British Fans of Tottenham Hotspur Soccer Club Charged for Using Y-Word
Graphic by Angelie Zaslavsky
Three fans of the British Tottenham Hotspurs soccer club have been charged for using the term “Yid” at a team match. The three men were charged on Tuesday for causing ‘‘harassment, alarm or distress’’ by using a ‘‘threatening, abusive or insulting’’ word.
Two of the men were arrested in November and one in October, according to reports. One of the men also is accused of possessing cocaine.
Tottenham has many Jewish supporters, who sometimes call themselves the “Yid army.” However, the term often is used derogatorily by fans of Hotspurs opponents.
The English Football Association announced in September that fans could face criminal charges for using Yid, calling the term “inappropriate in a football setting.”
The statement also said that “use of the term in a public setting could amount to a criminal offense, and leave those fans liable to prosecution and potentially a lengthy football banning order.”
Fans have continued to use the term, however, saying that it is not used derogatorily by team supporters. The chants include “Yids,” “Yid army,” and “Yiddos.”
This is a moment of great uncertainty. Here’s what you can do about it.
We hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, we’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s independent Jewish news this Passover. All donations are being matched by the Forward Board - up to $100,000.
This is a moment of great uncertainty for the news media, for the Jewish people, and for our sacred democracy. It is a time of confusion and declining trust in public institutions. An era in which we need humans to report facts, conduct investigations that hold power to account, tell stories that matter and share honest discourse on all that divides us.
With no paywall or subscriptions, the Forward is entirely supported by readers like you. Every dollar you give this Passover is invested in the future of the Forward — and telling the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
The Forward doesn’t rely on funding from institutions like governments or your local Jewish federation. There are thousands of readers like you who give us $18 or $36 or $100 each month or year.
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
