Football homophobia stays in play
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The fight against anti-gay behaviour on the pitch has been further set back by the FA's delay of a video campaign
By Peter Tatchell, human rights campaigner
The Guardian - Comment is Free - London – 10 February 2010
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/feb/10/football-homophobia-video-campaign
The Football Association’s commitment to tackling homophobia has taken
a severe battering. After removing many key individuals and groups from
its highly effective Tackling Homophobia Working Group, it has now
suddenly postponed this week’s planned launch of its ground-breaking
anti-homophobia video advert.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2010/feb/08/fa-delay-homophiobia-video
While the FA and other national football associations have long
challenged racism, the video is the first high-profile attempt to give
homophobia the red card. A world first for football, it’s release this
week would have given the FA huge prestige; stamping its mark as a
trail-blazing organisation that is leading the world in making football
welcoming and safe for gay players, fans and officials.
Produced by award-winning advertising agency, Ogilvy, the video was due
to be unveiled at Wembley Stadium, with a fanfare of publicity and the
backing of FA chairman, Lord Triesman. The plan was to put it on
YouTube, do a viral campaign via the internet and get all professional
clubs to broadcast it on stadium screens at half-time.
The last minute postponement came just days before the launch and weeks
after the official invites were sent out; causing dismay among football
and gay groups who were backing the project, including the football
diversity and equality campaign, Kick It Out, and the gay rights groups
OutRage! and the Gay Football Supporters Network.
Although there are fears that the video might be quietly shelved, the
FA insists that the launch has been delayed, not cancelled. It
justifies the postponement with the claim that it needs to review its
strategy on tackling anti-gay prejudice and how the video fits into the
overall campaign.
The FA’s justification is hard to swallow. The video and strategy was
agreed nearly two years ago and reconfirmed late last year. I know
because I proposed the idea and have helped guide it through the FA’s
decision-making procedures. It was conceived as one strand in a
multi-strand strategy to challenge prejudice on the pitch and on the
terraces. The FA saw and approved the video script. It delegated Kick
It Out to produce it in association with the Ogilvy ad agency.
I suspect the real reason for the deferment is that when top FA
officials saw the video they felt uneasy over its visceral homophobic
language, even though this abuse is intended to expose and shame
bigots. They lacked the confidence to defend the video they
commissioned, in the same way they have often failed to robustly
condemn homophobia on the pitch. Where was the FA’s public condemnation
of the anti-gay taunts against players like Cristiano Ronaldo, Sol
Campbell and Ashley Cole? Why did the FA (and UEFA) refuse to take
action against the homophobic abuse involving Paul Scholes?
The video that has been produced was not my first preference. I always
argued for an MTV-style format, with an uplifting, positive message,
featuring a good music track and top straight players speaking out
against homophobia. I wanted to see big-name stars like David Beckham,
Rio Ferdinand, David James and Stephen Gerard give homophobia the boot.
Their involvement would have sent an influential message to fans in
Britain and worldwide; helping promote the idea that homophobia is
uncool and unacceptable. Sadly, I was out-voted.
The video agreed by the Football Association and Kick It Out takes a
different, but also valid, angle to challenge homophobia. It features
strong, arresting homophobic language. The main character, a youngish
man, abuses a newspaper seller, tube train passenger and an office
worker with anti-gay taunts. The video finishes with him shouting
homophobic abuse at a football match. The captions make the point that
since homophobia is not acceptable at work, it should not be be
acceptable on the terraces either.
The ad agency’s advice was that shock tactics could be an effective
psychological device to expose and shame bigoted fans into toning down
their homophobia. Ogilvy are professionals and experts in these
matters. I can see their reasoning and believe the video will help
challenge some of the bigots we are targeting.
Nevertheless, the video has been denounced by gay former NBA basketball
star John Amaechi. He calls it “offensive,” “incendiary,” and “vulgar.”
Unlike John, I don't object to the use of anti-gay abuse to make a
point. The shock value is likely to give the video the impact and
controversy necessary to generate publicity and debate. It will get
people talking, which is a good thing.
The video launch postponement comes on top of the FA’s dissolution of
the broad-based Tackling Homophobia Working Group. Set up several years
ago, the group had helped push forward many of the FA’s constructive
initiatives to rid football of homophobia. These
include amending the FA’s ground rules to render people who chant
anti-gay taunts liable to eviction from stadiums and arrest.
Regrettably, enforcement is still weak and patchy. The FA needs to be
more robust in requiring stewards to identify fans who shout homophobic
abuse and to insist that the police arrest and charge them – in the
same way that they arrest and charge racist fans.
The FA has now reconstituted the Working Group with a hand-picked, much
smaller and less representative number of members. It no longer
includes all interested stakeholders. Many relevant lesbian and gay
groups are not included. This does not inspire confidence. Even now,
the FA will not explain why the old Working Croup was disbanded. Nor
has it made public who is on the new Working Group. I don’t know.
This video is, of course, just a start. Sport is one the last great
bastions of homophobia, and football is one of the least gay-friendly
of all sports. Among other future initiatives, I would like to see FA
securing the agreement of all clubs to feature anti-homophobia messages
in their match programmes, on tickets and on billboards inside and
outside football grounds. Why not? Why the reluctance?
True, not all footie fans, officials and players are homophobic. Most
are not. But there is a homophobic hard-core. They need to be
challenged, to rid the beautiful game of the ugliness of prejudice. Not
next year. Now.
Examples of FA inaction against homophobia:
http://www.petertatchell.net/sport/ronaldogayslur.htm
http://www.petertatchell.net/sport/campbellabusespursshame.htm
http://www.petertatchell.net/sport/ashleycole.htm
http://www.petertatchell.net/sport/paulscholes2.htm