A Right to Reply following Homophobic Backlash

I was privileged to be asked to write a guest article on the Brent and Kilburn times recently.  I chose to write about the recent Stonewall campaign, and how proud I was that QPR and, in particular, Joey Barton were #RBGF (right behind gay footballers).  You can see the article here!

You can see from some of the comments that this drew out some of those homophobes, and when I mentioned the campaign on twitter a few weeks ago I had the same crap!   Whilst I was proud my club were behind the campaign, I am disgusted at some of the fans we have, who display exactly that behaviour.

My lovely friend @AndyBasildon sent me the following, which I think is brilliant!

"You are at an away match, it’s the last few minutes of the game. The one goal is all you need to make it to the final, a break! He makes a run for it, the goalie is off his mark this is the chance.....GOAL!! On the pitch your top man runs to the terrace, his shirt above his head, all the others players have lifted him up, hugged him. But you don’t notice any of this! The elation from the terrace, the noise to your left, a total stranger to your right.........  A woman, you can`t hug a woman in case her husband flattens your nose, even though she has the same team shirt on as you, and have just experienced the same joy and elation. Instinctively you turn to the man next to you and hug, shout, bounce up and down, your pint is flying in all directions, the joy!

Press pause for a moment: Homophobia – What the hell just happened there? “Homo” is short for Homosapien or Man, to use its other shortened word.  “Phobia” is fear of something like spiders etc. So you have a fear of another man?  In elation you have just hugged a complete stranger, and on the pitch witnessed grown men show an act of what could be classed as homoerotic, hugging another man... So what if a player is a homosexual? What do you think he is going to do on the pitch when a goal is scored, give goal scorer a BJ in front of the crowd?

Comments online have said things like “next Stonewall will be bringing on the Village People at half time”. So is it acceptable to the ladies in the crowd to bring on a couple of lesbians in a paddling pool full of jelly? 

Football isn’t about sex it’s about the great game!

Stats claim 6.1% of heterosexual man have had or thought about a homo or Bi sexual experience. Count the men on the pitch, now look around the terrace. Do you think a gay man is going to buy an expensive ticket to a match in the hope the team will score a goal just so he can hug you? Get Real.

It’s not about which side of the team a player bats for off the pitch, it’s about the team he plays for ON the pitch. Homophobia in football – Man up!."

Cheers Andy, for the record they don't want us birds there either, thank the Lord these idiots are in the minority!