MANCHESTER, England—Footballers in England boycotting social media in a protest against racism were targeted with abuse about the 24-hour campaign.
Talks with the social-media companies are now being urgently sought by the Professional Footballers Association (PFA), which coordinated the “Enough” campaign to demand a crackdown on racism by the platforms.
There was silence on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram from many players starting on Friday for 24 hours.
“Yesterday, some members received racist abuse on their #Enough posts. When these incidents were reported, the response from social networks was—again—unacceptable,” the PFA said in a statement to The Associated Press. “In the coming days, we will be inviting players to report any racist abuse they have received to us. We will collate it and share it with social platforms to demonstrate the impact of their lack of action.”
Social-media companies did not appear to respond on their networks to the players’ concerns despite widespread coverage and support from Fifa for the boycott.
“We will be requesting meetings with each of the social platforms as a matter of priority,” the PFA said. “Meetings with the Football Association and the government are planned for next month. This is a first step in a larger player-led campaign to tackle racism and demand meaningful change.”
The boycott was led by Tottenham defender Danny Rose, who was targeted with monkey noises while playing for England in Montenegro last month, and Manchester United defender Chris Smalling, who called for more stringent regulation of posts on social media.
The Philadelphia Flyers, meanwhile, covered a statue of singer Kate Smith outside their arena, following the New York Yankees in cutting ties and looking into allegations of racism against the 1930s star with a popular recording of “God Bless America.”
Flyers officials said on Friday that they also plan to remove Smith’s “God Bless America” recording from their library. They say several other songs performed by Smith “contain offensive lyrics that do not reflect our values as an organization.”
The New York Daily News reported the Yankees suspending their use of Smith’s recording during the seventh-inning stretch amid conflicting claims about several of her songs, including a 1939 song “That’s Why the Darkies Were Born.” The tune originated in the 1931 Broadway revue George White’s Scandals, and was considered satire at the time. Smith’s likeness also appears in a 1939 ad that heavily uses the mammy caricature, one of the most well-known racist depictions of black women.
Smith died in 1986.
Smith’s connection with the Flyers started in 1969 when a team executive ordered her version of “God Bless America” to be played instead of “The Star Spangled Banner.” That led to her performing the song several times before games in the 1970s.
The Yankees have used her recording of “God Bless America” and sometimes live singers during the seventh inning since the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. They have used her version twice this season and have mostly played an organ version.
Image credits: AP