The Disturbing Truth We Always Knew #J4T96

I grew up and lived right outside the Liverpool football ground about 100 meters from the Kop main gates. For 22 years we lived, breathed, saw, heard and could even smell match day. As a passionate Red supporter and keen footballer growing up in the working class area of Anfield, seeing clearly the devastation of systematic ‘de-industrialisation’ (escalated and used by Thatcher to attack the poor, the unions, dismantle state owned services and destroy working class communities), what I saw on TV at that time when Hillsborough occurred, was deeply disturbing and shocking to the core.  

The avoidable death of 96 Liverpool supporters felt at the time, the culmination of so much wrong in a state that viewed my people as a worthless ‘underclass’. The lack of care, the disregard, the wilful neglect, the lies and slander and the contempt shown at Hillsborough, came after so many other sad and disturbing events such as the impact and policing of the miners strikes. Like most Liverpudlians I always knew the truth about Hillsborough.

Now 27 years later after 96 people (mainly young people) were killed at a football match, and their fellow supporters  and survivors who suffered witnessing the trauma and deaths before them, were then systematically blamed for their deaths, and the friends and loved ones of the bereaved  left to grieve and mourn surrounded by deceit, lies and misinformation - the truth, denied and covered up for so long, has finally been squeezed out from the government agencies and officials - but only after exhausting lifelong battles and tireless work from the victims families, at incredible expense, emotionally, spiritually, practically and financially.

The 96 supporters were indeed unlawfully killed and some of the agencies and individuals responsible have now been identified. Now that the truth is finally confirmed and made public, justice needs to be done - the families and survivors should be compensated appropriately and all those responsible for these terrible crimes should be brought to justice.

There are too many state crimes and cover ups, that seem impervious and totally resistant to inquiries or scrutiny. Like Stephen Lawrence case that illustrates the state of institutionalised racism in the UK, the Hillsborough cover up shows the deep seated classism in the UK. 

Like Stephen Lawrence the truth about this awful cover up only emerged because of incredible tenacity, integrity, endeavour from those who lost loved ones, combined importantly (and wrongly) by the need to have the money to employ the very best lawyers possible to take on the state.

I am glad to see that day when truth won, it would be so good  one to see justice, but so much avoidable hurt, damage and trauma has been done over the last 27 years. Despicable.

An emotional day. A very significant step forward. A day when good people I identify with were vindicated. A day when some of those who lied and schemed against the victims, their families and survivors were exposed.

I am proud to be a Scouser, I have the utmost respect for the way those families fought with integrity, honesty, dignity and humility. I respect the way LFC, the supporters and people of Liverpool, including Everton FC and Everton supporters, never gave up and kept the issue alive.

"Stand Up For 96” and all those vulnerable and powerless people unfairly treated.