Beautiful Virgin Islands

Saturday, Sep 06, 2025

BoJo says focus less on ‘symbols,’ more on ‘substance’ of racism, as English rugby mulls banning song penned by freed black slave

BoJo says focus less on ‘symbols,’ more on ‘substance’ of racism, as English rugby mulls banning song penned by freed black slave

British PM Boris Johnson says he wouldn’t want to see fans banned from singing the England rugby union anthem ‘Swing Low, Sweet Chariot’, and that people should focus more on the substance and less on the symbols of racism.

During an interview with Sky News on Friday, Johnson was asked whether he had “strong views” on ‘Swing Low, Sweet Chariot’ – the iconic song bellowed out by English rugby union fans at stadiums. The anthem is currently being reviewed by the Rugby Football Union due to its links to slavery.

Johnson said he was against “any sort of prohibition on singing” the song and insisted that the removal of offensive symbols such as statues, seen in many places over the last few weeks, was not the answer to rooting out racism in Britain.

The prime minister stated that people needed to “focus less on the symbols of discrimination” and more on “the substance of the issue.”


The lyrics to ‘Swing Low, Sweet Chariot,’ written in the second half of the 19th century by Wallis Willis, a freed black slave in what is now Choctaw County in Oklahoma, originally had nothing to do with rugby or any sports at all.

A political storm around the rights and wrongs of tearing down statues of figures linked to slavery or racist policies has swept Britain, prompted by the downing of 17th century slave trader Edward Colston’s monument in Bristol in early June.

“Topple the Racists” – a website run by the “Stop Trump Coalition” with support from the “Black Lives Matter” campaign – was launched soon after, with the objective to “take down statues and monuments in the UK that celebrate slavery and racism.”

The group provided a map with the locations of the offending monuments to be toppled, including that of a former PM who oversaw the abolition of slavery. It was shared by British Guardian journalist Owen Jones, who was roundly ridiculed by critics on social media for doing so.

The fierce debate on racist symbols in Britain comes against a backdrop of anti-racism protests around the world, provoked by the brutal killing of 46-year-old African American George Floyd while in police custody in Minneapolis in May.

The protests – led by the Black Lives Matter movement – have faced counter demonstrations by right-wing groups in Britain, who say they want to defend historic statues such as that of Winston Churchill – which was defaced by anti-racism activists in London.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Trump Threatens Retaliatory Tariffs After EU Imposes €2.95 Billion Fine on Google
Tesla Board Proposes Unprecedented One-Trillion-Dollar Performance Package for Elon Musk
US Justice Department Launches Criminal Mortgage-Fraud Probe into Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook
Escalating Drug Trafficking and Violence in Latin America: A Growing Crisis
US and Taiwanese Defence Officials Held Secret Talks in Alaska
Report: Secret SEAL Team 6 Mission in North Korea Ordered by Trump in 2019 Ended in Failure
Gold Could Reach Nearly $5,000 if Fed Independence Is Undermined, Goldman Sachs Warns
Uruguay, Colombia and Paraguay Secure Places at 2026 World Cup
Florida Murder Case: The Adelson Family, the Killing of Dan Markel, and the Trial of Donna Adelson
Trump Administration Advances Plans to Rebrand Pentagon as Department of War Instead of the Fake Term Department of Defense
Big Tech Executives Laud Trump at White House Dinner, Unveil Massive U.S. Investments
Tether Expands into Gold Sector with Profit-Driven Diversification
‘Looks Like a Wig’: Online Users Express Concern Over Kate Middleton
Brand-New $1 Million Yacht Sinks Just Fifteen Minutes After Maiden Launch in Turkey
Here’s What the FBI Seized in John Bolton Raid — and the Legal Risks He Faces
Florida’s Vaccine Revolution: DeSantis Declares War on Mandates
Trump’s New War – and the ‘Drug Tyrant’ Fearing Invasion: ‘1,200 Missiles Aimed at Us’
"The Situation Has Never Been This Bad": The Fall of PepsiCo
At the Parade in China: Laser Weapons, 'Eagle Strike,' and a Missile Capable of 'Striking Anywhere in the World'
The Fashion Designer Who Became an Italian Symbol: Giorgio Armani Has Died at 91
Putin Celebrates ‘Unprecedentedly High’ Ties with China as Gazprom Seals Power of Siberia-2 Deal
China Unveils New Weapons in Grand Military Parade as Xi Hosts Putin and Kim
Queen Camilla’s Teenage Courage: Fended Off Attempted Assault on London Train, New Biography Reveals
Scottish Brothers Set Record in Historic Pacific Row
Rapper Cardi B Cleared of Liability in Los Angeles Civil Assault Trial
Google Avoids Break-Up in U.S. Antitrust Case as Stocks Rise
Couple celebrates 80th wedding anniversary at assisted living facility in Lancaster
Information Warfare in the Age of AI: How Language Models Become Targets and Tools
The White House on LinkedIn Has Changed Their Profile Picture to Donald Trump
"Insulted the Prophet Muhammad": Woman Burned Alive by Angry Mob in Niger State, Nigeria
Trump Responds to Death Rumors – Announces 'Missile City'
Court of Appeal Allows Asylum Seekers to Remain at Essex Hotel Amid Local Tax Boycott Threats
Germany in Turmoil: Ukrainian Teenage Girl Pushed to Death by Illegal Iraqi Migrant
United Krack down on human rights: Graham Linehan Arrested at Heathrow Over Three X Posts, Hospitalised, Released on Bail with Posting Ban
Asian and Middle Eastern Investors Avoid US Markets
Ray Dalio Warns of US Shift to Autocracy
Eurozone Inflation Rises to 2.1% in August
Russia and China Sign New Gas Pipeline Deal
China's Robotics Industry Fuels Export Surge
Suntory Chairman Resigns After Police Probe
Gold Price Hits New All-Time Record
Von der Leyen's Plane Hit by Suspected Russian GPS Interference in an Incident Believed to Be Caused by Russia or by Pro-Peace or by Anti-Corruption European Activists
UK Fintechs Explore Buying US Banks
Greece Suspends 5% of Schools as Birth Rate Drops
Apollo to Launch $5 Billion Sports Investment Vehicle
Bolsonaro Trial Nears Close Amid US-Brazil Tension
European Banks Push for Lower Cross-Border Barriers
Poland's Offshore Wind Sector Attracts Investors
Nvidia Reveals: Two Mystery Customers Account for About 40% of Revenue
Woody Allen: "I Would Be Happy to Direct Trump Again in a Film"
×