A number of Formula 1 drivers have joined a social media boycott against racism, initiated by the English football associations.
Lewis Hamilton, Valtteri Bottas, Lando Norris, Daniel Ricciardo, George Russell, Nicholas Latifi, Max Verstappen, Charles Leclerc, Esteban Ocon, Pierre Gasly, Mick Schumacher and Nikita Mazepin are the twelve drivers to join the boycott in which they will refrain from posting on social media until Tuesday.
The initiative was originally backed by English football bodies including the Football Association, Premier League, English Football League, FA Women’s Super League, and FA Women’s Championship among others.
The aim is to highlight the “ongoing and sustained discriminatory abuse received online by players and many others connected to football,” and to hold social media companies accountable for what is shared on their platforms.
Hamilton, with almost 30 million followers on Instagram and Twitter, shared the reasons why he would be joining in with the boycott.
“To stand in solidarity with the football community, I will be going dark on my social media channels this weekend. There is no place in our society for any kind of abuse, online or not, and for too long it’s been easy for a small few to post hate from behind their screens.
“While a boycott might not solve this issue overnight, we have to call for change when needed, even when it seems like an almost impossible task.
“Sport has the power to unite us. Let’s not accept abuse as part of sport but instead, let’s be the ones who make a difference for future generations.”
Russell posted a short video on his socials prior to the start of the boycott at 15:00, saying: “I will be supporting the social media blackout this weekend. I thought it was important to do so because there is far too much online abuse, hatred, negativity, racism that is just undeserved.
“I feel like it’s our duty to raise as much awareness as possible, not just within sport, but within all walks of life. It doesn’t matter how old or young you are or what background you’re from, just to to spread positivity and be nice to one another.
“I feel strongly about this, and I felt like it was my duty to to be a part of this cause. So I hope you appreciate my views, my opinion, and hopefully we can all make a change.”
Formula 1 has chosen not to participate, given it’s a race weekend, but acknowledged the boycott in a brief statement.
“F1 is wholly committed to combatting any form of discrimination, online or otherwise.
“We support the actions of the Premier League and other sporting bodies and athletes in highlighting that more must be done to eradicate online abuse that they are receiving directly.
“We continue to work with all platforms and our own audiences to promote respect and positive values and put a stop to racism.”
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