Essex players faced racist abuse and discriminatory therapy, report finds

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Several Essex players had been topic to racist abuse and discriminatory therapy, an impartial report has discovered.

Reference to players’ ethnic, racial and spiritual origins was “entirely normalised and tolerated behaviour” inside the dressing-room tradition between the mid-Nineteen Nineties till round 2013, underneath the misguided perception that it was acceptable ‘banter’, in line with a report by Katharine Newton KC launched on Friday.

Newton was commissioned to hold out the report in 2021 after allegations of discrimination had been made by former Essex players Jahid Ahmed, Maurice Chambers and Zoheb Sharif. Essex at the moment are coping with the method regarding any people the place sanctions could also be imposed.

“Those at the receiving end of this treatment were too scared to speak up for fear of damaging their prospects of selection and progression,” Newton stated in her report conclusions.

“In any event, there were no effective mechanisms for raising such concerns.”

Her report additionally discovered a lack of knowledge of the wants of Muslim players at Essex.

Newton additionally discovered that the membership’s former chairman, John Faragher, used racist language throughout a board assembly in 2017 and that the membership didn’t correctly examine a criticism concerning the language used.

The report additionally discovered Faragher “interfered in the election process by using intimidation to try and dissuade a candidate from standing for election” to the membership’s basic committee.

Essex stated they acknowledged Newton’s findings and are “committed to addressing past incidents of discrimination against former employees”.

“All victims involved throughout the investigation have received an apology from the club,” an Essex assertion learn.

“Their courageous actions to report incidents of discrimination during their time at Essex has been pivotal in getting to this stage.”

Essex chair Anu Mohindru stated: “It is evident from Ms Newton’s findings that there have been some fundamental errors in the past, which don’t reflect the Essex of today.

“Significant progress has been made across the club to build a workplace that values and respects every individual, regardless of their background, identity, and beliefs.

“This extends to the fantastic community work being carried out across the region and we understand our responsibility to our local communities as the county club who represents them.

“I have personally met with the victims to apologise on behalf of the club and explain the work carried out by the board in producing the report.

“Following recommendations from the independent committee, the club is now dealing with the process concerning any individuals where sanctions may be imposed.”

Newton stated within the abstract report that she had upheld “a number” of complaints of racially discriminatory conduct, and that the perpetrators had been named within the full report she despatched to Essex.

“However, these individuals are also being investigated by the ECB and the club will need to assess whether publication of the report could prejudice the ECB’s parallel investigation, which remains on going,” Newton wrote.

Newton stated one of many players was given the nickname ‘bomber’ following the September 11 terrorist assaults. She additionally discovered that the phrase ‘curry muncher’ was “commonly used” within the dressing room to explain people of South Asian heritage.

She didn’t uphold a criticism from Player 1 that his launch was the product of Islamophobia at Essex.

Newton stated: “I concluded that the relevant decision-makers were genuinely of the view, untainted by discrimination, that Player 1 would not have had a realistic chance of playing in the First Team, as there were better players with his same skillset.”

She did criticise the way wherein Players 1 and 2 had been launched, nevertheless. Player 1 stated he was informed he was being launched at lunch within the second XI’s penultimate match of a season.

Newton stated: “The manner in which he (and others) were released was inappropriate and unprofessional.

“These individuals were being told that their careers at the club were over. News of this nature should have been conveyed at a formal meeting in a private room at the club, and not by the side of the pitch and/or outside the dressing room as occurred in other cases.”