OPINION – Bruce Buck: How Roman Abramovich inspired our antisemitism campaign
Chelsea Football Club's chairman reflects on its campaign to eradicate racism which has been driven by its Jewish philanthropist owner
In 2017, Roman Abramovich instructed all of us at Chelsea to ramp up efforts to tackle antisemtism on and off the pitch.
This is how we came to launch our Say No To Antisemitism campaign – a wide-ranging initiative to tackle antisemitism and to educate fans, football and the wider community on the dangers of intolerance.
Since we started the campaign, we have become convinced that education is the absolute key to making a difference.
Understanding history plays an important role in changing attitudes, and we are proud to be able to contribute to a new landmark gallery that will benefit millions of visitors from around the world and improve education and awareness about the Holocaust.
The club was privileged to host a fundraiser for the Imperial War Museum (IWM) London’s new £30.5 million Holocaust gallery, at Stamford Bridge last week. We were delighted to partner with Jewish News for this special occasion.
It is a project of huge significance to our owner, Mr Abramovich, and the whole of Chelsea Football Club.
The event, From Darkness into Light, was hosted by comedian and writer, David Baddiel, and we were honoured to hear the memories and stories from Holocaust survivors and those saved in the Kindertransports.
The evening was both moving and inspirational and I’m sure that none of our guests will forget it.
Through teaching, learning and remembering what has happened, we can continue our fight against anti-Semitism and ensure an act of such hatred never happens again.
- Bruce Buck is chairman of Chelsea Football Club
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