A plane was spotted carrying the “White Lives Matter” banner over the stadium right after the players of both the team took a knee at the start of the match.
A banner reading 'White Lives Matter Burnley' is towed by a plane above the stadium during the English Premier League football match between Manchester City and Burnley at the Etihad Stadium in Manchester, north west England, on June 22, 2020. (Photo by Shaun Botterill / POOL / AFP)
The English Premier League match between Manchester City and Burnley was outraged by an “embarrassing” moment after a banner saying “White Lives Matter Burnley” was flown over the Etihad Stadium on Monday.
A plane was spotted carrying the banner over the stadium right after the players of both the teams took a knee at the start of the match to express their solidarity to the ongoing anti-racism ‘Black Lives Matter’ movement across the globe.
Burnley captain Ben Mee has condemned the act after the club’s name floated along with the contentious banner. However, it is yet to be found who paid for or organised the banner to be flown over the stadium.
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“I am ashamed, I’m embarrassed, that a small number of our fans have decided to put that around the stadium,” said Burnley captain Ben Mee as quoted by PTI via AFP.
“These people need to come into the 21st century and educate themselves as a lot of us do. I’m really upset that happened,” he added.
Since the resumption of Premier League after the COVID-19 hiatus, Premier League players are kneeling on one knee at the start of every match to pledge their support to the anti-racism movement that has gained traction after the killing of a black civilian by a white police officer in the United States of America.
George Floyd, aged 46, was choked to death by officer Derek Chauvin in Minneapolis, USA. He held Floyd down with a knee on his neck though he repeatedly pleaded, “I can’t breathe,” and “please, I can’t breathe”.
To condemn the brutal action of the officer, protesters have made “taking a knee” or kneeling down on one knee as a symbol of the current movement.
Meanwhile, City thrashed Burnley 5-0 at the empty Etihad Stadium with Phil Foden and Kyle Walker scoring a brace each and David Silva netting the other one.
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