racism Archives - GAY TIMES

How football shirts help me understand my gender

Zoya Raza-Sheikh — Wed, 21 Aug 2024 07:00:35 +0000

Whether it’s a popped-up collar, a clean V-neck cut or a boxy boyfriend fit, there’s gender euphoria to be found in football shirts.

WORDS BY ZOYA RAZA-SHEIKH
IN COLLABORATION WITH VERSUS
HEADER DESIGN BY JACK ROWE

Growing up, men’s football was all over the telly. My older brother was a massive Manchester United fan and would watch every game he could, sometimes I’d even watch with him. I loved seeing the players beeline across the pitch, socks pulled up over their calves, sweat-soaked shirts hugging their chests. I would examine their bodies and think: “Why don’t football shirts look like that on me?”

Gender isn’t easy to figure out. The world we live in primarily operates in a binary manner. Men, women. Straight, gay. They’re still very much considered the default – even more so in football, a sport that’s deeply rooted in old-school views of masculinity. So, it might seem odd that football shirts have provided me with an avenue to experiment with my own gender. Or is it?

Back then, watching those games with my brother, I didn’t quite know how to describe the feelings I felt as I sat captivated by the slick movements of Louis Saha, Wayne Rooney and Paul Scholes. But now, I’d call it gender envy. There’s no right way when it comes to figuring out your identity and where you fit in a world obsessed with labelling people as simply one thing or another. But for some reason, football shirts have always helped me on my gender journey.

Shirts have become a core part of my gender expression – I feel more at ease with who I am when I wear them. They provide me with a level of comfort and breathability, both literally and metaphorically. It might seem somewhat trivial, distilling something so big as gender into a brightly-coloured 80s-inspired football shirt. But often it’s the small, everyday things that help us to make sense of the emotions we’ve struggled for so long to engage with – let alone make sense of.

There’s an unquestionable euphoria in football fashion. Whether you want to call it ‘blokecore’ or ‘ladcore’, the revival of retro kits undoubtedly pulls on iconic British fashion that flooded the streets and terraces throughout the 80s and 90s. Today, both football die-hards and casual matchgoers are experimenting with kits – something we’ve also seen bleed onto the catwalk in recent years (will there ever be a better collaboration than Wales Bonner x Jamaica?). And while the blokecore trend might feel gendered, the style isn’t. It’s a lens of fashion that has been an escape, a place where I can find synergy between my outward presentation and internal feelings.

Finding sanctity in football shirts was an unexpected port of call, one that caught me by surprise, even as a long-time football fan. Yet I can’t shake the gender-affirming sense of self I find wearing my beige Barcelona 2004-05 shirt. As your identity shifts – whether it’s labels, pronouns, or something bigger – there’s a want to create cohesiveness in how you feel and fashion is the easiest way to signify who you are. From pairing oversized baggy blue-wash denim jeans with a bright yellow 2010-13 Arsenal away number, to matching chunky silver rings with my crisp white Real Madrid top. In football shirts, for me at least, there’s no immediate call to dress femme, instead, you can play around with presentation. This level of openness has given me the freedom to pick and choose what feels best. A feeling I’ve not always experienced in either my surroundings or myself.

How the Women’s Super League became the pinnacle of UK sapphic culture

As a South Asian baby masc, I’m used to comments of all kinds: ones to do with race, gender, sexuality, you name it. You learn to acclimatise (not always quickly) to the soft racism or how your eyebrow slit, thin silver chain or vocal joy for Chappell Roan can make people feel a bit uncomfortable. “It’s a bit much”, I’ve been told. The level of prejudice – and sometimes even abuse – I’ve experienced over the years for trying to feel at home in my own skin, is perhaps why I’ve never watched a men’s football match in person.

We’ve all seen and heard stories about how homophobic and racist the men’s game is. Watching Manchester United’s first team with my brother might have been my football entry point but it’s the women’s game that’s welcomed me for who I am. I’ve found women’s football to be a space that’s more inclusive of diverse identities than most – I’d even go so far as to say that I’ve found a community. Being queer in women’s football, both for the players and the fans, isn’t the exception; if anything it’s celebrated. The camaraderie of the women’s game feels more like home for me because I don’t experience the same level of interrogation for wearing my oversized “men’s” shirts and gender-fluid fits.

Many of us spend years following our favourite players from club to club as they evolve with their teams. And while I can’t pull off striking Ballon d’Or-worthy shots like Aitana Bonmatí, I can empathise with growing through motions of change. In a way, through shirts, I do the same.

Each one brings a different feeling – a sense of home and comfort for a different reason. Sometimes it’s an affirming colour choice or even a modest boxy cut that brings an unexplained feeling of ease for me. Football traditionally hasn’t been a space welcoming of people like me – those who don’t conform to gender norms. So, perhaps there’s some irony in me gaining as much comfort in shirts as I do. But if they help me get to grips with this beast called gender, then it looks like I’ll need to make more space in my wardrobe.

You can read Zoya’s article on gender and football fashion at Versus here.

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Drag Race star Pearl issues statement after blackface controversy

Conor Clark — Fri, 11 Aug 2023 11:07:33 +0000

RuPaul’s Drag Race star Pearl has addressed a controversial photo she shared (and has since deleted) that shows her as a character with darkened skin.

Content warning: This story includes topics that could make some readers feel uncomfortable and/or upset.

“The character I posted this morning was not meant to resemble any other background other than my own,” Pearl explained in an Instagram story on 10 August.

“She’s platinum blonde/blue eyes & meant to have 2000’s britney-esque tan.

“I certainly didn’t mean to hurt anyone and will refrain from using any kind of tan at all when creating characters in the future. i’ve removed the post as to not continue to offend people.”

The pictures drew instant backlash from both social media users and fellow Drag Race alumni, with queens such as Mayhem Miller and Silky Nutmeg Ganache among those questioning why Pearl chose to tan her skin for the character.

“When people carelessly play with blackface and using slurs etc I think the public outrage overshadows the private hurt that we go through. These daily reminders that this world isn’t safe, welcoming or sensitive to our feelings is overwhelming,” The Vixen, who competed on season nine of the show, wrote on social media.

https://twitter.com/TheVixensworld/status/1689720486014423040?s=20

“White people paint their skin the shade of people who have to defend their skin shade and their surprised they have to defend their choice,” she added.

Following her initial apology, Pearl issued an additional statement via her Instagram feed.

“It was not my intention to do blackface, i thought the concept of the character would be clear to anyone who saw it, which was ignorant on my part, for which i am sorry,” she wrote on 11 August.

“Just to be clear, every aspect of the character was inspired by caucasian people, there was no black-influence going on in my mind during the time of conception. but now i see the people that inspired the character are/have been problematic, and by dressing up and parodying as them, i to am contributing to the issue in its own way, something i hadn’t thought of and don’t want to contribute to.

“With that being said, i’ve felt creatively stumped for a while and it may be due to the fact that some of these characters are kind of tired and just aren’t aging well, so i’m going to look at this as an opportunity to grow from the experience and expand myself creatively.”

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Pearl (@pearliaison)

Pearl competed on the seventh season of Drag Race, where she finished as the joint runner-up alongside Ginger Minj to winner Violet Chachki.

She has since claimed that she will “never” be invited back to an All Stars season after publicly sharing that RuPaul allegedly told her “nothing” she says matters “unless that camera is rolling”.

England’s fire services: Homophobia, racism and misogyny rife, report finds

Conor Clark — Fri, 31 Mar 2023 14:50:35 +0000

Bullying, harassment and discrimination are rife in England’s fire services, according to a groundbreaking new report.

Content warning: This story includes topics that could make some readers feel uncomfortable and/or upset.

Complaints of homophobic, sexist and racist behaviour – which was often dismissed as banter – were found in 11 of its 44 services.

This included a senior officer using a racist slur and male firefighters telling a colleague they would rape her.

“The findings from our most recent inspections have shown that a great deal more work is needed to improve values and culture,” the report, which was conducted by His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS), said.

“The recommendations in this report are designed to guide the relevant individuals and organisations in the right direction, but they are the minimum of work that we expect those involved to carry out.”

Inspectors made a number of recommendations to help solve the issues identified by the report, including background checks on potential employees of England’s dire services.

Chief fire officers will also be ordered to review the core code of ethics and “make sure it is being applied across their service”.

Met Police found to be institutionally homophobic, racist and sexist

It comes not long after an official report stated a “complete overhaul” of London’s Metropolitan Police force is needed.

Louise Casey spent a year investigating the Met after a review was commissioned in the wake of one of its officers, Wayne Couzens, abducting, raping and murdering Sarah Everard in March 2021.

She said the force is likely to have more officers like Couzens, as well as serial rapist David Carrick, who also worked for the Met.

The 363-page report also found evidence of “deep seated homophobia” in the force, as well as evidence of widespread bullying and racism.

“There is deep seated homophobia within the Met, as shown by the fact that almost one in five lesbian, gay and bisexual Met employees have personally experienced homophobia and 30% of LGBTQ+ employees have said they had been bullied,” part of it said. “Trust, confidence and fairness scores among LGBTQ+ Londoners have fallen significantly.”

Hate crimes recently reach record highs in England and Wales

Both of the damning reports come not long after recorded hate crimes reached new highs in England and Wales.

There were a total of 155,841 hate crimes recorded by police in the year ending March 2022, an increase of 26% from the previous 12 months.

It marked the largest annual rise since 2017.

Offences targeting transgender people rose by 56% from 2020/21, showing the largest proportional increase for any group with a total of 4,355 anti-trans incidents on record.

“Transgender issues have been heavily discussed on social media over the last year, which may have led to an increase in related hate crimes,” the Home Office report said.

Racist hate crimes also reached new highs, with more than 100,000 recorded in England and Wales for the first time – an increase of 19% from the previous year.

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Met Police is institutionally homophobic, racist and sexist, review finds

Conor Clark — Tue, 21 Mar 2023 11:39:04 +0000

London’s Metropolitan Police force is in need of a “complete overhaul” and is institutionally homophobic, racist and sexist, an official report has said.

Content warning: This story includes topics that could make some readers feel uncomfortable and/or upset.

Louise Casey spent a year investigating the Met after a review was commissioned in the wake of one of its officers, Wayne Couzens, abducting, raping and murdering Sarah Everard in March 2021.

She said the force is likely to have more officers like Couzens, as well as serial rapist David Carrick, who also worked for the Met.

The 363-page report also found evidence of “deep seated homophobia” in the force, as well as evidence of widespread bullying and racism.

One openly gay officer told the review his colleagues “were obsessed with his sex life and would continually ask inappropriate questions in briefings or around the police station”, including whether or not he was “a giver or a taker”.

He also stated that, during his time on the response team, there would be “a collective groan” when an “LGBT matter” came through on the radio.

“I know that acquiescing is the wrong thing to do but for the sake of my own mental health and my own career, I stay silent,” he continued. “London is one of the most diverse cities in the world and if we can’t treat our colleagues with respect and compassion then how on earth can we provide Londoners the police service that they deserve?”

Another officer, who is an openly gay woman, witnessed racism during her time in the force, as well as reporting experiences of misogyny and homophobia.

This included a male officer telling her his “balls were cold” when working together alone on a night shift, before asking her to “warm them up”.

“Predatory and unacceptable behaviour has been allowed to flourish”

An openly gay male officer, named ‘E’ in the report, explained that he is “scared of the police” after being the target of a “sustained campaign of homophobia from inside the Met”.

“E has seen evidence of WhatsApp groups amongst serving officers joking about trying to stop & search him off duty and using homophobic language,” the review said. “When E raised his treatment, he says the Met’s response was to brush off his experience.”

Casey said “predatory and unacceptable behaviour has been allowed to flourish” in the Met and there is a “culture of denial” in the force.

“Public respect has fallen to a low point. Londoners who do not have confidence in the Met outnumber those who do, and these measures have been lower amongst black Londoners for years,” she continued.

“The Met has yet to free itself of institutional racism. Public consent is broken. The Met has become unanchored from the Peelian principle of policing by consent set out when it was established.”

Black officers were found to be 81% more likely to be in the misconduct system than their white colleagues, with the review stating that complaints were “likely to be turned against” officers from ethnic minority backgrounds.

Met Police “has not made meaningful progress” since failing to stop serial killer Stephen Port

Nancy Kelley, Chief Executive of Stonewall, said the report’s findings are “shameful” and show that “London’s police force has not made meaningful progress” since the Met’s failures in stopping serial killer Stephen Port almost a decade ago.

“Hate crimes against our community are rising rapidly, year on year,” she added. “We feel less safe in the streets and less safe in our homes. Yet we have an ‘institutionally homophobic’ police force on the streets of London, and this is a police force that can’t even keep its own LGBTQ+ officers and staff safe from bullying and sexual harassment.”

Galop, the anti-LGBTQ+ abuse charity, criticised the review for not highlighting the experiences of transgender and non-binary people – something its CEO, Leni Morris, said is a “failure” for LGBTQ+ people in the capital.

“Casey’s review is meant to understand and highlight the discrimination within the Met against minoritised groups – and yet the report erases the existence of trans, non-binary, and gender nonconforming people in their entirety,” she continued.

“It does not find the Met to be institutionally transphobic – seemingly because it failed to look. From the work we do with trans victims of abuse in London, transphobia in the Met Police is even more entrenched and less addressed than homophobia.”

Hate crimes recently reach record highs in England and Wales

The damning report comes not long after recorded hate crimes reached new highs in England and Wales.

There were a total of 155,841 hate crimes recorded by police in the year ending March 2022, an increase of 26% from the previous 12 months.

It marked the largest annual rise since 2017.

Offences targeting transgender people rose by 56% from 2020/21, showing the largest proportional increase for any group with a total of 4,355 anti-trans incidents on record.

“Transgender issues have been heavily discussed on social media over the last year, which may have led to an increase in related hate crimes,” the Home Office report said.

Racist hate crimes also reached new highs, with more than 100,000 recorded in England and Wales for the first time – an increase of 19% from the previous year.

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BBC apologises for mistaking Black Peppa and Baby in Drag Race UK clip

Conor Clark — Tue, 08 Nov 2022 11:42:19 +0000

The BBC has issued an apology after mixing up Baby and Black Peppa in a video posted to the Drag Race UK social channels.

In the now-deleted clip, Dakota Schiffer was asked who she felt closest to on the season four cast.

After stating that it was difficult to choose, she said Starlet, Danny Beard and Baby.

However, when she said the latter queen’s name, a picture of Black Peppa appeared on screen.

Baby has since taken to Twitter to share her disappointment with the BBC’s mistake.

“I know I’m late to the party but I genuinely hope the person who edited @dakota_schiffer’s farewell video gets fucking fired,” she wrote on 7 November. “It’s so embarrassing that someone on the @dragraceukbbc socials team can’t differentiate between the only two black girls on the cast.”

Responding to her sister, Black Peppa said: “I second that! It’s honestly lazy and disgusting.”

I second that! It’s honestly lazy and disgusting https://t.co/drVDKvJjdg

— BLᗑCK PEPPᗑ 🇬🇧🇯🇲🇸🇽🏁 (@iamblackpeppa) November 7, 2022

In another tweet, Baby added: “It’s the racism for me lmaooooooo.”

Responding to a fan who was also frustrated at the mixup, Baby said the situation is “just crazy to me because they would never confuse Danny for Pixie or Dakota for Starlet.”

“But, when it comes to the black girls, everyone wants to play dumb, deaf and blind,” she continued.

The BBC has since removed the video and assured fans that this measure was taken “as soon as the mistake was spotted”.

As soon as the mistake was spotted, the post in question was removed from all of our platforms.

Once again, our sincerest apologies. 2/2

— RuPaul's Drag Race UK (@dragraceukbbc) November 7, 2022

“We are so deeply sorry about an error that appeared on a BBC social video that was made to support RuPaul’s Drag Race UK,” said a tweet on the official Drag Race UK account.

“We have sincerely apologised to both Baby and Black Peppa and we also want to extend our heartfelt apologies to anyone else that this post offended.”

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Canada’s Drag Race star Rita Baga addresses blackface accusations

Conor Clark — Mon, 07 Nov 2022 12:49:12 +0000

Canada’s Drag Race contestant Rita Baga has apologised after she was accused of doing blackface in a Glee-inspired performance several years ago.

The incident resurfaced online after Icesis Couture and Kimora Amour discussed it on The Chop Bloque podcast, igniting discussion about it on social media.

“I can’t see someone who is being elevated to this level,” Kimora stated. “You got to make sure you are someone for the people. You can’t be out there having done things like that. It doesn’t feel right.”

Rita swiftly issued a lengthy apology about the performance in which she acknowledged the “stupid and hurtful mistakes” she has made in the past – including using “a darker foundation” to depict a Black character.

“I can’t undo what I’ve done as a young, privileged and unaware white queen,” she wrote, explaining that she previously apologised in 2020.

“And I am still ashamed,” Rita also told fans. “I don’t know if writing this post is the right thing to do. But I want to be transparent and honest. I’ve been vocal about this numerous times, and informed people about it too.”

https://twitter.com/ritabagaz/status/1589339690380902400?s=20&t=mvgrOerKMLKuVQLjMmaZ6g

The soon-to-be Canada’s Drag Race: Canada vs the World star also took the opportunity to condemn the hate Icesis and Kimora have received for bringing the incident back into the spotlight.

“I respect my sisters,” she stated. “And I will never endorse online bullying.”

Rita continued: “I always try to be uplifting for my community. Caring. Loving. Supportive. Discuss important topics for our communities on mainstream platforms. Use my privileges to open doors. The (bad actions I’ve done and regret were a long time ago and I will never repeat them. Never.”

In addition to her apology, the queen called on the Montreal Drag Community “to do better.”

“It’s time to unlearn, learn again, and change,” Rita said. “It’s our responsibility. I heard terrible stories about things that have happened in the dressing room where I work the most, I read hateful comments from white coworkers against the OTBIPOC communities. I will be more vocal now.”

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Hate crimes reach record high in England and Wales as anti-trans offences double

Conor Clark — Thu, 06 Oct 2022 15:11:56 +0000

The number of hate crimes recorded in England and Wales reached a new high this year, official statistics show.

Content warning: This story includes topics that could make some readers uncomfortable.

There were a total of 155,841 hate crimes recorded by police in the year ending March 2022, an increase of 26% from the previous 12 months.

It marks the largest annual rise since 2017.

Offences targeting transgender people rose by 56% from 2020/21, showing the largest proportional increase for any group with a total of 4,355 anti-trans incidents on record.

“Transgender issues have been heavily discussed on social media over the last year, which may have led to an increase in related hate crimes,” the Home Office report said.

Racist hate crimes also reached new highs, with more than 100,000 recorded in England and Wales for the first time – an increase of 19% from the previous year.

Disability offences saw a rise of 43%, while hate crimes targeted at sexual orientation and religion were up 41% and 37%, respectively.

The Home Office noted the lack of clarity over whether or not the figures increased because of improvements made to the recording processes or because of genuine rises in hate crime.

“It also thought that growing awareness of hate crime is likely to have led to improved identification of such offences,” it added. “It is difficult to assess whether the increase in the last year is a continuation of this trend, or whether the rise in hate crime is, in at least part, genuine.”

Additionally, some form of an increase was to be expected as crime was at lower levels in 2020/21 due to the public health restrictions in place because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

More than half (51%) of hate crimes were public order offences, roughly 22% were stalking and harassment, 13% were violence against someone without injury, with 6% being violence with injury.

Galop's statement on the release of the 2021-2022 Official Statistics for Hate Crime pic.twitter.com/wWYDCpTago

— Galop (@GalopUK) October 6, 2022

“Today’s official hate crime figures reflect the experience of our community in 2022,” said a statement from LGBTQ+ anti-abuse charity Galop.

“Some will try to say this increase is just showing that the LGBT+ community’s trust in the police is improving – that this is not an increase in incidents, but in people coming forward.

“We strongly do not believe that to be the case. Demand for our hate crime support services, including the national LGBT+ hate crime helpline, has grown by 19% in just the last six months.”

Galop is an LGBTQ+ charity there for those who have experienced abuse or have been the victim of a hate crime. It can be contacted Monday to Friday from 10am-4pm on 0207 7042040 or at HateCrime@galop.org.uk. More information is available here.

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Met Police: Culture of “disgraceful behaviour” including homophobia, racism and misogyny exposed

Conor Clark — Tue, 01 Feb 2022 17:49:47 +0000

The Independent Office of Police Conduct (IOPC) exposed a pattern of “disgraceful behaviour” at Charing Cross police station in London.

Content warning: This story may include topics that could make some readers feel uncomfortable.

Officers working there engaged in “banter” about killing Black children, rape and domestic violence.

In addition to this, it was found that a culture of systemic bullying and harassment exists at the station – which extended to homophobia and misogyny being normalised in the environment.

The watchdog’s investigation highlighted a series of WhatsApp and social media messages which included joking about the Black Lives Matter movement and non-Christian religions.

Messages such as “Gayyyyyy”, “You fucking gay!” and “Fuck you bender” were among the uncovered communications, as well as “I would happily rape you” and “If I was single I would actually hate fuck you”.

It was also revealed that one of the officers was nicknamed “mcrapey raperson”, with other members of the police force making jokes discriminating against those with a disability.

Sal Naseem, regional director for the IOPC, said that the “disgraceful behaviour” is a widespread issue.

The Met apologises again. This time its really disturbing behaviour of officers at Charing Cross station where apparently messages about raping colleagues, killing black children + domestic violence were "jokes and banter". One cop known as the "mcrapey raperson". THREAD

— Fiona Hamilton (@Fhamiltontimes) February 1, 2022

Lord Blunkett, a former Home Secretary, called on senior members of the Met to implement rapid change.

He said he thinks members of the force were likely “intimidated or scared” of reporting the behaviour, which needed to be rectified to ensure the culture shifts.

“This is just another example where the culture will only change if individuals feel free and unintimidated in blowing the whistle into what’s happening around them, in the knowledge it will be taken seriously and acted upon,” Lord Blunkett told The Times.

“That’s the problem with the culture — people are either too intimidated or scared to report on colleagues. I understand peer group pressure — in the police force unless people are free to blow the whistle and know they won’t become victims, they’re not going to do it.”

According to Operation Hotton, a series of nine linked independent investigations which exposed the aforementioned behaviours, most of the officers in question were constables and were typically based at Charing Cross station.

They typically worked with public disorder in the West End, which usually covers crimes such as disorder, theft and drug dealing.

Bas Javid, Deputy Assistant Commissioner at the Met, said: “I am angry and disappointed to see officers involved in sharing sexist, racist and discriminatory messages. It’s clear we have a lot of work to do to ensure bullying and discrimination does not exist in any part of the Met.

“The actions of these officers between 2016 and 2018 were unacceptable, unprofessional, disrespectful and deeply offensive. I read their messages with increasing disgust and shame.

“We recognise that there is need for real change in the Met and we are committed to creating an environment that is even more intolerant to those who do not uphold the high values and standards expected of us.”

The full report can be found here.

The conduct of a team of officers at Charing Cross Police Station in central London does not represent the values of the Metropolitan Police Service.

We are deeply sorry to everyone they have failed with their appalling conduct.https://t.co/ccSoF0gHCD pic.twitter.com/uCpkiEjRW5

— Metropolitan Police (@metpoliceuk) February 1, 2022

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Philip Normal resigns as Labour councillor over racist, transphobic and Islamophobic tweets

Conor Clark — Thu, 13 Jan 2022 13:42:16 +0000

Philip Normal has resigned as the Labour councillor for Oval ward, Lambeth after racist, transphobic and Islamophobic tweets of his resurfaced.

A series of posts spanning from 2009 to 2014 expose an array of problematic views from Normal, who is best known for creating the ‘La’ t-shirts inspired by It’s a Sin.

These included the repeated use of a derogatory term used to describe transgender people, as well as comparing Muslim women to “penguins”.

Some of his tweets even appeared to acknowledge the offensive nature of his words, as in May 2014 he wrote about his frustration over not being able to say what he wants on certain social media platforms.

“You can’t say T****Y on Facebook anymore but you can on twitter. #T****Y,” he explained.

Responding to someone who questioned what he means, he said: “They’re removing posts apparently with the word T****Y.”

“T****Y is our word,” Normal added in a follow up tweet on the same day. “We’ve used it in London for years.”

Following fierce backlash for the posts after they first reemerged on 11 January, Normal took to Twitter two days later to confirm that he had resigned from his post in Lambeth.

“I have today resigned as a Lambeth councillor and a Lambeth Labour candidate for Oval ward,” he wrote. “I want to apologise again to everyone who I have caused deep hurt and pain to due to my past social media posts.”

In a follow up tweet, he expressed how “proud” he is to have “been a ward councillor”.

He added: “I’m proud to have been a ward councillor for Oval and Mayor of Lambeth and I am sorry that my past actions from before I was elected have undermined the positive work that Lambeth Labour councillors do to advance equality in our diverse communities.”

Following the success of It’s a Sin, Normal partnered with Terrence Higgins Trust to create a ‘La’ t-shirt that allowed people to “join the gang from the Pink Palace”.

Councillor Normal was first elected in May 2018 to serve Oval ward – four years after some of his latest problematic remarks were made.

In April 2020, he was elected Mayor of Lambeth – a position he held for the Municipal year.

He did not respond to GAY TIMES’ request for comment on 12 January.

I have today resigned as a Lambeth councillor and a Lambeth Labour candidate for Oval ward. I want to apologise again to everyone who I have caused deep hurt and pain to due to my past social media posts.

— Philip Normal (@philipnormal) January 13, 2022

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Racist and transphobic tweets from ‘La’ t-shirt creator Philip Normal emerge

Conor Clark — Wed, 12 Jan 2022 13:51:12 +0000

Past tweets posted by Philip Normal expressing racist and transphobic views have resurfaced online.

Content warning: This story may include topics that could make some readers feel uncomfortable.

A series of posts spanning from 2009 to 2014 expose an array of problematic views from the Labour Councillor for Oval Ward, Lambeth.

“And I saw the best bad t****y pushing a wheelchair in a gold pleated skirt blowing a whistle really loud! Ultimate Camden town Experience,” Normal wrote in December 2009.

In January 2012, he remarked that he was dancing like he was at a “very t****y wedding reception.”

Appearing to acknowledge the problematic nature of his comments, Normal tweeted his frustration over not being able to say what he wants on certain social media platforms in May 2014.

“You can’t say T****Y on Facebook anymore but you can on twitter. #T****Y,” he wrote.

Responding to someone who questioned what he means, he said: “They’re removing posts apparently with the word T****Y.”

“T****Y is our word,” Normal added in a follow up tweet on the same day. “We’ve used it in London for years.”

As well as the transphobic remarks that appear on his feed all the way up to 2014, the Councillor mocked Muslim women’s religious clothing and compared them to “penguins” in 2011.

In 2013 Normal tweeted that he used to live in Whitechapel – an “aggressively Muslim” area.

Two years earlier, he questioned why a Black man on the 55 bus with him was not “sucking” his “d**k”.

Several months later, describing another ride on the 55 bus, he said a “hairy Arab with big hands” was with a “young British blond girl” – something he called a “kinda hot couple.”

Following the success of It’s a Sin, Normal partnered with Terrence Higgins Trust to create a ‘La’ t-shirt that allowed people to “join the gang from the Pink Palace”.

Councillor Normal was first elected in May 2018 to serve Oval ward – four years after some of his latest problematic remarks were made.

In April 2020, he was elected Mayor of Lambeth – a position he held for the Municipal year.

Recent posts suggest Normal is attempting to campaign on behalf of the Labour Party around the Oval ward before May’s elections.

On 12 January, one day after the posts resurfaced, Normal tweeted that he was “profoundly sorry for the content of some of my historic tweets.”

He continued: “Reading them now I am horrified and deeply disappointed in myself. They are clearly offensive and discriminatory. They do not reflect my views and values today. I have referred myself to the Labour Party for investigation.”

GAY TIMES has approached Councillor Normal for comment on his remarks.

I am profoundly sorry for the content of some of my historic tweets. I sincerely apologise to everyone who has seen them and who I have insulted by their contents. 1/5

— Philip Normal (@philipnormal) January 12, 2022

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