Lewis Hamilton insists he ‘can’t do it alone’ in F1’s fight against discrimination
The Mercedes star insists F1 needs to make a stand against discrimination in the wake of Nelson Piquet’s use of racist language
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Your support makes all the difference.Lewis Hamilton has called for help in his fight against discrimination in Formula 1, insisting he “can’t do it alone.”
Three-time world champion Nelson Piquet was widely condemned earlier this week for using racial language to describe the Mercedes star in an interview - he has since apologised and says his comments were mistranslated.
Yet Hamilton - who has been on the receiving end racial abuse throughout his career - insists “enough is enough” and has called for F1 and companies around the world to act.
“It’s now just a knee-jerk reaction from companies all around the world when something like this happens,” he said, in a press conference before this weekend’s British Grand Prix.
“Everyone’s PR team must have a script ready for crisis management. It’s not enough. It’s about real action. To F1 and the media, we should not be giving these people the platform. These old voices, whether consciously or subconsciously, do not think people like me or women should be in the sport. Discrimination is something we shouldn’t be promoting.
”It’s not good enough for lip service, we need to push for action… I’m trying to raise money to push this also. We need more and I can’t do it alone.”
The seven-time world champion added that “older voices” such as Piquet and Sir Jackie Stewart - who previously called for Hamilton to retire and focus on clothing and fashion - should no longer be given a platform to promote their views.
‘I’ve always tried to be respectful to these individuals - they aren’t going to change these undertones of discrimination,” he added.
“I love how Michelle Obama says when they go low, you go high. I’m still high, it’s not going to change me from doing what is right.
“Accountability is important. With F1 it’s important to make a stand and not give these people a platform. It’s all well and good talking about inclusivity – but it’s just empty words if we’re not actually acting.”
Hamilton also spoke about a wider issue of discrmination and backwardness in society beyond motorsport, emphasising that “big organisations” need to act too.
“No more can we be amplifying these voices who are creating that divide out there,” he stated.
“People in government who make divides. America has just gone back 50 years. We’ve gone backwards here. We all need to pull together.
“There’s still discrimination around the world. You see it on social media, micro-aggressions which continue to come out. Enough is enough. I try to take the high road and avoid it but no one should have to brush off racism. We need big organisations to take a stand.”
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