FURD Annual Report - Football Unites - Racism Divides

More documents

Recommendations

Info

Contents: Foreword p.3, Introduction p.4/5 Increasing ethnic minority participation in football p.6/10 Ethnic minority women in football p.11 Reducing racial harassment p.12/13 Anti-racist education p.14/16 Resources and information p.17/19 Millennium Volunteers p.20/24 National and International work p.25 Looking Forward p.26
Foreword As this report goes to print towns and cities across the north of England are picking up the pieces from a series of riots precipitated by young men expressing their dissatisfaction with their immediate environment, economic prospects and in defence of their communities against racist attacks. The nature of this discontent and its expressions has brought about a plethora of analysis widely aired in the media and on the streets. A depressing picture of exclusion, segregation and denial of opportunities has begun to emerge. All the more depressing because we've been here before in different parts of the country and with different constituencies of young men. The links between young people rioting and the work of a project such as Football Unites, Racism Divides may not be immediately obvious but in the spirit of examination and recommendations for future good practice the achievements of the project and similar groups should not be ignored. Football Unites, Racism Divides (FURD) has been working with different sections of its local community to tackle social and racial exclusion for a number of years. The projects outlined in the pages of this Annual Report detail the extensive nature of their work and the different groups of people whom the project has sought to engage. Through building effective working partnerships with football fans, young people from all backgrounds, local Black communities and footballing institutions at all levels, alongside city-wide and regional statutory organisations, FURD has been able to translate a widespread passion for football amongst client groups into meaningful and effective anti-racist interventions. So through educational work in schools and organised youth groups, street activities with young people through Streetkick, reaching out to adult football fans through the United Colours of Football fanzine and www.furd.org, the mentoring and empowerment of young people through Millennium Volunteers, Sharrow United and Somali Blades, and by offering a stake in their local communities to individuals who came as refugees, the project illustrates how it is possible to overcome differing but related problems of exclusion. The lessons are clear and transferable. At the crux of it is the analysis that progress comes through working in real partnership with communities. Moving forward with the agendas of those communities and individual clients to the fore. In contrast the immediate lessons to be drawn from rioting youths may not be so clear, but it if these principles formed the starting point of action elsewhere who knows where we could go? Piara Powar National Co-ordinator, ‘Kick It Out’ July 2001. 3
Page 1: Football Unites Racism Divides Annu
Page 5 and 6: Bramall Lane, February 1997 FURD’
Page 7 and 8: FURD coaches Luis Silva (left) and
Page 9 and 10: Blades Enterprise Centre SHARROW PA
Page 11: Somali referee, Asian commentator

FURD Annual Report - Football Unites - Racism Divides

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?