‘Unacceptable’: Commentator slams Sam Kerr for allegedly ‘bringing race into’ taxi incident
A football commentator believes Sam Kerr should be stripped of the Matildas captaincy for allegedly “bringing race” into her taxi driver incident.
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Leading football commentator Lucy Zelic believes Sam Kerr should be stripped of the Matildas captaincy for her alleged behaviour in an incident with a taxi driver and calling a police officer “stupid and white”.
Kerr is on trial charged with causing racially aggravated harassment to police officer Stephen Lovell during an incident in south-west London in the early hours of January 30, 2023.
The Australian captain, who is of mixed race, told a court she was treated differently by police “because of the colour of my skin” after “fearing for my life” following the taxi incident.
It is alleged Kerr, 31, and her partner, West Ham midfielder Kristie Mewis, had been out drinking when they were driven to Twickenham police station by a taxi driver, who complained the pair had refused to pay clean-up costs after one of them was sick, and that one of them also smashed the vehicle’s rear window.
The court was told on Tuesday that Kerr had become “abusive and insulting” towards Lovell, calling him “stupid and white” in bodycam footage.
A prosecutor also told the court Kerr at one point showed Lovell the contents of her bank account “as if to say ‘look, I could easily afford to pay for any damage to the taxi’.”
Kerr, giving evidence on Wednesday, said: “I believed (officers) were treating me differently because of what they perceived to be the colour of my skin - particularly PC Lovell’s behaviour.”
“The way he was accusing me of lying, and later arresting me for criminal damage even though Kristie said it was just her (who smashed the taxi’s window). At the time I thought they were trying to put it on me.”
In her evidence, Kerr cited the “Claremont Killer” Bradley Robert Edwards, a taxi driver who was convicted in 2020 for two murders in 1996 and 1997 in Perth.
“I lived in a state where for 30 years there was a serial killer that was thought to have been a taxi driver,” Kerr said.
“Everyone was talking about not getting in a taxi.”
Kerr has pleaded not guilty to the offence of racially aggravated harassment to a police officer.
The offence carries a maximum sentence of 26 weeks in jail under UK law.
The offence also includes a maximum financial penalty of around $5000 (£2500).
On Wednesday, Football Australia boss James Johnson said the governing body would not make a definitive call on whether or not Kerr would remain Matildas captain until the end of her court case.
“We understand that there will be some disappointment out there (from fans), but what we would ask is that we all wait out,” FA boss James Johnson said on Wednesday.
“We know there’s a 30-second, 40-second clip out there but we also know there’s a 30-minute video out there which certainly we haven’t seen.
“What we need to do we need to give Sam the opportunity to go through the trial.
“Once we complete the trial, then we’ll have a holistic view of what’s happened.”
Steph Catley has been served as stand-in captain for the past year as Kerr recovers from an ACL injury.
Speaking on 2GB radio on Wednesday, Zelic said Kerr’s alleged comments shown on the bodycam footage gave Football Australia (FA) no choice but to strip her of the captaincy.
Host Clinton Maynard asked: “Can she remain as the Matildas captains? I don’t think she can.”
Zelic replied: “No she can’t.”
“I think we have to be brutally honest about this,” Zelic said.
“Over the years, we have certainly held the male and female to different standards.
“I’ve been shocked by the kind of responses I’ve seen to this. A lot of people are very eager and quick to try and defend her and justify her actions and her behaviour.
“I know a lot of it has become a debate about racism and the etymology with respect to racism.
“There are so many other issues surrounding this. But I feel as thought when we start getting up in those conversations, we are ignoring the true crux of the issue.
“That is on the balance of the evidence, reviewing the bodycam footage from PC Lovell at the time, in which she’s being interrogated in the police station, is this woman fit to be the national team captain of the Matildas? For me, the answer is very sadly, no.”
Zelic criticised Kerr for calling the police officer “stupid and white” and said the comments were “unacceptable”.
“Any time you bring race into something, whether it’s a white person or a person of colour, I feel we’re going to have an issue,” she said.
“Whether she was severely intoxicated, whether she felt her life was being threatened, all of those things — does that equate (to) the stance, the path she took to bring race into it?
“You can feel all of those things but the minute you call someone stupid and white, that to me is unacceptable. It’s not OK.
“Because what if I said, ‘You’re stupid and black’. We’re having a different conversation. She probably would have been stripped of everything now if that was the path she took.
“Why is it OK for us to say you’re stupid and white but it’s not OK to say you’re stupid and black?
“My argument is equal across the board. Bring race into it and you have to face the consequences.
“Was her behaviour acceptable? Is it OK to call someone stupid and white? The answer is no.”
Kerr is set to return from injury in the coming months for her club team Chelsea.
She has not been named in the Matildas squad for the SheBelievesCup, which sees Australia play Japan, the United States and Colombia in February.
Questions remain about whether the 31-year-old will remain as Matildas captain and if her lucrative sponsorship deal with Nike will come under threat.
Kerr is Australia’s highest paid female footballer and earned $3.3 million in 2023. Her Chelsea contract nets her more than $600,000 per season.
Zelic believes Kerr, who scored a long-range goal in Australia’s semi-final loss to England at the 2023 FIFA World Cup, should lose the Matildas captaincy.
“We all saw the success off the back of the 2023 Women’s World Cup,” the commentator said.
“How many people fell in love with this team. Grassroots participation levels amongst girls have skyrocketed through the roof, which is fantastic to see.
“But is this person an actual role model for those young girls? Is she fit to be the captain when she is calling a police officer … regardless of the circumstances surrounding that, is she fit to be the captain of her country when she’s bringing race into the conversation?
“This is clearly one of her worst moments. Does she deserve to lose her career over this? The answer is no.
“She doesn’t deserve to lose her career but she should be stripped of the captaincy.
“The question I have now for her endorsement deals is Nike, are you prepared to stand by someone who is bringing race into an issue and using it in a derogatory manner, because that’s the crux of the issue.”
The trial continues for the rest of this week, with Kerr and Mewis set to give evidence.
Kerr’s parents Roger and Roxanne were at Kingston-upon-Thames Crown Court in support of their daughter, while Mewis was also in attendance.
During her evidence, Kerr revealed she and Mewis are expecting a baby boy.
Originally published as ‘Unacceptable’: Commentator slams Sam Kerr for allegedly ‘bringing race into’ taxi incident
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