Read other Fortnight of Action 2007 stories

22nd October 2007

Alloa Athletic training against racism

Alloa Athletic kicked off their Fortnight of Action by gatherng for a photoshoot following training last Tuesday. The club ran the following article in their matchday programme this past weekend, the following is the story as it appeared on Saturday.

Tackling Racism Promoting Inclusion
Show Racism the Red Card's annual Fortnight of Action takes place 16 - 30 October 2007. This period of concerted action encourages participation from all sections of Scotland's communities to celebrate diversity and tackle racism.

Last year's series of events was a great success with over 300 actions involving minority ethnic groups, community organisations, all 42 professional clubs, football fans, schools and young people nationwide. This was a significant increase on the amount of actions that took place in 2005. This October, we hope to build on the success of previous years and once again expand the number and quality of anti-racist projects taking place during the fortnight.

Since the SRTRC set up office in Scotland we have seen a marked decrease in the number of racist incidents at football stadia. However, racist and discriminatory incidents, and excluding practices, remain a problem in both professional and grassroots football. We have a long way to go before the game in Scotland is fully inclusive. In society, racism is sadly still on the rise. At the end of March, 2007, the Scottish Executive published a bulletin, which showed that the total number of incidents recorded by the Police rose by 13% from 4,536 in 2004/05 to 5,124 in 2005/06. These statistics indicate that there are on average 14 recorded racist incidents every day. The commission for Racial Equality estimate the true number to be five times this figure. Irresponsible groups and media outlets continue to encourage racism against citizens from minority faiths, travellers, immigrants from EU-accession countries, and refugees and asylum-seekers.

This year's SRTRC Fortnight of Action provides a timely focal point for all those who are committed to challenging racism and discrimination in Scotland.

Grassroots football action

Teams at all levels take a stand
Show Racism the Red Card wants to engage with, and provide assistance to, groups who have been traditionally excluded from football as part of this year's Fortnight of Action. As part of our drive to increase minority ethnic representation in football, Show Racism the Red Card are looking to support the development of local intercultural football initiatives involving young people. SRTRC Action Grant applications are particularly welcome from groups directly affected by racism and discrimination, and from non-statutory organisations that can demonstrate they meet the criteria set out in the application guidelines.

Woman's LGBT, Disability football
SRTRC are keen to encourage all sectors of society to participate in the game without fear or discrimination. We want to actively encourage the participation of girls / women's football teams, LGBT groups and disability groups to actively participate in this year's Fortnight of Action.

All Scotland's clubs and players will be actively supporting the campaign from Dingwall to Gretna, creating a powerful united voice from the Scottish football family.

Source: Alloa Athletic