Black woman charged by Met Police for directing racially abusive terms towards footballer on X
Jamila Abdi, a 21-year-old Black woman from London, has been charged after using the n-word to refer to a footballer during a discussion with another Black woman on X.
The incident occurred on 27 August 2023 during a heated debate regarding a football match on social media. Abdi used the slur in reference to Black footballer Alexander Isak, writing: “I’m so p*ssed off let me get my hands on that f*cking n***a.”
In December 2023, the Metropolitan Police called her in for questioning and subsequently charged her under the Communications Act of 2003.
According to The Independent, while no one was tagged in the post the police documents allege that the tweet “conveyed a message which was indecent or grossly offensive for the purpose of causing distress or anxiety to the recipient or to any other person.”
A number of netizens have started to share their opinions online, with one X user stating: “The @CPSUK have now made it clear that they consider one Black person using the N-word with another Black person to be a form criminal racial abuse. Being from an ethnic minority background does not provide a defence to racially abusing someone. Our commitment to tackling these abhorrent crimes through fair and impartial prosecution is unwavering.”
Another user expressed: “The offensive tweet in question by Jamila Abdi (21) last year about footballer Alexander Isak […]. How many white people have been charged for their racially abusive tweets of Black England footballers in recent years?”
The Code for Crown Prosecutors indicates that prosecution is more likely if the offence was motivated by prejudice against the victim’s ethnic or national origin, gender, disability, age, religion or belief, sexual orientation, or gender identity, or if the suspect demonstrated hostility based on any of these characteristics.
Racist abuse remains a significant problem in English football. Remember the UEFA Euro 2020 final, when the three Black England players who missed penalties were subjected to intense online racist abuse from supporters? Indeed, after England’s penalty shootout defeat to Italy in the final, the UK Football Policing Unit (UKFPU) received over 600 reports of online racist comments directed at England’s Black players.
Out of all of these reports, 207 were deemed criminal with at least 123 of the incidents having originated from overseas. In response to data requests from the UKFPU, social media companies provided information that led to 11 arrests. England manager Gareth Southgate condemned the abuse as “unforgivable.”
On 8 September 2021, a man received a 14-week suspended sentence and was required to wear an electronic tag for 40 weeks due to a racist message he posted on Facebook after the final.
In respect of Abdi’s case, the 21-year-old is scheduled to appear in court on 8 August 2024.
