'Racist' Milwall Fans - Your View?

[andy-hughes]

There has been controversy about the reaction to players 'taking the knee' at a weekend game, where Milwall fans were heard to boo the players involved.

https://www.derbytelegraph.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/fa-launch-probe-after-millwall-4774697

It appears the FA are investigating the potential for action against the club for the 'racsist actions' of its fans.

Personally, I don't believe that showing your disapproval of an act of support for a social campaign - or a political organisation, depending on your viewpoint, equates to either not supporting that campain / organisation, or to actively advising your support of an opposite point of view.

Put simply, I don't believe that booing 'taking the knee' makes anyone a racist.

It's an assumption that has no basis in reason, and to me, it shows people being far too keen to look at a negative attitude to one behaviour, and ascribe it possessing a negative attitude to another, with no viable connection.

I am not a football fan, and I wouldn't ever boo anyone, or any action in public, but I do strongly dislike the pointless OTT woke-ism and self-righteousness of 'taking the knee' and I believe it has no place in our sports arenas, but if anyone were to accuse me of being a racist for expressing that view, we would be having serious words.

What are your views?

[Khandro]

Peer pressure? - certainly. I have sympathy for the players who have feelings of ambivalence; there is pressure from their managers to make this increasingly absurd gesture, they either do it & feel bad of themselves or don't do it & risk censure from the virtue signalers.

It is also probably bad for their game to commence playing with politics on their brains instead of football.

The way to end it is for everyone to publicise exactly what BLM's agenda actually is, but will the Beeb & Sky etc. do it ? Hmmmm.

[emmie]

but its not unknown for them to boo, right?

[ichkeria]

“ You listened to it - and from that concluded it definitely emanated from hatred. That's clever! ”

It didn’t sound like brotherly love to me :-)
Not even a concern that on balance this whole thing had gone too far.
It was nasty

[Mozz71]

It's not unknown for.any football crowd to boo Emm.

[emmie]

but they seem to stand out for their vocal protestations, i don;t get involved because i don;t care for the footie, but they seem to be in the sports news a lot

[chelle7272]

Millwall have a history of violence and racism, they were charged just last year, so a fair chance it did come from hatred I would say

[emmie]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-24422742

[emmie]

as i said i don't care much for the footie but do read the news from time to time, and Millwall aren;t the only club to get into hot water.

[emmie]

doesn't make it right but there you are.

[royfromaus]

Millwall's notorious F Troop had black members back in the day.
Maybe the Bushwackers have a no blacks policy?

[10ClarionSt]

I posted this reply in the "Dawn French" thread. I also meant to add that it's not being racist if you disagree with BLM. It just isn't.

This is a quote from the article:

"We need to focus on justice for a huge chunk of our countrymen and women who seem to have a very bad, weird deal from the day they're born."

I can't seem to reconcile that with the large number of succesful black people in this country. It seems almost hypocritical to me that professional footballers "take the knee", when that is one of the most successful areas for black people. And not badly paid either. Other areas have their fair share; the professions, legal and accountancy, education, the civil service, broadcasting etc. The present government has black people in the cabinet. How successful do they want black people to be? What special cases are we talking about? What injustices are there?

If people want to boo someone elses views, that has always been a feature of politics and campaigning in this country. It's not wrong to disagree, and it's not a crime. And various organisations shouldn't patronise and lecture the population just because they have an alternative point of view.

[Theland]

Douglas Murray addresses this kind of thing in his book, ''The Madness Of Crowds''
Have you ever, as I have, stood in a trade union meeting when a show of hands is asked for?
See some hands shoot up, and others dithering, waiting to join the majority. Peer pressure.
It would take some guts to be a player remaining standing, whose attitude is, ''I am anti racist, but this is not the way to deal with it.''

[brainiac]

Do these footballers 'taking the knee' not see that BAME players are now in the majority in very many league football teams? They've not been held back, have they?

[Theland]

Many do not want equality, bit superiority.

[andy-hughes]

chelle - // Millwall have a history of violence and racism, they were charged just last year, so a fair chance it did come from hatred I would say //

That is exactly the sort of conclusion jumping that I pointed out, and that makes me feel uneasy.

Because a club's supporters has a reputation for racist attitudes, it may mean that their booing is based on that racist attitude - but to simply assume it to be so is in my view, a dangerous attitude, easily spread to other areas of thinking.

[Khandro]

Everyone has the right to boo at anything they care to - it's freedom of speech (or rather sound :o). If someone doesn't like it they must explain to them why, not insist on shutting them up.

In other words, the answer to speech you don't like is more speech.

[Peter Pedant]

yeah agree candy - mwah mwah - in a chaste and safe way
more jaw jaw and not law law as Ch Ch may have said

I think the idea of footballers holding hands and kissing each other for Black lives matter
is good

I mean when have they failed to kiss and whoop ?

[ichkeria]

“ Because a club's supporters has a reputation for racist attitudes, it may mean that their booing is based on that racist attitude - but to simply assume it to be so is in my view, a dangerous attitude, easily spread to other areas of thinking.”

Which is a bit like saying that just because we know a dog barks it’s dangerous to assume that the last time it made a barking sound it wasn’t actually a fart ...
Racist or not it was objectionable and plainly not done out of unease

[douglas9401]

Has our famously teetotal questioner finally been seduced by Bacchus? :-)

[TrevorThePug]

Millwall fans may have reacted from a racist viewpoint. They may also be inherently thick.

Both have been true in the past and both are possibly true for last week, but this time we'll give them the benefit of the doubt. I'm sure they'll show their true colours (whiteness) with the roman salute and monkey chants before the season ends.