FA Cup attendee arrested over "disgusting" Hillsborough shirt
<p>A man has been arrested over the “disgusting” shirt he chose to wear while attending the FA Cup Final. </p>
<p>The garment, which appeared to refer to the 97 fans who lost their lives in the 1989 Hillsborough disaster, saw 33-year-old James White face charges over “displaying threatening or abusive writing likely to cause harassment, alarm, or distress”. The shirt featured the number 97 in a large font on the back, with the text “Not Enough” sprawled above it. </p>
<p>The 1989 tragedy occurred on April 15, when almost 100 people - consisting mostly of Liverpool supporters - were killed in a crowd crush at Hillsborough Stadium during an FA Cup Semi-final between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest. A further 766 people were injured. </p>
<p>Widespread attention was first brought to the offensive shirt when one Twitter user called for the “absolute clown to be identified”, asking how “97 people dying” had become “fair game”.</p>
<p>“Get this man’s face spread across social media ASAP,” another urged, “he needs to face repercussions.”</p>
<p>His image quickly made the rounds, with hundreds calling him out for his insensitive actions, and consequently White was arrested during the match. </p>
<p>The Metropolitan Police Events Twitter confirmed the news, sharing an update to their account that explained they had “worked proactively” with Wembley Stadium officials, and that the man had “been arrested on suspicion of a public order offence and taken into custody.”</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p dir="ltr" lang="en"><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ARREST?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ARREST</a> | We are aware of this and have worked proactively with officials at <a href="https://twitter.com/wembleystadium?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@wembleystadium</a> to identify the individual. </p>
<p>He has been arrested on suspicion of a public order offence and taken into custody. <a href="https://t.co/PNVzEhKzgZ">https://t.co/PNVzEhKzgZ</a></p>
<p>— Metropolitan Police Events (@MetPoliceEvents) <a href="https://twitter.com/MetPoliceEvents/status/1665029777676173320?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 3, 2023</a></p></blockquote>
<p>And in a statement from the FA, a spokesperson declared that the organisation “strongly condemns the actions of the individual who wore a shirt referencing the Hillsborough disaster”. </p>
<p>They went on to note that they had seen the photo on social media, and worked quickly to identify “the perpetrator”. </p>
<p>“We will not tolerate abuse relating to Hillsborough or any football tragedy at Wembley Stadium,” they said, “and we will continue to work with the authorities to ensure strong action is taken against perpetrators.” </p>
<p>Later, photos from the moment of his arrest were posted, with the Hillsborough Survivors Support Alliance tweeting that “this [should] be a warning to anyone else thinking of doing anything similar. And that goes for using ANY tragedy”, alongside an image of White surrounded by police officers. </p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Let this be a warning to anyone else thinking of doing anything similar. And that goes for using ANY tragedy <a href="https://t.co/xwqAGgAAxe">pic.twitter.com/xwqAGgAAxe</a></p>
<p>— Hillsborough Survivors Support Alliance ( HSA ) (@HillsboroughSu1) <a href="https://twitter.com/HillsboroughSu1/status/1665043289660174338?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 3, 2023</a></p></blockquote>
<p>An account for The Kenny Dalglish Stand shared the news too, noting that the arrest was “Justice for the 97, forever in our Hearts peacefully up in Heaven”, and that the man behind it all was a “disrespectful, unthoughtful, f***er”. As they pointed out as well, “the game had nothin' to do with @LFC so what’s his motivation to commit such a disgraceful act!!!”</p>
<p>“It’s utterly disgusting and disgraceful that someone even printed it on the shirt for him!” one user agreed in the comments. “I got banned yesterday for sharing this photo with some swearing on…I seriously hope he gets what he deserves”.</p>
<p>“It’s absolutely disgusting,” another said. “I hope he gets what’s coming to him. I’m a Newcastle fan and I’ve been to a field and have laid flowers down and stood for a while thinking of those that sadly lost their lives that day. I’m disgusted beyond words. My love and thoughts go out to all”. </p>
<p><em>Images: Twitter</em></p>
