Alexander-Arnold To Wear Special ‘Black Lives Matter’ Boots For Merseyside Derby
Liverpool right back Trent Alexander-Arnold will don special ‘Black Lives Matter’ boots for Sunday’s Merseyside Derby before auctioning them for charity.
Protests have sprung up around different parts of the globe ever since African-American George Floyd died in police custody in Minneapolis last month as the Black Lives Matter movement have called for an end to racial injustice.
Footballers have also played their part in the protests since football resumed after the coronavirus pandemic, sending their messages across through their goal celebrations.
Some Premier League games have seen players and officials take a knee before kickoff while players’ names at the back of their jerseys have been replaced by ‘Black Lives Matter’.
Liverpool’s first game back will see Alexander-Arnold wear a special pair of boots with the intention of auctioning them off later to raise funds for the Nelson Mandela Foundation.
"'Do your talking on the pitch'. I've always loved that sentiment - but now we need to speak up in other ways as well," the 21-year-old wrote on his social media channels.
"Tonight [Sunday] my boots will carry the message Black Lives Matter.
"It can no longer just be our feet where we express ourselves. We have to use our profile, the platforms we have and the spotlight that shines on us to say, it's time for meaningful change.
"The system is broken, it's stacked against sections of our society and we all have a responsibility to fix it.
"Black people are viewed differently. We face discrimination in actions but also in thought. It's more than just violence and abuse. Opportunity in life is restricted if you look a certain way. How can that be in 2020?
"Sadly so many in the black community have to face this each and every day - but I also have hope. Hope that the world is awake in this moment. Finally willing to learn.
"So while we have this opportunity, where people are listening, let's speak, let's educate, let's campaign and let's promote the message that better education brings change.
"This is the moment of change. This is the moment to say enough is enough. This is the moment to make sure it stops now. Racism is a fire that is now burnt out."
