Football pundit Stan Collymore criticised for ‘homophobic’ tweet
By Josh Haggis
Football pundit Stan Collymore has been criticised for making a ‘homophobic’ remark in a tweet earlier this week (November 30).
The former England football player and talkSPORT presenter sent the tweet during football match between Southampton and Manchester City, after player Sergio Aguero received a yellow card for allegedly faking a fall.
Following the incident, Collymore used the term “fairy” to describe players that purposely take a dive on the pitch:
Easiest thing to slaughter a ref. Maybe if they didn’t have so many fairies going down like Devon Lock we’d get less confused decisions.
— Stan Collymore (@StanCollymore) November 30, 2014
In response to the tweet, a spokesperson for anti-homophobia in sport organisation Kick It Out said that it was inappropriate for Collymore to use the term “fairy” because of its association with a negative stereotype of the gay community.
“Only Stan Collymore himself would be able to clarify what he meant when using the word. There does need to be greater education around the use of such terminology, as ‘fairy’ has historically been used as a slur towards members of the LGBT community. It is important these sensitivities are recognised.”
Meanwhile, a University hockey team have stripped off to help fight homophobia in sport – check out the NSFW pictures here.
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