Information » Sport & Leisure » Equality and Sport » Racism and Sport
- Sport helps to unite people of all nationalities and races, but sometimes ethnic minorities can find themselves disadvantaged in the sporting arena
- Ethnic minorities have in the past been excluded in sport and overlooked by coaches
- Professional sportspeople are also sometimes subjected to racist taunts from spectators
- Commitment to racial equality will encourage more people from all ethnic backgrounds to take part in sport
- It will also lead to fairer, more diverse representation at all levels in coaching and in sport
Sporting Equals
- Most of the Commission for Racial Equality's (CRE) work insport is co-ordinated by Sporting Equals , a national initiative working to promote racial equality through a partnership with Sport England
- In 1999, a survey by Sporting Equals of 62 governing bodies of sport found that they needed more guidance, support and information to help them address racial equality issues within their sport
- Sporting Equals works with the governing bodies and with key national umbrella organisations to develop policies and working practices that promote racial equality
- It has also produced a racial equality charter for sport and has assisted the Local Government Association in producing its Promoting Racial Equality Through Sport standard
Let's Kick Racism Out of Football
- The Let's Kick Racism Out of Football campaign was started in 1993 by the CRE and the Professional Footballers' Association, with support from the Football Trust
- It aimed 'to ensure that all who go to see or play football can do so without fear of racial abuse or harassment'
- Almost all of the professional football clubs in England and Wales immediately pledged their support for the campaign's 10-point action plan
- In 1995, the Football Association, football's governing body, committed itself to kicking racism out of the game when a new organisation was formed
- The Advisory Group Against Racism and Intimidation (AGARI) was made up of representatives of all the main organisations in football - the first time ever that all football organisations had come together in a single cause
- In 1997, the campaign changed its name to Kick It Out and became independent of the CRE
- The campaign's priorities are:-
- professional football: to ensure a continuing high profile among
- professional clubs
- young people: to develop educational resources for use by young people in schools, colleges and youth organisations
- amateur football:
to work within grassroots and amateur football to eradicate racism in 'parks' football - Asians in football: to develop solutions to the problem of the marginalisation of Asians from many areas of the game
- black communities: to increase the participation of local ethnic minority communities within professional football clubs
- European football: to highlight the issue of racism in European football and develop anti-racist networks
