Adam Hitchcock

Dear @southport_fc, I was a little disappointed to see the "mutual termination" of Mark Duffy because his political opinions were discovered on Facebook. A man has now lost his livelihood. I have not seen Mark's posts, I don't need to. But the ones referenced in the Southport news mention him calling Keir Starmer vile and sharing a post from "Far-right" Advance. I mean he is right about Keir Starmer, hence why football fans were been singing he is a wanker all summer, and calling Advance far-right is babyish at best. Though it appears that these days if you believe in Conservatism and Freedom you are now far-right. Laughable really. Perhaps you could clarify something. Is holding conservative views now incompatible with managing your football club? Or is it simply a question of which political opinions are considered acceptable? Conservatism is a perfectly legitimate political position in a democratic country. People are entitled to disagree with it, of course. That's the point of democracy. Football was built by working-class communities. These are people who have watched their towns decimated, their opportunities disappear and their living standards sacrificed for an ever expanding state. They are entitled to be angry. They are entitled to question their government. And, believe it or not, they are entitled to hold political opinions that might offend the sneering middle-class. I appreciate that defending someone's right to express an unpopular opinion can be uncomfortable. It requires a backbone, particularly when people are demanding consequences. But that is precisely when the principle matters. Free speech is not a commitment to protecting opinions we agree with. Anyone can do that. It is a commitment to tolerating opinions we dislike, even those we find offensive. Of course, it is your business, you are a private organisation and can do as you want. But I am sure there are fans of your team who would share Mark's beliefs. Personally, I struggle to understand why political disagreement should become a question of someone's livelihood. We live in a country where people can defend almost any progressive opinion, however controversial, and expect these opinions to be treated as a legitimate contribution to public debate. Yet express the wrong conservative opinion and suddenly your employment becomes a matter of public interest. Perhaps I'm old-fashioned, but I thought football was one of the few remaining places where people from different backgrounds and political persuasions could come together, call the PM a wanker then have a pint. Or do you propose sanctions for anyone now calling Andy Burnham a wanker (he is by the way), or supporting right-wing parties? Our country was built on the shoulders of giants and will be destroyed sliding down the backbones of cowards.

Attack Attack's genre-defining single Stick Stickly has officially surpassed 25 Million streams on Spotify. xitter.cf/scenevid/status/204199…