The chief of the anti-discriminatory body Fare has condemned efforts by the Italian authorities to mitigate against racism especially in football.
He states that Italian authorities and their system to combat racism in football are “not fit for purpose.”
Belgian striker Romelu Lukaku was a subject of monkey chants when Inter Milan pitched against Cagliari earlier in the season.
Officials have exonerated of any racially incited offence and the narrative was that the Cagliari fans only showed the Belgian respect.
“The rot is deep,” Fare executive director Piara Powar told BBC Sport.
“We believe the Italian authorities and the disciplinary system is simply not fit for purpose.
“Whether it is the FIGC [Italian Football Federation] or Serie A, they have failed to protect countless players from racism over the past year and have no meaningful response to the endemic racism in stadiums.
“There are no visible campaigns, no progressive fan leaders, as well as apathy and prejudice among the media.
“No-one is taking the issue seriously – no-one apart from the players, the victims themselves, and a few allies who have been courageous enough to stand up.”
Serie A insisted it was “seriously and constantly engaged in activities against racism”.
It added: “I can confirm our maximum effort to fight racism. We did a lot in the past and we’ll do [a lot] in the future as we announced some days ago a campaign about this that we will develop in the next month.”
The Fare Network, an organisation trying to fight inequality in football, says it has contacted the Italian FA to try to work with it and is awaiting a reply.
Source: BBC Sport
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