By Iain Macintosh
FOR 23 years, they fought for the truth. For 23 years, they were told to stop ‘wallowing’ in their grief.
Today, their tenacity, bravery and resolve was finally vindicated as the Prime Minister stood to deliver a profound and shocking apology for what we now KNOW was a widespread establishment cover-up and smear campaign. But he is not the only person who needs to apologise.
I need to apologise.
Many of us, non-Liverpool supporters need to apologise. We are guilty. Guilty because perhaps we didn’t listen properly to those families. Guilty because, if we did listen, we didn’t do enough to help them. A retweet here, a Facebook ‘like’ there. It wasn’t enough. This was a tragedy that could have affected any of us, and we let them fight alone.
There are no conspiracy theories now, there is only truth. In 1989, 96 Liverpool fans were killed in utterly avoidable circumstances at Hillsborough, the life crushed out of them as police officers, their chain of command compromised, stood and watched.
Dozens of ambulances were stationed outside. Only two of them got on the pitch. Of the 96 who perished, 59 could have been saved. And that was only the start. In the aftermath of the disaster, the police set to work on a vicious and inhuman program of misinformation, smearing the dead to cover their failings.
Indirectly, they fed a story to The Sun, the most widely read newspaper in the country, who repeated it as ‘The Truth’ alleging that the Liverpool supporters rifled the pockets of the dead and urinated on their corpses. Lies. All lies designed to dehumanise the people of Liverpool, to make them seem like animals. To make their slaughter acceptable. And they worked. For 23 years.
For 23 years, morons in football stadiums have chanted, “you killed your own fans,” every time Liverpool have come to town. For 23 years, the lies have been repeated in print by those who should know better.
The man who, bafflingly, many people want to see as our next Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, vomited them out on the pages of The Spectator. And still the families fought on.
Writing now, in the immediate aftermath of the apology, it’s impossible to comprehend the implications of the day. There are simply too many people to be angry with, too many targets for our rage.
Perhaps while the dust settles and we wait for clarity, we should turn our first volley of fury on ourselves. This was a disaster that could have affected any club in the country. God willing, it will be the last time that football supporters die in a stadium. But if it isn’t, if something this terrible should ever happen again, let us hope that we have learned our lesson.
Let us hope that, next time, we don’t leave the families to fight alone.
An excellent article and 100% right. These revelations will be so shocking for the nation as the vast majority simply did not want to know. They do now. It is fact. They were lied to and the Hillsborough victims were lied about. Irvine Patnick, Bernard Ingham (I refuse to call either “Sir”), Kelvin McKenzie, Simon Heffer, Boris Johnson all those who spread the lies now need to apologise unreservedly for their actions.
Well said Pitt
Apologies are fine but what about apologies from those held culpable….not hearing them
Like many, I’ve known what happened at Hillsborough for 23 years now. Hearing the findings today didn’t make me angry though. There were parts that shocked me still, regarding the number that could have been saved especially but right or wrong my over riding reaction was one of emotion. I felt a wave of emotion sweep across me as I thought how the families of the victims must be feeling after everything they’ve been through on their fight for justice.
A couple of hours on though and my feelings are turning to anger. Especially against the football fans of other teams and just about everyone outside of Merseyside and the surrounding areas whose views we’ve all heard or read over the years. I pray they feel embarrassed about how easily they were duped. Hillsborough was always about justice but I can’t help feeling like retribution now.
I don’t need to apologise, always knew the truth and always supported the justice campaign, from putting stickers up when outside of Liverpool in the hope that one person will read it, to educating others to read the justice pages on the web.
Felt sick when the findings were read, just wandering if Maggie will be implicated with those South Yorkshire Police who were implicit after the crime.
Being a scouser it’ll be seen as hystrionics on our part and the fans will still chant about us killing our own.
You’ll never change bigots.
Just glad the families have been acknowledged and the coroner reports now have to be changed.
For those in South Yorkshires finest blue, how do you sleep at night?
A full public inquiry must now be held, and those who were responsible for this disgraceful cover up must be named and shamed.
Our apologies to the Liverpool fans is a good move but without an inquiry they will fall on deaf ears.
From a non football fan, let there be lessons learn’t by all of us let this ultimate victory won by the fortitude of those families not be wasted.
“S.Y.M.M.”
The subtext of this song
I’ve thought about it for so long
But it’s really not the sort of thing
That people want to hear us sing
The context of this song
Well I could go on and on
But it’s still unfashionable
To believe in principles
South South Yorkshire – mass murderer
How can you sleep at night, sleep at night
South South Yorkshire – mass murderer
How can you sleep at night, sleep at night
The reason for this song
Well maybe it’s a pointless one
But thank you Jimmy McGovern
For reminding me of what lives on
The ending for this song
Well I haven’t really thought of one
There’s nothing I could ever say
That could really take the pain away
South South Yorkshire – mass murderer
How can you sleep at night, sleep at night
South South Yorkshire – mass murderer
How can you sleep at night, sleep at night
Great article, I think us as Liverpool fans didn’t do enough. Next comes justice.
An appauling way to treat, Children, Women, & Men, all British citizens entitled to the protection of the state. The fact that they were labelled “football fans” as if this was some sort of disease has helped the masses to turn a blind eye over the years. We need to emphasize that these were human beings, citizens, children, young boys & girls, & elderly citizens, not just “football supporters”. Finally, Mrs Tatcher, I hope you sleep well at night. Not
I saw a newspaper picture from the political campaign
A woman was kissing a child, who was obviously in pain
She spills with compassion, as that young childs
Face in her hands she grips
Can you imagine all that greed and avarice
Coming down on that childs lips
Well I hope I don’t die too soon
I pray the lord my soul to save
Oh I’ll be a good boy, Im trying so hard to behave
Because there’s one thing I know, I’d like to live
Long enough to savour
That’s when they finally put you in the ground
Ill stand on your grave and tramp the dirt down
When england was the whore of the world
Margeret was her madam
And the future looked as bright and as clear as
The black tarmacadam
Well I hope that she sleeps well at night, isnt
Haunted by every tiny detail
Cos when she held that lovely face in her hands
All she thought of was betrayal
And now the cynical ones say that it all ends the same in the long run
Try telling that to the desperate father who just squeezed the life from his only son
And how it’s only voices in your head and dreams you never dreamt
Try telling him the subtle difference between justice and contempt
Try telling me she isn’t angry with this pitiful discontent
When they flaunt it in your face as you line up for punishment
And then expect you to say thank you straighten up, look proud and pleased
Because youve only got the symptoms, you haven’t got the whole disease
Just like a schoolboy, whose heads like a tin-can
Filled up with dreams then poured down the drain
Try telling that to the boys on both sides, being blown to bits or beaten and maimed
Who takes all the glory and none of the shame
Well I hope you live long now, I pray the lord your soul to keep
I think I’ll be going before we fold our arms and start to weep
I never thought for a moment that human life could be so cheap
Cos when they finally put you in the ground
They’ll stand there laughing and tramp the dirt down