#SRtRCSpotlight: Match Action Campaign in Scotland

We have worked with a range of audiences over the Month of Action. From primary school sessions focusing on taking pride in who we are and celebrating our differences, to high school workshops aimed at equipping young people with key concepts of racism such as stereotypes to our work with university sports unions in which we discussed the importance of creating an inclusive team culture within our individual sports as well as in our wider society.

We also worked with a couple of professional football clubs this month. Falkirk 1st XI and St Mirren’s 1st XI and U19’s took part in two interactive workshops encouraging players to have discussions about what racism is and how it manifests. In each session, players expanded their knowledge of core concepts of racial literacy, such as Unconscious Bias and Stereotyping, whilst also putting aside time to talk about the value of fostering a challenger culture within a squad.

We are also due to work with several other clubs in the next couple months.

We recently held our annual Match Action Campaign. Across Scotland, players, clubs, officials, and supporters came together to call out racism and demonstrate unity, respect, and inclusion in football and beyond.

As part of the weekend’s activities:

• All clubs wore Show Racism the Red Card bibs during their warm-ups.
• Players and match officials held up SRtRC placards at kick-off as a visible show of solidarity.
• Clubs’ social media channels shared messages encouraged fans and communities to be active anti-racists, not passive bystanders.
• Stadium announcements were made at kick-off, reinforcing the campaign’s message.
• Matchday programmes included articles highlighting the ongoing work of Show Racism the Red Card.
• Club captains and players from all 12 Premiership clubs have joined forces in a powerful short film compiled by Sky Sports Scotland, urging everyone to be actively anti-racist. The film was broadcast at various points over the Match Action weekend and can be viewed below.

This united display sent a powerful message that there is no place for racism in Scottish football or society and a number of players made comments on the Match Action Campaign;

Heart of Midlothian FC Captain – Lawrence Shankland said

“Racism is not acceptable in any form, in any scenario or in any walk of life. We are proud to get behind this campaign and try to help make a difference.”

Kyle Benedictus, Captain of Dunfermline FC continued;

“Everyone deserves to be treated with respect. Racism has no place in our game or our communities. Everyone at Dunfermline Athletic backs the work Show Racism the Red Card carries out. Together, we can make a difference by showing racism the red card.”

And finally, Lee Ashcroft, Partick Thistle FC’s Captain commented:

“As a professional footballer I have shared a dressing room with people from all over Scotland, the United Kingdom and the world.  Despite the different backgrounds, religions, nationalities and cultures having respect for each other has always been key. To be the best team in a sporting environment we can be there can be no barriers between us.”

“There is therefore no place for racism or discrimination of any kind, it is simply not up for debate. My teammates and I will be proudly showing our red cards this weekend as we believe that there is no place in our sport for racism.”

As always we have been continuing our direct anti-racism education work with young learners in various settings. You can read an assortment of the feedback from teachers/educators and young people below;

Sticky Fingers Club

‘We recently welcomed a representative from Show Racism the Red Card who delivered three age-appropriate workshops to 90 attendees aged 4-14. The children were engaged and thoroughly enjoyed their workshops and follow up activities.’

Attendee quotes:

‘I enjoyed the workshop and it made me think about things.’ Male aged 13

‘I liked the workshop. It was something different and it was interesting.’ Female aged 10

‘It was good. I liked the lady and colouring in the picture.’ Female aged 6

University of Edinburgh Sports Union

“SRTRC charity delivered their workshops to our sports club wellbeing and welfare committee members as part of the sports union focus on black history month. It was a brilliant educational session learning about unconscious bias, stereotypes, gatekeeping and microaggressions. Following the session, a number of our sports clubs engaged in  ‘Wear Red’ training sessions to demonstrate your clubs commitment to creating an inclusive and welcoming environment to all members. SRTRC deliver engaging sessions and I would recommend them to all organisations.”

Falkirk High School

“The workshops were thought provoking and sparked many meaningful and important discussions for our young people. Pupils were educated with information that will help them to demonstrate anti-racist behaviours in the future” (teacher quote)

“The session was interesting and we had time to discuss our thoughts on the topic. I learned some helpful ways to show that I can be kind and supportive to all people” (S3 pupil quote)

Dalmeny Primary School

“The workshop run by Show Racism the Red Card was extremely engaging and allowed children to discuss the topic of standing up to racism in a very sensitive and informative way. Our younger pupils thoroughly enjoyed their elephant colouring activity and celebrating what makes them unique, while the older pupils were challenged in their thinking about stereotypes and identity. Kaela who ran our sessions was full of enthusiasm and brought a great energy to her sessions which the children truly found inspiring.” – Staff feedback

“I really enjoyed the Show racism the red card workshop. We learnt that it’s important to stand up to racism and know how to report it. I felt it had lots of good information and I learnt lots of new things I didn’t know before.” – Pupil feedback

Thanks to everyone for their amazing support during our Month of Action & Match Action Campaign.