Ahead of a
game in the English Premier League on Sunday, Zaha wrote on Twitter, "Woke up to
this today," then showed what he had been sent by a user who appeared to be a
fan of Palace's opponent in Sunday's match, Aston Villa. "You better not score
tomorrow you black c**t.
Or I'll come to your house dressed as a ghost," the
person wrote. There was an accompanying image of the Ku Klux Klan and a cereal
box named, "c**n flakes." Crystal Palace called the abuse "an absolute disgrace"
on Twitter and said it "should not be happening." Aston Villa then retweeted the
London club's statement, vowing to issue a lifetime ban to the individual who
posted the abuse.
"We deplore the disgusting racist messages sent to
@wilfriedzaha. We condemn all forms of racial discrimination and stand with
@CPFC," the club based in Birmingham, central England, wrote. "We are working
with the police in investigating this extremely serious matter and when the
culprit is identified AVFC will issue a lifetime ban." We deplore the disgusting
racist messages sent to @wilfriedzaha. We condemn all forms of racial
discrimination and stand with @CPFC. We are working with the police in
investigating this extremely serious matter and when the culprit is identified
AVFC will issue a lifetime ban. https://t.co/Wx5wJVA1ww — Aston Villa
(@AVFCOfficial) July 12, 2020 Later that day, the West Midlands Police announced
on Twitter that it had made an arrest -- of an individual whose lifetime ban
could be very long indeed. "We were alerted to a series of racist messages sent
to a footballer today and after looking into them and conducting checks, we have
arrested a boy. The 12-year-old from #Solihull has been taken to custody. Thanks
to everyone who raised it. Racism won't be tolerated," the police force tweeted.
Premier League statement The Premier League, widely considered the most watched
football league in the world, also condemned the actions of the offender. "This
behaviour is completely unacceptable and the Premier League stands alongside
@wilfriedzaha in opposing this, and discrimination in any form. There is
#NoRoomForRacism, anywhere," it tweeted. "We will continue to support players,
managers, coaches and their family members who receive serious discriminatory
online abuse. Through our dedicated reporting system we can take immediate
action on cases like this." Late last month, the league launched the system that
would "enable players, managers and coaches to notify" it "of serious
discriminatory abuse" received via direct messages on social media platforms.
"Each case will be reviewed, reported to the relevant social media company,
investigated and legal action taken where appropriate," said the league. Paulo
Dybala on protesting for George Floyd and racism Paulo Dybala on protesting for
George Floyd and racism 03:52 Speaking before the Villa game, Palace manager Roy
Hodgson said the actions of the individual were "cowardly" and "despicable." He
praised Zaha for going public. "It is very saddening on the day of a game that a
player wakes up to this cowardly and despicable abuse," Hodgson told Sky. "I
think it is right that Wilf made people aware of it. I don't think it is
something he should keep quiet about. "I think it is very good that our club,
Aston Villa and the Premier League are doing everything they can to find out who
this despicable individual is and one can only hope that they will get
identified and they will get called to account and they will pay for these
actions. "There is literally no excuse. There is no excuse at all." Past
instances Zaha was racially abused last year and said he received death threats
after winning a penalty for Palace against Arsenal in October 2018. The head of
Kick It Out, which according to its Twitter handle has "campaigned for equality
since 1993," told CNN in February that he believed racism in sport is "worse now
than it was five years ago." "Football is very different to what it was in the
1970s, racism is not the endemic thing that it was in the 1970s," said Sanjay
Bhandari. "Over a 40, 50 year period? We've definitely [made progress]. But it's
worse than it was five years ago, and it's worse than it was seven years ago."
Kick It Out said Sunday on Twitter: "We are extremely disappointed that Wilf
Zaha has once again been the subject of targeted racial abuse." Visit our
football page for more news and videos "Those who continue to select
professional sports people in this way, need to be brought to justice and face
the strongest consequences."
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