Cricket in Crisis: How Azeem Rafiq’s Testimony of Racist Exploitation Illuminates Deeply Rooted Problems in Sports

CNN

Author: George Ramsay, CNN

“From an early age there was a lot of‘ You sit there near the toilet ’, the word‘ P *** ’was used constantly, no one ever stamped it off,” said the former cricketer. Azeem Rafiq when he revealed this week his experience of racial violence in one of England’s top clubs.

November 16, 2021 may come to mind on the day of the cricket reckoning; In the aftermath of Rafiq’s testimony, the Cricket Board of England and Wales (ECB) – the sports regulator in the two countries – spoke of taking the “necessary action” and the need to “learn as a game”.

The ECB has a lot of work to do.

Rafiq’s detailed account of his time at the Yorkshire County Cricket Club hardly shocked Taj Butt, who worked for the Yorkshire Cricket Foundation, the club’s charity and community department, from 2014-2017.

“As depressing as his listening was … Some of the things he encountered didn’t come as a surprise to most of the people involved in the game, whether at the grassroots or the highest level,” Butt tells CNN Sport.

“These are the kind of things that unfortunately still happen every day.”

In his testimony to British lawmakers on Tuesday, Rafiq described some of the horrific behaviors he encountered while playing in Yorkshire, adding that he believed he had lost his cricket career to racism.

Rafiq also in an interview with CNN said he would prevent his children from engaging in cricket because he did not want his “son or daughter to be in pain.”

The hour-long testimony was the culmination of a 16-month period during which Yorkshire carried out an independent assessment of more than 40 allegations of racism and bullying by Rafiqi.

Following the review, the club admitted that Rafiq had been the “victim of misconduct” in Yorkshire, although no one in the club was punished as a result of an independent investigation.

On Tuesday, the former chairman of Yorkshire Roger Hutton, who resigned over Rafiq ‘s allegations, said the club is institutionally racist. Hutton said the ECB “refused to help” when it approached the governing body after hearing about Rafiq’s accusations.

For Butt, who has been involved in sports in the Yorkshire area for much of his life, the lack of responsibility in response to Rafiq’s claims has been steep.

“The institution has been quite arrogant about the fact that they felt they were able to escape without having to do anything,” he says.

“It actually shows in the way they have handled Azeem Rafiq and the whole situation. We really hope they will be the first to understand that the problem exists.

“It’s one thing they’ve never done, they’ve never seen it as a problem … But I think they’re still in that denial phase.”

CNN has contacted Yorkshire to respond to Butt’s comments.

Thursday Rafiq apologized for anti-Semitic comments, he said he presented the messages in 2011 after a screenshot.

“I am incredibly angry with myself and I apologize to the Jewish community and anyone who has been rightfully offended by this,” Rafiq said.

In response to the apology, Marie van der Zyl, chairman of the British Council of Jewish Representatives, said: “Azeem Rafiq has suffered terribly from the hands of cricket racists, so she is well aware of the damage this exchange is doing to the Jews who have supported her.

“His apology seems really heartfelt, and we have no reason to believe he’s not completely sincere.”

Kamlesh Patel, who recently took over from Hutton to chair Yorkshire, has vowed to change the club.

“There is no quick fix to the clear problems identified, and the problems are complex, not least the charge of institutional racism, which needs to be addressed directly,” he said. opinion.

“Azeem pointed out that this is not about individuals, but about the structure and processes of the club, and we need to address that.

“Obviously we have good people at the Yorkshire County Cricket Club, and that gives me hope we can.”

‘Glass roof’

While Rafiq’s testimony has made headlines this week, Butt says the Yorkshire area has treated South Asian cricketers badly for decades, even at the grassroots level.

He is currently the president of the association Quaid-e-Azam Sunday Cricket League (QeASCL), established in 1980 to try to create more opportunities for Asian cricketers in and around Yorkshire.

“Joining a local Asian person for a local club was simply an area forbidden to them,” Butt explains the reasons for the league’s formation.

He adds: “There is a big difference in the species of crackers if you are from the South Asian community and the downtown area and do not go [fee-paying] public school.

“You’re at a big disadvantage when you participate in cricket because unfortunately you don’t have access to the facilities, the field and all the other things that make it easier.”

Over the years, a handful of players who played on teams at QeASCL have continued to play professional cricket, including Yorkshire and England’s Adil Rashid.

Yorkshire is home to a large South Asian population, but it was not until 1992 that the county abolished the Yorkshire-born player selection rule.

“We’ve always known that our young people are making progress, they have to be twice as good as their white colleagues to continue to develop,” Butt says.

“Clearly, when they get into the system and the higher they go… there seem to be obstacles, there still seems to be that glass roof. And clearly young people continue to be discriminated against. “

Route restrictions are not unique to Yorkshire. According to the ECB, South Asian communities account for 30% of all cricketers in England and Wales, but only 4% of first-class circuit cricketers are from South Asia.

The ECB operates a South Asia Action Plan create more opportunities for and engage with South Asian communities.

“A significant moment for change”

One week before Rafiq’s testimony in the UK Parliament, during which he described the problem of racism in cricket as “worse than society”, those experienced discrimination in sport have been asked to submit their views and experience to the Independent Commission on Equality in Cricket (ICEC). ).

Cindy Butts, President of ICEC told me According to the BBC, more than 1,000 people came to share their experiences in the week after the evidence was presented.

“In the coming years, we will see this as a significant moment for change in cricket and society,” former England cricketer Monty Panesar told CNN This week.

“Azeem Rafiq should be praised for his bold comments. He is ready to work with the ECB and the Yorkshire County Cricket Club to solve some of the problems in our game.

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