Former Everton captain Kevin Campbell says football’s support of the Black Lives Matter message is a major step forward in the drive to eradicate racism - and says the game must seize the opportunity to be a “trailblazer” in promoting equality in society.
The tragic death of George Floyd in America in May sparked worldwide protests and broadened the global conversation about equality. Floyd, an unarmed black man, died after a police officer knelt on his neck for eight minutes and 46 seconds.
Everton boss Carlo Ancelotti and a host of Blues players have backed the anti-racism message on social media, while the Club and its Premier League counterparts have collectively expressed their support since the resumption of competitive football in June.
The words Black Lives Matter are inscribed on the shirts of every Premier League player, while players have shown solidarity by taking a knee in the moments before the kick-off of each fixture since the competition's restart.
And Campbell, who served as Everton’s Club skipper from 2001 to 2002, emphasised the power of football in helping to inspire change.
“Society and football go hand-in-hand,” he told evertonfc.com.
“Football is such a driver, such a great platform to influence people and to change minds.
“Football playing its part and supporting this movement is a major thing to help people understand what is going on.
“We know there are a few people that don’t quite get it right now but that’s all part of the learning.
“Black people are not being given the opportunity to be equal. This is about learning about inequality.”
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Everton has shown its commitment to fighting discrimination by launching All Together Now, an initiative which has seen the development of a number of schemes to celebrate equality across Merseyside and beyond.
All Together Now branding and the tagline 'a football family for everyone' is also used prominently across Goodison Park on matchdays to promote diversity, while earlier this season fans worked together to create a banner in solidarity with Everton striker Moise Kean following incidents of racist abuse he experienced while playing in Italy.
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Campbell, who scored 51 goals in 164 Everton appearances during a six-year spell at the Club, says football must continue to use its global reach to educate people and help extinguish racism in all its forms.
“This is a great opportunity for football to be a trailblazer,” he added.
“I just hope it [the anti-racism message] can go from strength to strength.
“We need to keep this at the forefront.”
