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Key Points

England's women's football team has taken a powerful stand against racism by deciding to stop taking the knee before matches. Coach Sarina Wiegman believes symbolic gestures are no longer effective in combating racial abuse. The decision comes after defender Jess Carter experienced online racist harassment during the European Championship. The Lionesses want to spark meaningful conversation and drive real change in addressing systemic racism in sports.

Key Points: Wiegman Demands Real Action Against Racism Beyond Taking the Knee

  • England team stops taking knee after racist abuse of Jess Carter
  • Wiegman demands substantive action against racism
  • Squad seeks more impactful protest methods
  • Police investigation ongoing into online racial harassment
2 min read

Taking the knee is not enough: England coach Wiegman demand deeper action on racism

England coach Sarina Wiegman and Lionesses reject symbolic knee gesture, calling for meaningful steps to combat racist abuse in football

"Taking the knee, that's not enough. The impact is not good enough. - Sarina Wiegman, BBC Sport"

New Delhi, July 22

England head coach Sarina Wiegman believes taking a knee, a tradition to show support for the black lives matter campaign, is simply not enough of a stand against racism after defender Jess Carter was subjected to racist online abuse.

The Lionesses squad released a statement confirming they will no longer be taking the knee ahead of kick-off to express support for teammate and England defender Jess Carte, who revealed she was on the receiving end of racial abuse during the ongoing Women's European Championship.

"It is clear we and football need to find another way to tackle racism. Taking the knee, that's not enough. We have done that for a while. The impact is not good enough, it's not as big as we think. "When there is this form of racism we felt we have to do something else, something different, so that's why we are not taking the knee," Wiegman told BBC Sport.

Carter so far has played 310 minutes whilst starting all four games at the Euro's during England's run to the semi-final against Italy on Wednesday (IST). The police investigation into the matter is underway.

England midfielder Georgia Stanway believes it has gone 'past' the point of taking a knee and wants to send the message that change is needed.

"We feel like it has gone past that [taking the knee] now. We feel it is still happening even when we are taking the knee. We have decided that we will stand and we will not do that. We think that a way of making change in itself because we want to get people talking - we want to tell people that what is being done isn't enough," Stanway said.

After conceding two early goals against Sweden, the defending champions roared back and drew the quarter-final clash 2-2, before eventually moving past on penalties

- IANS

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Reader Comments

P
Priya S
As an Indian football fan, I'm disappointed to hear about the racist abuse. We face similar issues here with regional discrimination in sports. Maybe teams should boycott matches when such incidents occur - that would force authorities to take real action.
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Rohit P
While I support the sentiment, I'm not sure what "something different" they plan to do. Empty statements won't help. In India, we need to first acknowledge our own biases before pointing fingers at others. How many dark-skinned players get equal opportunities in our cricket team?
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Sarah B
The courage Jess Carter showed by speaking up is inspiring. In India, women athletes face double discrimination - for gender and often for skin color too. We need more voices like hers across all sports to bring real change.
V
Vikram M
Respectfully, I disagree with stopping the knee gesture. It's become a powerful symbol worldwide. Instead of abandoning it, why not combine it with other actions? In India, we've seen how symbols like the national flag can unite people against discrimination.
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Kavya N
The real solution lies in education and parenting. We Indians are obsessed with fair skin - look at all those matrimonial ads! Until we change mindsets at home, no gesture on the field will make a difference. #StopColorism

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