As I've been saying for decades, as long as racism exists in society, it will exist in all facets of society. Until we eradicate it from society, football will be like any other industry.
John BarnesRead
The only fight worth fighting is to give all children equal opportunities regardless of race or gender, to judge individuals on their qualities and not their backgrounds. The victory won't come when nobody feels able to voice racist abuse, but when nobody thinks of doing so in the first place.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote emphasizes the importance of providing equal opportunities for all children, irrespective of their backgrounds, and advocates for a mindset shift against racism.
John Barnes highlights the significance of fighting for equal opportunities for children, regardless of their race or gender. He argues that true victory over racism comes not just from suppressing racist behavior, but by fostering an environment where such thoughts and prejudices do not exist in the first place, promoting an intrinsically equal society.
Themes
Equal OpportunitiesChildrenRacismInclusivityHuman Rights
In practice
Example use cases
During a keynote speech at a community gathering about education equality.
More from John Barnes
All quotes →When you talk about kicking racism out of football, people automatically assume you are talking about on the terraces and on the football field. But all racists have to do is keep their mouth shut for 90 minutes and they're fine.
John BarnesRead
What I say about myself, black footballers or black pop stars is that we have been 'elevated out of blackness.' Because when people see us, they don't see us as being black. These are the issues that we should address.
John BarnesRead
There wasn't a game in the Eighties when you didn't get racial abuse as a black player.
John BarnesRead
How many black people are there in the higher echelons of any industry? We can talk about journalism, we can talk about politics. So why should football be any different?
John BarnesRead
There are so many intelligent former black players, guys like Luther Blissett and Cyrille Regis, who never got a chance to become a top manager or a top coach because of the perception that surrounds people who look like them. They are black - which, for many, means they are good athletes but incapable of being anything above and beyond that.
John BarnesRead
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