I can't say i agree with him and lets be fair here its not an identical situation to an Irish player choosing Ireland over NI.
Not to sure theres to many in SF eitherJust a tongue-in-cheek dig at how most Unionists/Loyalists have terribly outdated world views. Not all, obviously but progressive, forward thinking, open minded, accepting, Unionists are very thin on the ground.
Is McClean being discriminated against because he's white?
Yep same for the show, much more nuanced than the movie actually and discusses social issues in depth from various perspectives.
No problem. I actually get slightly annoyed when it's reported as him, or Matic who too has an excellent reason, disrespecting those who were lost in WW1. The media simplify it to convey the message that they want. Very few would have noticed had McClean chose not to wear it but each year the papers note that he doesn't and the abuse is amplifed for weeks after.
Matic doesn't wear it, keeps his head down and goes about his business though.
Looks like someone hasn’t been listening to mama and papa
I support his choice not to wear the poppy and I understand his reasons.
Mcclean draws attention to himself. He's tweeted in the past about his favourite song about an IRA fighter and turning his back on the UK national anthem during a pre-season tour in America. These types of actions are always going to draw attention, which in my personal opinion is what he wants.
Arguably yes, the people abusing him every week and threatening him are not doing so because he's white.
Yep. Agree
Completely.
That's a slippery slope though surely, does his abuse not receive the same treatment because he's white or because of the specific issue at hand?
This is what i was getting at. He adds fuels to the flames seemingly every time he talks.
In a sense his ethnicity is a part of it. The Irish are Celtic 'the first Britons' whereas the Anglo-Saxon English are Germanic and migrated from mainland Europe later. That divide latterly became drawn along sectarian lines with the Irish being Catholic and the English protestant.
You can make the argument for that yes. Why hasn't it got highlighted more often in the media? Where is his protection from the football authorities? He said it's been going on for 7/8 years.
So what you're suggesting is that the FA aren't giving the issue the same treatment because of where he's from?
It gets highlighted every year, it's not a secret. He should get more protection from the FA for the abuse he receives as a result, but where is the evidence that the FA discriminate against issues raised by white players?
'I'm afraid. I'm afraid, Dave. Dave, my mind is going. I can feel it. I can feel it. My mind is going. There is no question about it. I can feel it. I can feel it. I can feel it. I'm a... fraid....'
Why is feck censored on here but not this?
SF aren't perfect, far from it. I wouldn't vote for them but if you want to talk about which of the two is more progressive and forward thinking and more inclusive (SF/DUP), then it's SF all day long. Not even close.
Why should he have to move abroad? This attitude of “if he doesn’t like it, he can feck off” is ridiculous, and would be rightly considered racist if directed at a black player who had complained of abuse. The fact you’re not extending him the same compassion sort of proves his point.
Look if Pogba refused to stand for the UK anthem, then he is guaranteed to be called a number of hideous names from a small percentage of scumbags in the crowd, who are begging for any excuse to dump their hate on someone.
I'm not arguing against you as such, just pointing out that there is a history there. I'd say the FA are not taking action (if they haven't) because the occurrence is rare and that the vast majority of Irish people are not discriminated against in this way as much any more. They were in the not so recent past though.
Will i dont vote for dup either, saying thermy are worse than sf is probably a stretch.
I'd agree with that, I just think it's incorrect to say he's being discriminated against because he's white, or even his issue gets lack of coverage because he's white, when (correct me if i'm wrong) most of his abusers are likely to be white; given the racial breakdown of this country, and most of the people in the FA are also white.
The FA have been aware of the situation for years. He contacted 'Kick it Out' who weren't interested, his fellow players aren't comfortable coming out supporting him as they know they won't be protected by the authorities.
You, see, I'm not talking about individuals. I could point out innumerable links between the DUP members and The UVF, but I don't need to, it's irrelevant because I'm talking about the policies, not the people.
I don’t think McClean is being discriminated against because he’s white, but his case is being treated differently because of it. I think that was more his point.
How is that proof that it's done because he's white? That's proof that he's being ignored, but it's not proof that he's being ignored because of the colour of his skin.
By that logic the discrimination would affect other white players too, right?
There's obviously the 2 policies in the dup that stand out, abortion and LGBTQ rights, so i can see where your coming from in a sense.
If they were ever to be on the receiving end of discrimination, yeah. The difference is they rarely are. But that isn’t McClean’s fault, and I don’t think he should be treated any differently.
Celts aren't exclusively Irish/Scottish. In fact, Celts originated in mainland Europe. I don't see how any European can claim a purity of ethnicity.
Indeed ye are right. However these incidents occurred after the initial uproar about him not wearing the poppy. Which led to some awful fan abuse as one of ye point out should be eradicated. The thing is once his believes are being questioned and the abuse thrown at him then why should he be quiet? He has every right to turn his back or give what is an intentionally inflammatory interview.
It would be great to see somebody other than the big 2. We need a secular party. Religion has no place dictating policy.
You definitely can make the case it's being ignored because of the colour of his skin. What is 'Kick it Out' meant to stand for? Taking a stand against those who treat people unfavorably or in hostile ways solely because of their race, which is what fair minded people think racism is. By definition, that makes McClean as much a victim of racism as Sterling was/is. One is ignored though. How is that fair?
Of course he shouldn't be treated differently. The discrimination here isn't that he's being treated differently because of race, but rather the FA are not giving the treatment that he gets, any attention, because he's white.
Not that I necessarily agree, but the point he is making is that the FA are discriminating against him by not doing anything about the abuse he receives(in his opinion, due to the fact that he is white). I don't see how the ethnicity of his abusers or the FA members conflicts with that statement, he's simply saying that he feels the lack of recognition of the abuse from the FA wouldn't happen if he was a black player being abused.
Kick It Out don't do much to help black players who receive abuse either, so they're not exactly where the bar is.
See my above posts. And the FA have a long history of inaction - hell Sterling & a few other players got monkey chants aimed at them and the FA issued a fine against the opposing team.
White players aren’t discriminated against often, or hardly ever really. But I do think he has a point - Irish discrimination is alive and well and the fact that people who have no problem telling him to ‘put up with it’ or ‘feck off if he doesn’t like it’ aren’t chastised is evidence that it isn’t taken quite as seriously. Maybe because it’s so rare? That’s probably true, but it’s unfortunate if so.
