We are proud to have ‘Show Racism the Red Card’ as our partners in the No2H8 Crime Awards. They are one of the leading anti-racism educational charities in the UK which was established in January 1996. The organisation utilises the high-profile status of football and football players to help tackle racism in society. The majority of the organisation’s work is the delivery of education to young people and adults in their schools, their workplaces and at events held in football stadiums. Across Britain, Show Racism the Red Card delivers training to more than 50,000 individuals per year.

• Why do you think No2H8 Crime Awards is a positive and much needed annual event?

Because there is a rise in hate crimes in the UK, more needs to be done on it. Hate crime is massively unreported. For example, Show Racism the Red Card research shows that only around 10% of hate crimes is reported to the police. So therefore, we think No2H8 Crime Awards are a great way to get more people involved in reporting hate crime.

• Do you believe that hatred and intolerance are rising?

Show Racism the Red Card and many other organisations have evidence that it is certainly rising.

• How important is education in tackling hate crimes?

If we want to reduce hate crime in the long-term, education is key to do so. The ethos of our organisation is that no one is born racist, people learn to be racist and if you can learn to be racist you can also unlearn it.

• Why is it essential for communities to maintain vigilance against hatred, intolerance and prejudice?

Everyone wants to live in a peaceful society, where everyone can go about their everyday life without harassment and therefore we need to be proactive in fighting hate crimes, put more effort into educating people and organise events such as No2H8 Crime Awards.