Scotland: Hibernian footballer criticised for tweet at ‘homosexual poof’
Hibernian footballer Fraser Mullen has been criticised for making homophobic remarks on Twitter.
Earlier on Monday, the 19-year-old tweeted: “To the homosexual who ruined my night. Thanks you poof bore off and grow a set.”
The tweet has since been deleted. Scotland’s Equality Network has criticised the comments.
Policy Co-ordinator Tom French said: “There is never an excuse for homophobia and such language is particularly damaging when it comes from a public figure who could be seen as a role model to many young people. Our research has shown that there is still a big problem with prejudice against LGBT people in Scottish sport. We will continue to work with the SFA and football clubs to make sport a welcoming environment for all.”
In 2012, the Equality Network published Out for Sport, Scotland’s first major piece of research into homophobia and transphobia in Scottish sport.
The research included interviews with sports organisations and a survey of 1,722 participants. It revealed a major problem with prejudice in Scottish sport with 79% of respondents believing there is a problem with homophobia.
The report identified football as the sport that people felt had the biggest problem.
