Call to ban Swing Low, Sweet Chariot as England rugby fan song

England rugby bosses are expected to call on fans to drop Swing Low, Sweet Chariot as their unofficial anthem because of its associations with slavery.

Swing Low, Sweet Chariot has become a favourite among England rugby fans

England rugby bosses are expected to call on fans to drop Swing Low, Sweet Chariot as their unofficial anthem because of its associations with slavery.

The anthem, a 19th-century African-American slave song, is the subject of a review by the Rugby Football Union.

First sung at Twickenham in 1987 for Martin Offiah — a player nicknamed “Chariots” — it has become essential at England matches.

The RFU is expected to discourage supporters from singing it. Bill Sweeney, the chief executive, will also lead an investigation into the use of the spiritual song in the union’s “Carry Them Home” marketing strategy. The review marks a shift in policy prompted by the Black Lives Matter movement.

A ban would be hard to enforce but the RFU said that it wanted to educate supporters who were unaware of its “origins or sensitivities” so that they could make an “informed decision”.

Lyrics from the song feature on walls at Twickenham and a version has been released to coincide with every World Cup between 1991 and 2015.

In 2017 Josephine Wright, a professor of music and black studies at the College of Wooster, Ohio, criticised English rugby.

“Such cross-cultural appropriations of US slave songs betray a total lack of understanding of the historical context in which those songs were created by the American slave,” she told The New York Times.

The RFU’s position at the time was that the song in a rugby context had no connection with its slave roots.

Its stance has shifted as part of an investigation into institutional racism.

“The RFU has stated we need to do more to achieve diversity and we are determined to accelerate change and grow awareness,” a spokesman said.

THE TIMES