pitch their claim would be tested. They can either come down heavy on the team whose fans were abusive or they vindicate racism by coming down heavy on Liverpool FC. It’s time they backed up their claim. And it could well be Gerard Houllier who tests that claim. I say good for him. I would be extremely proud if Gerard Houllier and Liverpool FC were instrumental in combating this deplorable slur in today’s society.