In this day and age there is absolutely no place for this type of behaviour. From a disability perspective KIO reported a reduction in reported incidents, this fall in disability related cases could be due to a number of factors including an increase in awareness and training, a reluctance by disabled people to report abuse because they fear for the consequences or that nothing will be done.
Reported incidents of disability hate crime in police figures have had a year on year increase in recent times with a reported 33% increase on previous year’s figures and it’s clear that abuse for disabled people is on a despicable upward curve.
Owain Davies, Chief Executive of Level Playing Field said:
“Attending live sport is a powerful vehicle for uniting a community and providing a truly inclusive experience for all. However, with incidents of discrimination and abuse occurring in the terraces or on the way to a stadium this just creates a negative and totally unacceptable experience that makes watching live sport less inclusive. A greater level of education is required and a clear message that this won’t be tolerated and those caught should be dealt with appropriately.”
Lifting the lid on discrimination and abuse is part of the battle but we need to work together to address these issues. An expectation of what is acceptable and what isn’t needs to be amplified through greater education and awareness.
Level Playing Field would urge any fan that experiences abuse or witnesses it to report these incidents either directly to the club or to Level Playing Field where we can work with them to address the issue. Click here for more information