Spurs Fan Throwing Banana Skin at Arsenal Striker Was ‘Racial’, Court Says

December 18, 2018 Article

A Tottenham Hotspur fan has been fined after throwing a banana skin at a black Arsenal footballer in a “targeted gesture” with a “racial element”.

Averof Panteli admitted hurling the item on to the pitch at the Emirates Stadium after Arsenal’s Gabon striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang scored against his side and celebrated in front of Spurs’ travelling support earlier this month.

The van driver, 57, said he picked up and threw the discarded skin in a “spur of the moment” action but strongly denied there was any racist intent, Highbury Corner Magistrates’ Court heard on Tuesday.

After being identified in CCTV images and detained by a steward Panteli said “it wasn’t a racial thing it just happened”, the court heard.

Magistrate Mervyn Mandell said: “We find it was a targeted gesture to throw a banana skin after a goal was scored by a black player.

“We have in the circumstances found the racial element was there.”

Panteli, of Borrowdale Drive, Norwich, was handed a four-year football banning order after pleading guilty to throwing a missile.

The father-of-three, who is of Greek Cypriot heritage, was also fined £500, which includes a £100 uplift for the racial element, and told to pay £135 in costs.

Leila Rasool, mitigating, said Panteli had been going to Tottenham games for 50 years without incident and was of “exemplary character” but had since been banned for life by the club.

She told the court: “It was a spur of the moment thing. He picked up the closest article to him and that happened to be a banana skin.

“He realised the grave error he had made. He has not been charged for any racially aggravated public order offence.

“Police directly told Mr Panteli they accepted his account and didn’t think there was a racial element.”

Panteli, who wore a black tie and jacket with a white shirt, was accompanied in court by family members, including a son-in-law who is mixed race, Ms Rasool said.

Speaking outside court she told reporters: “He’s deeply distressed about the past weeks’ backlash he’s faced, the vilification of him for what was a spur of the moment action made by a passionate Tottenham fan.”

After the pulsating 4-2 derby win, Premier League joint-top scorer Aubameyang posted a picture of himself on social media with the caption #whysmandoingthis? accompanied by a banana emoji.

Striker Aubameyang posted on Instagram with a caption accompanying a newspaper article about the case, saying: “4 years and we start again.”

The incident triggered a fresh debate about racism in football, with former Arsenal striker turned pundit Ian Wright saying it had “embarrassed” the Premier League.

The offence of throwing a missile on to a football playing area is contrary to the Football (Offences) Act 1991.

At an earlier hearing, Arsenal fan Charlie Watts admitted throwing an empty plastic bottle towards Spurs players who had gestured at home supporters after Tottenham scored a penalty in the same game.

The 27-year-old, from St Albans, was handed a three-year football banning order prohibiting him attending any regulated matches in the UK and ordered to pay a fine of £650 plus costs of £150.

The two north London sides meet again on Wednesday night in the League
Cup.

Questioned about the matter in a press conference ahead of the game, Arsenal manager Unai Emery said he was supportive of the bans handed down to Panteli.

He said: “This is not respect. I think it’s a good decision (to ban the fan).”

The post Spurs Fan Throwing Banana Skin at Arsenal Striker Was ‘Racial’, Court Says appeared first on TELL MAMA.

Categories: Arsenal, Averof Panteli, Emirates Stadium, News, Tottenham Hotspur

Anti-burqa sign spotted on shop window

December 18, 2018 Article

A member of the public has expressed their outrage over a discriminatory sign outside of a local convenience store which called for the removal of the burqa before entry.

The sign, which reads, “All hoodies, burkas and motorcycle helmets must be removed before entering the shop”, was spotted in the North Warwickshire area last week.

The witness, who wishes to remain anonymous, informed Tell MAMA that the sign had been there for ‘several weeks’ but no complaints, to their knowledge, have been lodged.

This sign may contravene the Equality Act 2010, which stipulates that indirect forms of discrimination, which concern the actions of a service provider, who, in applying a rule for all its customers disadvantages people because of their identity (protected characteristic), according to the Citizens Advice Bureau.

Harassment, be it in written or verbal forms, targeted at a protected characteristic of an individual or group, would also be unlawful if covered by the Equality Act, including when receiving goods or services, per the Equality and Human Rights Commission.

There are, however, exceptions in the law, if there are genuine, proportional, necessary, and legitimate reasons behind the discrimination.

Tell MAMA has observed a rise in reports of discrimination since 2015, with an increase by 111.76% in just two years, with 34 verified reports of discrimination in 2015, compared to 72 reports in 2017, with 40 verified reports of discrimination in the first six months of 2018.

In partnership with the GMB trade union, Tell MAMA has produced an anti-discrimination toolkit to address discriminatory behaviours and practices in the workplace.

Examples of such discriminatory actions include school staff informing two Muslim women, wear the niqab, to remove their niqabs when attending school open days with their children for ‘security reasons’. A clear example of how ‘othering’ can result in viewing Muslims through the lens of ‘securitisation’.

The burqa, often confused with the niqab, due in part to a reliance on stock imagery in the parts of the media, is worn by small minorities of Muslim women in parts of Europe, but legislation in several countries, including France and the Netherlands has placed restrictions on wearing such clothing in public. The United Nations Human Rights Committee found that France had violated the human rights of two Muslim by fining them for wearing the niqab in public in October. We believe in the fundamental right to practise religious beliefs, suffice that they are not actively harmful to others, free from bigotry, hatred, or violence. This freedom extends to the right to wear religious clothing, the right to speak openly about your beliefs or to partake in religious worship.

Tell MAMA saw a sharp and temporary spike in reports from Muslim women, who wear either the hijab or niqab, following the comments from the former Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson concerning the niqab. In one example, a Muslim woman, who wears the niqab, was called a ‘postbox’, as another Muslim woman was told she should ‘be shot’ because of her niqab.

You can get advice through our confidential and free helpline on 0800 456 1226. Or through our free iOS or Android apps. Report through our online form. Or contact us via WhatsApp on 0734 184 6086.

The post Anti-burqa sign spotted on shop window appeared first on TELL MAMA.

Categories: Burqa, discrimination, News, Niqab

Neo-Nazi Couple Who Named Baby in Honour of Hitler Due to Be Sentenced

December 18, 2018 Article

A neo-Nazi couple who named their baby in honour of Hitler are due to be sentenced.

Adam Thomas, 22, and Claudia Patatas, 38, were found guilty after a trial of being members of the extreme right-wing organisation National Action, which was banned in 2016. The pair will be sentenced on Tuesday with three other men convicted of the same offence.Thomas and Patatas gave their child the middle name “Adolf” and had Swastika scatter cushions in their home. Photographs recovered from a search at their home showed Thomas cradling his new-born son while wearing the hooded white robes of a Ku Klux Klansman.

The couple of Banbury, Oxfordshire, will be sentenced on Tuesday, concluding a three-day hearing which started on Friday.

Patatas, a wedding photographer who was born in Portugal, also wanted to “bring back concentration camps” and after a 7-week trial were found guilty. Former Army applicant, Thomas was also convicted of having a terrorist manual, named the Anarchist’s Cookbook. This contained instructions on how to make a viable bomb.

The post Neo-Nazi Couple Who Named Baby in Honour of Hitler Due to Be Sentenced appeared first on Faith Matters.

Categories: Adam Thomas, Claudia Patatas, far right extremism, Hitler, National Action, News