Taking the knee

With it being Neanderthal Millwall racism can really be the only realistic & plausible reason for the booing

But once again this is an example of the rashness of mixing politics with sport.

Taking the knee - which began as a genuine and brave act by one sportsman, who paid a high price for his show of courage - has now been adopted as a sort of window dressing by various sporting bodies to camouflage their own inadequacy in dealing with racism and imposed on professional sportsmen & women 

So, what to do?
Ideally I personally would like to see taking the knee stop at football matches. Whether people like it or not, the action is seen by many as political. 

It is possible to respect a cause without having to take an action which has taken on political connotations.
Wearing a remembrance day poppy is a prime example of this.
Rightly or wrongly, wearing a poppy is seen as a political act by some people. And in my opinion it is a matter of shame that some people in the public eye have been criticised and even vilified because they choose not to wear one. It is possible to be respectful of lives sacrificed in war without having to wear a poppy. And I believe it is possible to respect race equality without having to take the knee.
But the intolerance of politically correct evangelists who wish to impose their values (which they believe are above any questioning) upon everybody leads to a climate of fear among broadcasters and commentators.
Every subject that affects our lives should be open for reasonable discussion, with offence not automatically taken at the first suggestion of opposing views.
If we cannot talk about such things, they are surrendered to those who would use them to tell us how to live and what to think.

Nothing good ever came from not talking about a controversial and perhaps painful subject

It's an interesting debate Rich.

I think this chapter is muddied by the fact that it's been played out at Millwall, who's fans cannot be judged in the same light as other club's fans, quite simply because they are odious thugs (and the ones I've spoken to are strangely proud of this).

But the whole issue of supporting or booing the act of 'taking the knee' is far more complex than "if you support it you're enlightened and educated, and if you don't you're a thick racist"

I think (and certainly hope) that the vast majority of football fans are not racist, although I concede there are still some knuckle-draggers out there, as in all walks of life.

I think the problem that football has is the association that taking the knee has with BLM. To many people there is a radical political side to BLM that doesn't sit comfortably with usual democratic processes, and that is not just with white commentators either.
Football should never have allowed itself to be seen as being aligned with a particular political movement, it was only going to cause division in the end.
I believe, perhaps naively, that the booing wasn't aimed at anti-racism, but at football's BLM posturing.
To many people, the taking the knee gesture is now seen to be nothing more than football using it as a photo opportunity, a chance to show how aware they are.

Football should have got far more behind the Kick It Out campaign years ago, dealing with racist incidents on and off the field far more robustly. I don't recall anybody booing any Kick It Out initiative.

A big problem in society today is intolerance of other people's views. Debate now seems to have been pushed aside for name-calling and accusations.
I personally would not take the knee, as there are elements to BLM that I find unpalatable, but at the same time I defy anybody to call me racist. This has undoubtedly become far worse in recent years, you only have to look at the American political scene: it has now become two completely opposing sides with absolutely no common ground for discussion, debate or understanding.

I think those booing yesterday acted reprehensibly, but at the same time, the view that if you don't take the knee and support footballers doing it before every game makes you a racist thug, is also wrong.

Q. How long do the players take a knee for?????

Q. Why are they doing it....Are they saying or accepting thst ALL current organisations against racism in football (kick it out, etc) aren't working or enough???

I think the Millwall fans are feeling and saying what 95% of fans are thinking and I'm personally glad they did it....as it bugs the shit out of me seeing them do it.
As far as I'm concerned, the point's been made now and we should move on before it causes more divide/tension when more fans are allowed back.

Well, in the wake of QPR now saying they’re going to start taking the knee again (despite previously stopping it because they said the message was becoming diluted), in response to the Millwall vs Derby booing, it’s obvious that if you don’t agree with the BLM agenda then your view isn’t going to be considered by the ‘football family’.
I wonder how safe all those multi-millionaire footballers (of all races) would feel if the police were defunded?

Think Les Ferdinand had a fair bit to say regarding QPR back tracking on their decision.