CELTIC FANS PROTEST: WHY IT NEEDS TO HAPPEN NOW
- BY LIAM CARRIGAN
- Mar 28
- 5 min read
Tomorrow Celtic fans will gather outside London Road Police Station to make their voices heard. On today’s ACSOM bulletin, a representative of Fans Against Criminalization reminded us exactly why this process needs to happen now.
Law Gone But Mindset Remains
Speaking to ACSOM regulars Paul John Dykes and Colin Watt, Paul from FAC elaborated on the reasons why now is the time for fans to come together in opposition to the creeping authoritarian attitudes of Police Scotland.
He said: “The Offensive Behavior at Football Act was scrapped in 2018, but the same culture remains in the Police force. They still see football fans as potential criminals.”
“It’s a Sustained attack that goes back at least 15 years.”
Habits Hard to Break
Paul continued: “If you as a police officer have been trained for the past 7 or 8 years to pursue and arrest anyone doing anything deemed offensive at a football match, with all the legal and political resources you need, then its hard to shed that mindset.
“Your mindset doesn’t just suddenly switch back.”
Backward Thinking, Aggressive Actions
Addressing the kettling of Celtic Fans before the recent Glasgow Derby, Paul explained: “The way Scotland has tried to come to terms with and manage the “Ultra” fan movement has been really backwards and aggressive.
ACSOM Host Paul John Dykes concurred, when he proposed that: “Scottish society has never really accepted the Ultra fan movement.”
Personally, I also agree with this. The police can’t seem to tell the difference between ultras and hooligans. They can’t or perhaps they simply choose not to.
Obvious Media Bias Doesn’t Help
FAC representative Paul also called out the exceptionally poor choices made by Scotland’s mainstream media in covering this issue. Of course, it was no surprise to me at all when he singled out the Daily Record’s boldest bloviator, Keith Jackson, for direct criticism.
“I read an article by Jackson in the Daily Record targeting ultras a while ago” Paul began. “It contained some of the most classist and hateful language you’ll ever see about football fans.”
As Usual With Jackson, the Facts Don’t Match the Rhetoric
Paul continued: “This article highlighted what he (Jackson) saw as three prime examples of Ultras being out of control.”
Those were: A Celtic fan throwing a smoke bomb onto the field at Villa Park in January, Motherwell fans allegedly hounding former boss Stuart Kettlewell out of his post, and Arne Engels being hit with a missile at Ibrox.
There’s just one problem though, as Paul rightly points out: “None of these instances were connected to any known ultras groups.”
What’s that? Keith Jackson making stuff up to suit his own pre-conceived narrative? Surely not?
Article Speaks to a Wider Cultural Issue
Paul elaborated further: “I often get the impression that pundits in Scotland act as if we’re the only country in the world that has rival fans, who are passionate about their clubs and their culture.”
He also reminded us that Scotland has the highest per capita attendance level at football matches in the world. So, I’d have to say we have every right to be passionate about our teams and our rivalries.
That’s not hate, that’s not criminality, that’s football. It’s the very soul of our game.
Paul added: “I don’t think the institutions that oversee Scottish football, or the police or politicians have learned anything since the Offensive Behavior at Football Act was repealed in 2018.
Negatives Exaggerated, Positives Ignored
We’ve all seen numerous negative headlines about the Green Brigade in recent years. Some perhaps warranted, but plenty that weren’t, in my opinion.
However, Paul emphasized the good work they, and many other Celtic fan groups do that goes unnoticed or is spun in a negative light by the media.
He cited the recent “Show Israel the Red Card” initiative as a textbook example of this.
A Global Political Movement, Torn Down by Media Hacks
This movement, which originated in Scotland, has spread to 142 clubs across 34 countries, encompassing 6 continents.
Paul asked: “Can anyone show me an article, or a phone in or any other example of the media highlighting this hugely positive movement that fans in Scotland started and has now become a global trend?”
The answer, of course, is no. Because, as we all know, that’s not how Scotland’s media functions. Positivity doesn’t get clicks, it doesn’t get “engagement”, it doesn’t bring in ad revenue.
A Problem Far Beyond Just Ultras
Colin Watt also raised the point about media bias against football fans, beyond just ultras.
He asked: “Why is that when I read about crime in the papers, they’ll use any excuse to connect it to football?”
“If someone gets done for drunk driving, the headline will often read “Celtic fan charged with drunk driving”. Whatever team the guy supports has nothing to do with it!”
Colin then posed the question which no-one in the Scottish mainstream press dared answer:
“Why does it never say “Glasgow Warriors fan commits a crime”?
There’s a clear bias against football fans here. It’s not just ultras and its certainly not just Celtic.
This bias, in turn, empowers police to harass fans, to deny football fans simple pleasures like having a beer at the game, because some idiots decided to kick off after a few too many bevvies 45 years ago.
It’s Them Today, It Could Be You Tomorrow
People think I’m being hyperbolic when I liken the recent conduct of Police Scotland to fascism.
Taken as an isolated incident, then yeah, I’ll concede that saying that in reaction to one instance of police abuse, could be seen as an over-reaction.
But here’s the thing: As Paul pointed out on today’s ACSOM bulletin, it’s not an isolated incident.
It’s a pattern of behavior, from police, politicians and their media lackeys, and it goes back more than a decade.
Some would argue it goes back all the way to 1980, when the aforementioned alcohol ban, which still only applies to football fans, came into effect.
Celtic Fans Protest is a Chance to Draw a Line
Fascism always begins in the shadows. Germany didn’t suddenly wake up one day and realize it had become a police state in the 1930s.
It crept slowly, infiltrating social movements, the police force, the military and, finally the government.
A compliant media and an indifferent population played a key role in this.
Fascist Comparisons May Seem Outrageous but the Signs are There
People will no doubt say I’m going way over the top by comparing Police Scotland to the Gestapo. But the methodology is the same.
Isolate a social group. Ridicule them, brutalize them, and make sure the media and the government stay on message throughout.
I’m sure there were plenty of Jewish people in Germany in the 1920s and 30s who were told they were overacting too. And we all know how that ended.
It’s All About Fear and Control
Ultimately fascism is about control. Most people who embrace this way of thinking are fundamentally insecure, and they project that insecurity by bullying, harassing and trying to subjugate others.
Celtic fans often chant that “We won’t be mastered”.
Now is the time to show it.
I encourage everyone who is physically able, and feels safe doing so, to join tomorrow’s protest. It’s not just about football fans, its about stopping totalitarianism in its tracks before it has the chance to take root.
Stay safe, keep the faith, and look out for each other. Good luck to everyone attending the Celtic Fans Protest tomorrow.
