Home secretary Priti Patel has been called out by footballer Tyrone Mings after she attempted to condemn the racist abuse of England players after their Euro 2020 final defeat against Italy.
In a tweet to her followers, Patel described how she felt “disgusted” at the fact that some of the players have been “subject to vile racist abuse on social media.”
“It has no place in our country and I back the police to hold those responsible accountable,” she added.
I am disgusted that @England players who have given so much for our country this summer have been subject to vile racist abuse on social media.
— Priti Patel (@pritipatel) July 12, 2021
It has no place in our country and I back the police to hold those responsible accountable.
But many say her stance reeks of hypocrisy, after previously refusing to criticise fans who booed the England team for the “gesture politics” of taking the knee in protest against racial inequality.
“That’s a choice for them [fans] quite frankly,” she told broadcaster GB News just last month.
She added: “I just don’t support people participating in that type of gesture politics.”
She declined to answer whether she would boo the England team herself, saying: “I’ve not gone to a football match to even contemplate that.”
Perhaps the most vocal criticism of the home secretary’s comments came from the Aston Villa defender who wrote: “You don’t get to stoke the fire at the beginning of the tournament by labelling our anti-racism message as ‘Gesture Politics’ & then pretend to be disgusted when the very thing we’re campaigning against, happens.”
You don’t get to stoke the fire at the beginning of the tournament by labelling our anti-racism message as ‘Gesture Politics’ & then pretend to be disgusted when the very thing we’re campaigning against, happens. https://t.co/fdTKHsxTB2
— Tyrone Mings (@OfficialTM_3) July 12, 2021
Mings, who isn’t afraid of voicing his opinion and taking a stance (Mings took part in Black Lives Matter protests last year) has been widely praised from across the sport and media landscape for his response to Patel and standing up to politicians.
Top bins
— Tez (@tezilyas) July 12, 2021
Incredible
— Nish Kumar (@MrNishKumar) July 12, 2021
Give Mings BBC Sports Personality of the Year for that tweet.
— amar singh (@amarjourno) July 12, 2021
https://t.co/ENUT8rrBUZ pic.twitter.com/MEd2oaEpwT
— Sam (@spud284) July 12, 2021
Absolutely 1 million percent. 🙌🏻 https://t.co/PLkLansy6G
— Ralf Little 💙 (@RalfLittle) July 12, 2021
People saying it’s rare to see an athlete taking on a politician so directly, but they should realise that for Mings and his teammates this is personal, they were directly targeted. They have every right to speak up. https://t.co/zgq7PQi4Up
— tariq panja (@tariqpanja) July 12, 2021
Well said, Tyrone. https://t.co/wbIWAHrrx1
— Henry Winter (@henrywinter) July 12, 2021
Rare to see a footballer taking on a senior government minister so directly https://t.co/vgwOtzWiFW
— Jon Sopel (@BBCJonSopel) July 12, 2021
Don't even care if the reincarnations of Baresi and Beckenbauer suddenly emerge, give Tyrone Mings a hundred more caps. pic.twitter.com/owDCc7Uu8w
— Grace Robertson 🏳️⚧️ (@GraceOnFootball) July 12, 2021
Boris Johnson and Priti Patel were clearly betting on the fact that the England team wouldn’t directly call out their culture war race baiting.
— Sam Bright (@WritesBright) July 12, 2021
How gloriously wrong they were.
Even people who don’t support England couldn’t help but praise Mings’ words.
It’s fair to say that I’m happy England lost that final, but it will never be down to the players in that squad. They, along with their manager, have conducted themselves brilliantly and once again here a player has stepped up and spoken out in a perfect manner.
— Robert Borthwick (@RFBorthwick) July 12, 2021
Get them telt ✊ https://t.co/6ozYqSmlVp
👏👏👏👏👏 While delighted they lost (sorry Tyrone, mush) every single member of this England squad is so hugely impressive. I love them all, the fuckers. https://t.co/RpoRDQpYw1
— Barry Glendenning (@bglendenning) July 12, 2021
Conservative Plymouth Moor View MP Johnny Mercer, a former defence minister, said of Mings’ tweet: “The painful truth is that this guy is completely right. Very uncomfortable with the position we Conservatives are needlessly forcing ourselves into.
“Do I fight it or stay silent? Modern Conservatism was always so much more to me. We must not lose our way.”
Taking the knee, a symbol of anti-racism solidarity, gained attention in American football in 2016 as players protested against police brutality and racism in the US.
On BBC Breakfast Tory MP Stephen Barclay was asked whether it was wrong of Patel to call taking the knee ‘gesture politics.’ He replied that ultimately the government and football’s goal is to eradicate the “scourge of racism.”
On #BBCBreakfast Stephen Barclay MP is challenged on whether the Home Secretary was wrong to call taking the knee 'gesture politics'.
— BBC Breakfast (@BBCBreakfast) July 13, 2021
It follows England defender Tyrone Mings accusing Priti Patel of pretending to be disgusted by racist abuse.https://t.co/B1X1VgbqTB pic.twitter.com/UrvALF4pfN
Plenty of people had been quick to respond to Patel’s initial tweet, which came hours after the match, which saw Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho and Bukayo Saka racially abused on social media for missing penalties in the shootout.
I’ve been keeping the receipts pic.twitter.com/avnxTa3cFC
— Nic Keaney (@NicKeaney) July 12, 2021
This you? https://t.co/kSqNV10T16 pic.twitter.com/BTJpOX9SRq
— Richard Buxton (@RichardBuxton_) July 12, 2021
Maybe next time don’t say it’s cool for people to boo people attempting to challenge racism or they might get the message that racism is fine
— James Felton (@JimMFelton) July 12, 2021
Take the knee
— ALASTAIR CAMPBELL (@campbellclaret) July 12, 2021
You played your part, stoking the flames when they were taking a knee. You’re a disgrace to British Asians.
— Rahul Kohli (@RahulKohli13) July 12, 2021
You lied about why our players take the knee and defended the racists who booed them. Give your head a wobble. https://t.co/3YvxMIeoFX
— James O'Brien (@mrjamesob) July 12, 2021
Surely there can’t be a single person who thinks any of these words mean anything coming from your mouth. Do us all a favour and not bother next time. https://t.co/wVE0cgwWjS
— James McVey (@TheVampsJames) July 12, 2021
It’s like they think we can’t remember anything.
— Emma Kennedy💙 (@EmmaKennedy) July 12, 2021
When you refuse to condemn booing of player’s taking a knee in a stand against racist abuse, you condone the booing of player’s taking a knee in a stand against racist abuse.
Try making yourself accountable for that. https://t.co/qciPPvT025
When you told fans that it’s ok to boo England players taking the knee, you blew the dog whistle. The dogs came. And you had basically given them a license. So you really don’t get to speak of disgust now. https://t.co/QG4SGCEt32
— Prof Tanja Bueltmann (@TanjaBueltmann) July 12, 2021
This is rich coming from you tbh this is the environment that *you* fostered. https://t.co/QPBmD4S7uv
— Ash (@ashindestad) July 12, 2021
When you say it’s fine to boo players taking a stance against racism, when your policies pander to racists and incite race hate, you are very much part of the problem. https://t.co/Xl3Won7q9r
— David Schneider (@davidschneider) July 12, 2021
Labour MPs Dawn Butler and David Lammy had also criticised Patel and asked why she encouraged fans to boo the players for taking the knee if she is so appalled with the abuse they’re receiving.
Lammy has also called for Patel to apologise for encouraging fans to boo the Three Lions for taking the knee.
If you believe this why do you encourage it in almost everything you say and do. https://t.co/5c74YH1vzg
— Dawn Butler MP✊🏾💙 (@DawnButlerBrent) July 12, 2021
Good. Better late than never. Now apologise for encouraging fans to boo our players for taking the knee. https://t.co/6jNIvyxti1
— David Lammy (@DavidLammy) July 12, 2021
Deputy Labour leader Angela Rayner also didn’t mince her words when comparing prime minister Boris Johnson and Priti Patel to “arsonists complaining about a fire they poured petrol on.”
Let me be clear. The Prime Minister and the Home Secretary gave license to the racists who booed the England players and are now racially abusing England players.@BorisJohnson and @pritipatel are like arsonists complaining about a fire they poured petrol on. Total hypocrites.
— Angela Rayner (@AngelaRayner) July 12, 2021
While others highlighted that the torrent of abuse the players have received is one of the reasons why the squad take the knee in the first place.
Yeah, they should protest about it in some way…any ideas? https://t.co/sX3YL0o0zU
— Dom Joly (@domjoly) July 12, 2021
THIS IS WHY THEY TAKE THE KNEE. https://t.co/uKf1rWYkDq
— Rashford, Saka, and Sancho stan account (@HannahAlOthman) July 12, 2021
If only there was a widely recognised symbolic gesture that people could do to show they were against racism https://t.co/2W0TC5tePd
— Zing Tsjeng (@misszing) July 12, 2021
This is so interesting because the whole premise of players “taking the knee” was to send just this message. An act you said fans had a right to boo. You can’t light a house on fire then cry when people get burned. This is looks very insincere. https://t.co/VNRV951fJK
— Richie (@RichieBrave) July 12, 2021
If only there was some kind of unified gesture we could all back that shows that we take racism seriously https://t.co/FQIJ0Mqseu
— Rob (@roalsovi) July 12, 2021
Elsewhere, Johnson also condemned the racist abused by so-called “fans” on Twitter.
He described the abuse as “appalling” and said those responsible “should be ashamed of themselves.”
This England team deserve to be lauded as heroes, not racially abused on social media.
— Boris Johnson (@BorisJohnson) July 12, 2021
Those responsible for this appalling abuse should be ashamed of themselves.
But former Manchester United and England player Gary Neville called on Johnson to take a tougher stance, also suggesting he was guilty of hypocrisy.
“The prime minister said it was ok for the population of this country to boos those players who are trying to promote equality and defend against racism,” he told Sky News.
“It starts at the very top.”
"It starts at the very top."
— Sky News (@SkyNews) July 12, 2021
Former footballer @GNev2 says has called on Boris Johnson to take a tougher stance on racism in football after some England players received abuse online following last night's clash with Italy.#Euro2020: https://t.co/KUBv2VLGWI pic.twitter.com/VoJPtslaaP
At the time of writing, Mings’s response to Patel has been retweeted more than 130,000 times and received more than 390,000 likes.
Patel declined to comment on his tweet.
