Reading’s Jason Roberts has explained the reasons behind not wearing a Kick It Out t-shirt at the weekend.
The striker was the first Premier League player to announce that he wouldn’t be wearing the anti-racism t-shirts at the weekend, which sparked a mass following from other black players in the Premier League.
But Roberts has admitted that his actions were personal to him and that he didn’t aim to lead a protest.
Writing for the Daily Mail, Roberts said: “When I said last week that I wouldn’t wear a Kick It Out T-shirt I wasn’t trying to lead a protest.
“I was speaking for myself. But what happened over the weekend has, I believe, underlined the depth of the issues I was trying to draw attention to.
“Myself and a group of other players have been in detailed discussions with the PFA for some time. We suggested to them all along that this week could be an issue, because people didn’t want to wear the T-shirt.”
The striker went on to stress that for the game to move forward from the recent racism issues it has suffered, there needs to be substantial changes to the way organisations like Kick It Out are funded.
“Kick It Out has done some substantial things, but as an organisation it is not seriously funded, and it should be,” he added.
“The equality department in the PFA needs to change and should have stonger leadership and more than just one or two staff. It doesn’t have the resources or the manpower to tackle the job.
“These are the issues that I felt needed to be raised. Detailed discussions and recommendations have been tabled for a year now, across several meetings, without any progress being made.”
Roberts tweeted this morning: “I am passionate about the work I have undertaken for the PFA and Kick It Out but we must listen, improve and act.
“I hope this gives an insight in to my thoughts and motives and confirms my commitment to us all moving together to tackle these issues.”
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