A statement from Fraser Wishart, Chief Executive of PFA Scotland, on racist abuse towards Glen Kamara in last night’s Europa League match:
“Our members have been taking a knee in support of the PFA Scotland and Show Racism the Red Card campaign against racism and social injustice across society since the start of this season.
“This campaign is not attached to any political organisation; it is simply our members way of supporting the messaging from athletes across the world who have made it clear that racism has no place in sport or any walk of life.
“There was resistance against the action of taking of a knee from some quarters, and questions have been asked of us about the ongoing value of the gesture.
“If, by taking a knee, children ask their parents why, the gesture has value. If, by taking a knee, a person from the ethnically diverse community can see there are people out there who do care, the gesture has value.
“The racist abuse received last night by Glen Kamara, added to the awful incidents earlier this season involving Nir Bitton, Jonathan Afolabi and Alex Dyer, simply shows more than ever that we must continue to fight against the racists that attach themselves to our game.
“As the players union, we have been working for many years to try to eliminate racism from our game and last night’s incident involving Glen Kamara is sadly yet another example that shows there is still a lot of work to be done.
“There are players who have chosen not to take a knee and show their support in other ways. We must respect that view and the most important thing is not to allow those who are not behind the fight against social injustice to divide those of us that are.
“Our members have shown that they are behind this fight and will continue to show their support in whatever way. We must all strive to educate ourselves and do better.”
