English Football (what Americans know as “soccer”) Association chairman Greg Clarke made the following statement recently in response to a question from a member of Parliament about the difficulty “gay” players have in “coming out” in the social media age: “If I look at what happens to high-profile female footballers, to high-profile coloured footballers, and the abuse they take on social media… social media is a free-for-all.”
Well, geez, even though this seems pretty innocuous, his reference to “coloured footballers” stirred up the usual woke de rigueur outrage from the usual suspects. His reference to “outdated language . . . from decades ago and should remain consigned to the dustbin of history,” said one outragee. (Yes, alas, the world is now made up of “outragers” and “outragees”).
Yet the difference between that, and the annoyingly pervasive but perfectly acceptable as far as we know, men, women and people “of color” seems pretty thin to the point of non-existence – the proverbial distinction without a difference. If he had said “footballers of colour”, we’d never of heard about it but what the heck is the difference? But maybe “of color” is out of fashion, though if so we haven’t yet heard. Darn, we do so detest not being up on the current terminology. By the way, ever hear of the NAACP? National Association for the Advancement of Colored People?
And, of course, Mr. Clarke has been cancelled. Certainly a vicious insensitive unwoke racist beast like that doesn’t deserve to have a life or a job.