The Green Brigade have released a statement this afternoon after Celtic pulled down their Palestine flags inside Celtic Park – accusing the group of abusing their privilege to get inside Celtic Park to celebrate Scott Brown.
The Green Brigade wrote in their statement they paid tribute to our outgoing Celtic captain with a banner but also took the opportunity to again show their support for Palestine.
The group and many Celtic supporters have tried their best to shine a light on what’s going on in the region and given the latest images coming out on social media, another show of solidarity was needed.
The Palestine flag is not illegal and while the group didn’t consult the club on their show of solidarity, it’s easy now to see why.
The club pulling the flags down and releasing a statement to condemn the Green Brigade for putting them up has massively backfired.
Here is the GB statement below:
This morning the Green Brigade set up two small tributes for two issues close to the hearts of Celtic supporters.
First, we paid tribute to departing Celtic captain, Scott Brown. Unable to give Scott the send-off he deserves tonight, we left a banner to mark his final match at Celtic Park. The ‘Brown 8’ banner not only honours Brown but reflects a special, charity, tribute t-shirt being sold by North Curve Celtic, with proceeds supporting the Hospital for Children, Glasgow. Around £7,000 has been raised to date.
Second, we displayed a legitimate flag which has been proudly flown by Celtic fans for generations. We are disappointed, though sadly not surprised, that the flag of Palestine causes distress for Celtic plc.
While we view flying the Palestinian flag as an act of humanity and solidarity, the removal and censorship of the flag demonstrates how far our current board have strayed from the values of Celtic Football Club. To remain neutral on hideous and violent acts of oppression is to side with the oppressor, which is an affront to the founding ethos of our club.
Finally, we left a banner in tribute to our friend and Celtic supporter Salah Ajarma, who tragically died last month. A frequent visitor to Glasgow and Celtic Park, Salah met Scott Brown in 2012 when he brought a group of Palestinian refugees, and their flags, to Celtic Park.
The Celtic plc statement was deliberately misleading and crass. Its absence from any social media platform proves the cowardice of those responsible for it. We are confident that the Celtic support will continue to stand with the people of Palestine. Although we are unwelcome to do so at Celtic Park, we encourage all to join your local solidarity demonstrations.
Edinburgh Saturday 15th May, 12 noon, Regent Road Park
Glasgow Sunday 16th May, 1pm, George Square
UNTIL THE LAST REBEL
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The club’s social media feeds have been inundated with Palestinian flag emojis and images since the statement.
It’s a poor move by a board we have often believed are out of touch with the heart of our support.
