[Politics] Bristol Rovers boss Joey Barton 'should consider future' after Holocaust analogy

[L-MOK7H]

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-bristol-59037474

Joey Barton has been told to consider his future as Bristol Rovers manager after comparing a poor performance by his side to the Holocaust.

Bristol councillor Fabian Breckels, an associate member of the Jewish Labour Movement, said the former England player's comments were "appalling".

Mr Breckels also criticised the club which has so far refused to comment on Mr Barton's comparison.

He said they "ought to provide a considered response fairly soon".

Labour Councillor Fabian Breckels
IMAGE SOURCE,BRISTOL CITY COUNCIL
Image caption,Labour councillor Fabian Breckels said Mr Barton's comments were "appalling"
Footage of the Rovers' manager's comments after its 3-1 defeat to Newport County went viral, and Mr Breckels was one of a number of anti-Semitism campaigners to criticise the former England international.

Dame Helen Hyde, a trustee of the National Holocaust Centre and Museum, believes his analogy showed a "lack of knowledge".

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"The Holocaust was not a game," she said.

"I don't think Mr Barton knows what the word means and he is certainly not aware of the huge sadness and offence he has caused.

"Might I suggest he is encouraged to learn about these tragic events," she added.

Dame Helen Hyde said the Holocaust was "not a game"
IMAGE SOURCE,DAME HELEN HYDE
Image caption,Dame Helen Hyde encouraged Mr Barton to learn about the Holocaust
Karen Pollock, chief executive of the Holocaust Educational Trust, said it was "clearly an inappropriate comparison".

During a post-match press conference on Saturday, Mr Barton told reporters: "I said to the lads during the week, 'the team's almost like musical chairs'.

"Someone gets in and does well but then gets suspended or injured.

"Someone gets in for a game, does well but then has a Holocaust, a nightmare, an absolute disaster."

The Holocaust, carried out by the Nazis during World War Two, claimed the lives about an estimated six million Jews.