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Shaka Hislop is a founding member and honorary chairman of Show Racism the Red Card, a UK-based anti-racism education charity founded in 1995. A graduate of Howard University, Hislop played professionally as a goalkeeper in Reading, Newcastle, West Ham , Portsmouth. and FC Dallas. He played internationally for Trinidad and Tobago International, representing his country at the 2006 World Cup. He now works as an expert at ESPN FC Daily and hosts a new ESPN + series, in which he and guests discuss racism at the soccer and beyond.
My father was part of the Windrush generation and moved to England from Trinidad in the mid-1960s. One night he and a friend were arrested by two white policemen, who put a bunch of keys on them and started breaking the windows. of the car. They successfully sued the London Metropolitan Police for wrongful arrest, and with his part of the settlement, Dad returned to Trinidad, met my mother, and studied law.
What I learned from my father was that even though the system hurt him, he was involved in trying to improve it. He became a lawyer, a judge, part of the Trinidad judicial system. Years later, those life lessons led me to get involved with Show Racism the Red Card. At that time I was playing for Newcastle and started going to schools to talk to young people about our cause.
Shaka Hislop, left, with her parents Gina and George. Shaka hislopHow things have changed
Looking back 25 years, the language used around social justice was simple and smooth, a reflection of how you had to express things, how you had to express them. Back then, you were seen speaking.
Today you can be more direct in what you have to say. Today, there is a greater willingness of people, regardless of skin color, to listen to what we have to say. That reflects a greater understanding, but there is much more to do.
In February 2018, TV host Laura Ingraham said LeBron James should “shut up and haggle,” reflecting what we’ve been told and what we’ve been doing for generations, with zero positive impact. LeBron’s response was effectively to say that while we will continue to haggle, we will not shut up and use our platforms to drive equality and social change.
However, the Jacob Blake shooting showed that despite all the protests, all the marches, all the kneeling, all the efforts, there was no change, so the next logical step for us as athletes was to stop dribbling. That is why athletes in various sports recently stopped playing as a form of protest. We must be prepared to take similar and meaningful action again. We owe it to our communities and to others. We owe it to equality and to all those who continue to devalue.
What happened to Blake and George Floyd infuriated me. I know the statistics, my father lived them, but this somehow felt different. I tried to avoid watching Floyd’s video for a long time. I was trying to figure out why it shocked me the way it did. My oldest daughter recently turned 24 and my son 13 a few weeks ago.
SHOW RACISM THE RED CARD ON ESPN +
Shaka Hislop speaks with prominent players, past and present, about racism in soccer and beyond.
• Weston McKennie
• The Ferdinands
• Leroy Rosenior, Chris Powell
• Ged Grebby, John Beresford
They face the world on their own and have to deal with these incidents. When you are a parent, you believe that you can protect your children from these things. When I started with Show Racism the Red Card, I really felt like I could change the world. Some 25 years later, I feel like I have let my children down; I didn’t keep that promise.
Now they have to go out into this world and, as a parent, you care. Where are you going? What are they doing? What happens if the police stop them? My wife talked to my son about what to do and how to behave and just because his white friends do something, that doesn’t mean their experience will be the same as hers. Having that conversation with him at age 12 was difficult.
When I walk into a department store, I always stop and look at the camera so they have a complete picture of my face. I may walk without looking at anything in particular, but I mean I have nothing to hide; I’m not here with anything suspicious in mind. Things like that and keeping your hands visible may seem small, but they help explain what it means to be black in today’s society.
In March, my family and I participated in a Black Lives Matter march in Boston. It was early in the pandemic, so there were health concerns about participating, but we took precautions and felt much better about participating. We were part of the group, we weren’t leaders and we just joined in the singing, and it felt so much bigger than us. It was uplifting for me, as someone who has been involved in a similar campaign for most of my adult life, to see the youth, diversity, and energy in that crowd.
play1: 11EXCLUSIVE – McKennie offers solutions to racism in football
USMNT’s Weston McKennie says he fully supports players who leave the field if they receive racial abuse.
Players talk, they get involved
There is a lot of risk in speaking and you will be criticized, so I am full of admiration for the actions of Raheem Sterling, Weston McKennie, Jadon Sancho and others; players willing to put everything on the line.
If you want to talk, be honest. People respect and will respond to that. Recognize your target audience and find a unified voice; Too often, campaigns get lost in the vastness of the internet and drown each other.
However, not everyone is comfortable speaking in public or in front of a camera, so I never criticize players who are not so vocal. For those in that category, look for other meaningful ways to support social justice. Financial contributions are one way, but joining a march can be so important in spreading the message that it starts with kneeling before games, t-shirts, and hashtags.
– Stream Show Racism The Red Card on ESPN +
– More to do than kneel – Ferdinand
– Premier League jerseys to say ‘There is no place for racism’
Many clubs already do great things in their communities, while Show Racism the Red Card volunteers go to schools and judge art and essay-writing contests. Sometimes being there and showing support requires nothing more than your presence.
I know from my own experience that you spend a lot of time in your craft, and maybe you have a family at home, so they become your focus and it’s hard to convince them to attend after-school programs and deal with rush hour traffic, but Players must do more to participate, even if it is once a month or every other week.
What players can do is not only support, but promote what is being done. Whatever issue is most important to you, showing up can make an impact. Soccer has started the conversation and raised awareness. It is the players’ responsibility to continue that.
play1: 21Les Ferdinand: I don’t want to wear a badge … I want to change
QPR President Les Ferdinand talks about racism in soccer on the latest episode of “Show Racism the Red Card” on ESPN +.
What can be done at the highest level?
When I was nearing the end of my career, I took courses to earn my coach badges, but other black players felt it was pointless because they wouldn’t get interviews for open positions. That always stayed with me. Many might consider coaching, but here were some incredibly talented footballers, who had seen it all and won it all, who refused to take the next step because they felt they would be overlooked for a backroom staff position or as coach of youth teams. .
The Rooney Rule, which was established in 2003 by the NFL as a policy that required teams to interview minority candidates for coaching positions, is a step in dealing with the perception many black people have on the game; at least it would increase the pool of candidates and get more feet on more doors.
STREAM ESPN FC DAILY ON ESPN +
Dan Thomas joins Craig Burley, Shaka Hislop and others in bringing you the latest highlights and debating the biggest stories. Stream on ESPN + (US only).
I don’t think clubs or leagues should be told that they should have a certain number of black coaches or assistants, but I do believe that, at the academy and youth level, for example, there may be a certain number. From there, those who do well will have more opportunities; this is how the pipeline can work effectively.
If there isn’t a big change yet, the conversation should be revised, but this would at least be a start and could benefit the game as a whole; Beyond coaching and management, the domino effect could be more opportunities for Black people in boardrooms and headquarters, in clubs, and on league and national federation executive committees.
Premier League players have shown their support for social justice in a number of ways. GettySoccer as a unifying force
As the most popular sport in the world, soccer is full of people who understand the power of the game and try to use it for their own means. An example of a competing agenda against social justice is the argument that there are few other occupations in which blacks can earn as much money. Using that to discredit the anti-racism movement is very disappointing to hear and counterproductive to everything I believe.
Soccer is the perfect vehicle to push issues against racism. Where else in the world is it possible to find someone from Trinidad and Tobago sharing a dressing room with someone from England, Ireland, Colombia, Belgium? And everyone going out to the field on a Saturday, having to support each other. When I play well, I have to cheer for someone else, and when I don’t, I know I can trust someone else to carry my own load. We all left the field with the same result; Where else can you get that? For me, that is the basis of why the sport is in a unique position.
Marching in Boston reminded me that this is more than Black Lives Matter; it’s about human rights and how raising one cause can benefit others. Just getting involved is incredibly empowering, and while the focus always falls on the core initiatives and their leaders, the lifeblood is on the people who simply show up.
They say that “a high tide lifts all boats.” My message to game lovers is simple: whether you speak up or stay quiet, introduce yourself and be part of the movement.
Source: espn.co.uk
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