Racism

Names marked with an asterisk have been changed to protect identities.

London, United Kingdom – “People here are tired, scared and feel forgotten,” says Nabila*, a Muslim mother of two in Basildon, a town in the English county of Essex.

Sitting in her living room with a mug of tea, a Qur’an visible on the bookshelf and Japanese prints hanging to its right, she recalls a string of incidents in recent months: Glass thrown from a residential building at Muslim children, a racist attack on the local mosque where red crosses were daubed across its walls alongside the words “Christ is King” and “This is England”, and reports of drivers accelerating as Muslim women cross the road with their children.

According to the 2021 census, Basildon is 93 percent white, and Muslims make up less than 2 percent of the population. Campaigners have warned that in areas where ethnic minority communities are smaller and more geographically isolated, they face heightened risks, as visibility increases vulnerability.

A single mother working full time, Nabila has been documenting incidents of racism, supporting victims and organising meetings with local authorities.

She said she no longer feels safe in the place she calls home.

After being racially abused while walking through her favourite park, she stopped going there altogether. Women, she said, are increasingly changing their daily routines, constantly watching over their shoulders. Racism now permeates every aspect of their lives, she added.

At a women’s listening circle organised by Nabila in collaboration with the local authority at the Wat Tyler Centre, another Muslim woman, Zarka*, spoke about her experiences as a young mother in Basildon who wears the hijab.

After being told to “take that rag off your head” during the school run by a passer-by, she stopped taking her children to school for two weeks. Beyond verbal abuse, she described the cumulative effect of everyday hostility, from cars failing to stop at zebra crossings and hostile looks from passersby.

‘I can’t do this any more, Mum.’

Hundreds of miles north, similar experiences are unfolding in Scottish classrooms.

Etka Marwaha’s daughter Anisa was seven when she first experienced racist taunting at her primary school in Glasgow.

Marwaha said Anisa became quiet and withdrawn. She was isolated on the playground and subjected to racial slurs. Months later, she broke down in tears in front of her mother, explaining the abuse she had suffered.

On multiple occasions, Marwaha contacted the school, urging them to take action, even offering her own support on understanding racism. But, she said, they failed in their duty of care, and the extent of the problem was kept hidden.

It went on for two years before Etka felt compelled to take her daughter out of the school.

“The plan was never to move her into a different school,” she told Al Jazeera. “But she was refusing to go to school; she would come home very, very upset. She was isolated.

“She was in tears, saying, “I can’t do this any more, Mum.’ So she made the decision, at that young age, that ‘I want to get out of here.’”

The girl’s new school is not in the catchment area, nor is there a direct bus to it, causing further inconvenience. But it has a zero-tolerance approach to racism, and Anisa is happier.

At her new school, Anisa can speak about her experiences of racism and how it made her feel.

The ordeal brought back painful memories for Marwaha’s own experiences at school.

“The racist bullying, for me, started at secondary school. You’d think times have changed, that people have been educated, but I think things have changed for the worse when a seven-year-old can openly make a racist comment and that’s accepted by society, and parents don’t address it.”

Sam*, a doctor in northwest Scotland with dual heritage children, said he has been surprised by the level of racism in local schools.

“There has been a clear normalising of racist jokes and name-calling. Every one of our kids has been affected,” he said. “Perhaps the biggest surprise is how few other students stand up against racism. When I was growing up, if someone was racist, they would be the person being socially excluded. Now, silence. It has forced us to look at moving out of the UK.”

‘Racism is out of control’

In the latest incident of alleged and potentially dangerous racism, a man walked into Manchester Central Mosque on Tuesday, reportedly with an axe and weapons. The man was arrested. There had been 2,000 worshippers in the mosque at the time, for the evening tarawih prayers during Ramadan.

Official figures underline the scale of the problem.

In October 2025, the UK Home Office revealed that the number of hate crimes recorded by police in England and Wales had risen for the first time in three years, including increases in racially and religiously motivated offences.

Religious hate crimes against Muslims rose by 19 percent, with a spike following the Southport murders and subsequent riots in mid-2025, the Home Office said.

The rise comes as hard-right politicians and activists, such as Reform leader Nigel Farage and the Islamophobic activist Tommy Robinson, rail against immigration. According to recent YouGov polling, if a general election were held tomorrow, Reform would lead with 24 percent.

Shabna Begum, head of Runnymede Trust, a race equality think tank, said, “Mainstream political and media actors have played in normalising and enabling racist narratives that have scapegoated migrants, people seeking asylum, Muslims and people of colour generally.”

In a report released last year, How Racism Affects Health, Runnymede highlighted the hypervigilance that people of colour have to operate with in order to guard their safety, and which causes long-term physiological damage, affecting life expectancy and mental health outcomes.

“For those that live in more disparate communities where they show up as minorities in a more visible way, that sense of threat is acute,” said Begum.

School suspensions for racist incidents have more than doubled in recent years, according to UK Department for Education data.

“Children as young as four are being sent home for racist behaviour,” Begum said. “This shows a society where racism is out of control, and that our school systems are failing to deal with the problem.

“They are making calculated decisions about where they will go, what travel routes they will take; withdrawing from regular social and community activities because they can no longer trust that those spaces will be safe for them.”

Robinson is notorious in the UK where he has been accused of promoting hatred against Muslims and organising mass anti-migrant protests.

British far-right activist Tommy Robinson says he visited the United States Department of State as part of a recent trip to Washington, DC, where he was welcomed by government officials and supporters of the Make America Great Again (MAGA) movement.

“In America making alliances & friendships, today I had the privilege of an invite to the @StateDept,” Robinson posted on X on Wednesday, alongside a photo of himself next to a US flag.

Robinson is a household name in the UK, notorious for his anti-Muslim rhetoric and multiple prison terms. He was also a cofounder of the now-defunct far-right English Defence League – a street protest movement.

US State Department official Joe Rittenhouse, who is a senior adviser for the department’s Consular Affairs bureau, said he met with Robinson, calling him a “free speech warrior”.

“Honored to have free speech warrior @TRobinsonNewEra at Department of State today. The World and the West is a better place when we fight for freedom of speech and no one has been on the front lines more than Tommy. Good to see you my friend!” Rittenhouse said in an X post.

Rittenhouse posted photos of what appeared to be Robinson touring the State Department.

The State Department did not answer questions from the Reuters news agency on who else Robinson met, what was discussed and what the objective of his visit was.

A representative for the United Kingdom’s embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Reuters.

Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, has become an icon for British nationalists and one of the UK’s most high-profile anti-migration campaigners, organising a large rally last September in London attended by about 150,000 people.

Social media posts show that during his trip to Washington, Robinson also met far-right US influencer Jack Posobiec and filmed a video with Congressman Randy Fine, a Republican from Florida, who has a history of anti-Muslim rhetoric. Robinson said on X that he will next travel to Florida.

Robinson’s visit to the US State Department follows a surge in support from the administration of President Donald Trump for far-right activists in the UK and Europe under the pretext of protecting “free speech”.

In December, the Trump administration accused Europe of engaging in “civilisational erasure” due to demographic and cultural changes from what Washington has described as weak immigration policies.

US Vice President JD Vance took aim at European countries during his first international trip last year, accusing the region’s leaders of stifling free speech – particularly voices from the far right – and being lax on migration to the detriment of their societies.

“No voter on this continent went to the ballot box to open the floodgates to millions of unvetted immigrants,” Vance said in remarks that shocked European leaders.

The UK and European countries have stronger rules on hate speech than the US, and the European Union has taken a proactive stance on regulating social media and internet content – positions that have angered the White House.

Robinson was banned from Twitter in 2018, but his account was restored in 2022 following its acquisition by Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla and SpaceX.

Real Madrid’s win against Benfica to reach the Champions League last 16 was a “victory for everyone who stands against racism”, midfielder Aurelien Tchouameni says.

Vinicius Jr alleged he was racially abused by Benfica’s Gianluca Prestianni during the first leg, in which the Real forward scored the game’s only goal.

Prestianni – who has denied racially abusing the Brazilian – was subsequently handed a one-match ban, meaning he missed Wednesday’s return leg.

Support was shown for Vinicius by the home fans as a banner with the words “no to racism” in Spanish was displayed in the stands before kick-off.

Vinicius was again on the scoresheet, netting Real Madrid’s second goal as the Spanish side came from 1-0 down on the night to win 2-1 and book their place in the next round with a 3-1 aggregate victory.

“I think there are more important things than this match, than football,” said Tchouameni, who scored Real’s first-half equaliser.

“Vinicius keeps his confidence and he keeps focused on what he needs to do.

“I think they made the right decision by not letting the boy [Prestianni] play this match.

“Like I said, there are things more important than football and this is a victory for all of us.”

Real Madrid and England defender Trent Alexander-Arnold said Vinicius had been his usual self before the fixture, “very chilled” and “very relaxed”.

“He didn’t need to score to send a message or show his mentality,” said the former Liverpool player.

“He doesn’t need to prove anything to anyone because he’s shown time and time again how good he is.

“He steps up when we need him the most. He knows his quality and what he brings to the team.”

Who: Real Madrid vs Benfica
What: Champions League playoff, second leg
Where: Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid, Spain
When: Wednesday at 9pm (20:00 GMT)
How to follow: We’ll have all the build-up on Al Jazeera Sport from 17:00 GMT in advance of our live text commentary stream.

Real Madrid carry a slender 1-0 lead over Benfica going into the second leg of a Champions League playoff tie that has been overshadowed by allegations of racism.

UEFA has suspended Benfica midfielder Gianluca Prestianni from the second leg on Wednesday after he was accused of racially abusing Real Madrid’s Vinicius Jr, who scored the only goal in the first game in Lisbon last week.

Meanwhile, Benfica coach Jose Mourinho, who is also suspended for the second leg, has come under fire for criticising Vinicius for his effusive goal celebration.

So the Portuguese side will be expecting an especially hostile welcome at the Bernabeu as they try to overturn their one-goal deficit and reach the last 16.

Courtois ‘disappointed’ in Mourinho’s response

Vinicius wrote that “racists are above all cowards” on social media after the game while Madrid striker Kylian Mbappe backed his teammate and said he had heard Prestianni calling the winger a “monkey”.

The 20-year-old Benfica midfielder, who hid his mouth with his shirt during the confrontation with Vinicius, insisted he did not racially abuse the Brazilian forward after his stunning goal at the Estadio da Luz.

Prestianni could miss at least 10 games if European football’s governing body finds he racially abused Vinicius.

Mourinho waded into the controversy by saying Vinicius’s goal celebration was disrespectful and insisting Benfica was not a racist club because their biggest icon, Eusebio, was Black.

Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois said he disagreed with Mourinho’s words.

“At the end of the day, Mourinho is Mourinho. As a coach, you’re always, I think, going to defend your club and what your player has told you,” Courtois said.

“The only thing that disappoints me a bit is using Vini’s celebration. I don’t think Vini did anything wrong there,” he added.

“I don’t think we can justify alleged racism because of a celebration.”

Mourinho’s Bernabeu homecoming upended by suspension

Benfica’s boss has not set foot in the Santiago Bernabeu since leaving Real Madrid in 2013, and he cannot sit in the dugout for the playoff’s second leg after being sent off during his team’s 1-0 first-leg defeat in Lisbon last week for making vituperative complaints about the officials from the touchline.

Mourinho said referee Francois Letexier was avoiding booking Madrid players who were at risk of suspension for the second leg.

“I’ve had my butt on the bench for 1,400 games and [I could see that] he knew perfectly well who he could book and who he couldn’t,” Mourinho complained bitterly.

“I [won’t be] sitting on the bench. I can’t go to the dressing room. I can’t communicate with the team,” he added. “It’s hard for me, but my teammates and my assistants are there. They’ll do their job.”

Benfica also said Mourinho was not going to attend the pregame news conference on Tuesday and his assistant would take over.

Arbeloa says UEFA have chance for ‘turning point’ against racism

Real Madrid coach Alvaro Arbeloa called on UEFA to make their fight against racism into more than just a slogan after the alleged abuse of Vinicius Jr.

“We have a great opportunity to mark a turning point in the fight against racism,” Arbeloa told reporters on Tuesday.

“UEFA, which has always been and has led this fight against racism, now has the chance not to leave it at just a slogan, at just a nice banner before matches, and I hope that they seize this opportunity.”

Arbeloa said he believed Vinicius will thrive on Wednesday at the Santiago Bernabeu as the record 15-time champions bid to reach the last 16.

“Vinicius Jr has always shown a lot of bravery and a lot of character,” Arbeloa said. “That is always his response. It always has been, and I think it always will be.

“He is a fighter, and I’m sure tomorrow he will go out to fight and have a great game and keep showing he’s one of the best players on the planet.”

Head-to-head

This is only the sixth meeting between two of the biggest clubs from Spain and Portugal. Benfica have won three of the games while Real Madrid have won two.

The two clubs also faced each other in a league stage match in January when Mourinho’s team stunned his former club in a 4-2 win that allowed Benfica to qualify and prevented Madrid from automatically reaching the round of 16.

How many times have Madrid and Benfica won the Champions League?

Madrid are the record winners of Europe’s premier club competition with 15 titles to their name, the last coming in 2024.

Benfica have lifted the trophy on two occasions, and both of those came in consecutive years.

In what was regarded as Benfica’s golden era, Portuguese legend Eusebio helped the team to wins against Barcelona in 1961 and Real Madrid in 1962.

A hat-trick from Hungary’s finest export, Ferenc Puskas, could not save Madrid as Benfica earned a 5-3 win that included a double from Eusebio.

Real Madrid’s team news

Jude Bellingham, Dani Ceballos and Eder Militao have all been ruled out through injuries while centre back Dean Huijsen, who missed the 2-1 defeat at Osasuna over the weekend with a muscular problem, is a major doubt.

Winger Rodrygo will be unavailable due to a suspension but would anyway be a doubt as he struggles to recover from a hamstring issue.

Raul Asencio is available again after returning from suspension.

Vinicius Jr will be looking to score for the fifth game in a row as he is set to start up front alongside Mbappe.

Predicted starting XI

Courtois (goalkeeper); Alexander-Arnold, Asencio, Rudiger, Carreras; Valverde, Guler, Tchouameni, Guler; Mbappe, Vinicius Jr

Benfica’s team news

The Portuguese side’s only injury concern appears to be midfielder Joao Veloso, who will miss the game with a shoulder issue.

Richard Rios could come into the midfield to replace the suspended Prestianni.

Benfica will look to Greek striker Vangelis Pavlidis to add to his 28 goals in all competitions this season as he is set to lead the line.

Predicted starting XI:

Trubin (goalkeeper); Dedic, Araujo, Otamendi, Dahl; Rios, Aursnes; Lukebakio, Rafa, Schjelderup; Pavlidis

Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday sharply criticized “fake MAGA-manufactured outrage” over his comments about his low SAT score in Atlanta Sunday during his national book tour.

Conservative commentators, Trump loyalists and right-wing media outlets accused the California governor and potential 2028 presidential candidate of disparaging Black Americans when he was discussing his struggles with dyslexia.

“First MAGA mocked his dyslexia and now they’re calling him racist for talking about his low SAT scores,” said Izzy Gardon, a spokesperson for Newsom, in a statement. “The governor has said this publicly for years — including with [the late conservative commentator] Charlie Kirk and dozens of other audiences.”

During a conversation with Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens, who is a Black politician, Newsom was asked what he wanted the audience and readers to know about him. The governor, in a long-winded response, said he wasn’t trying to impress anyone, but “press upon you I’m like you.”

“I’m no better than you,” Newsom said. “I’m a 960 SAT guy.”

The governor continued to discuss his dyslexia and struggle to read.

Right-wing personalities pounced.

President Trump’s political operation accused Newsom of calling “black people dumb.” Former Fox News personality Megyn Kelly declared that the comment would “haunt him forever,” and Republican Sens. Tim Scott of South Carolina and Rick Scott of Florida belittled the governor. Rapper Nicki Minaj, an outspoken Trump supporter, criticized him too.

“@GavinNewsom Thinks a 960 SAT Makes Him ‘Like’ Black Americans. Let That Sink In,” Fox News commentator Sean Hannity posted on the social media platform X.

Newsom offered a profanity-laced retort to Hannity, accusing him of long ignoring President Trump’s racist remarks and social media posts, then feigning outrage at Newsom’s remarks.

“You didn’t give a shit about the President of the United States of America posting an ape video of President Obama or calling African nations shitholes — but you’re going to call me racist for talking about my lifelong struggle with dyslexia?” Newsom posted on X. “Spare me your fake fucking outrage, Sean.”

Gardon pointed out that Newsom was speaking to a mixed-race audience during the conversation with Dickens.

Dickens also rejected the allegations that Newsom was being racist.

“Take it from someone who was actually in the chair asking the questions: context matters more than a headline,” Dickens said on Instagram. “The conversation around his new book included him speaking about his own academic struggles, including not doing well on the SAT. That wasn’t an attack on anyone. It was a moment of vulnerability about his own journey.”

Sunday’s event wasn’t the first time Newsom has mentioned his SAT score. The governor has cited his performance on the test many times in conversations about his dyslexia and issues with self-esteem growing up, including during an interview with The Times about his new memoir “Young Man in a Hurry” earlier this month.

“Come on, I’m a 960 SAT guy, governor of the fourth largest economy in the world,” Newsom told The Times. “I’m a guy, you know, with sweaty hands as described in the book, you know, who can’t read a speech, and I’m governor. I’m talking to you. Come on, the whole thing is sort of fascinating.”

Newsom used the low score as an example of the grit and resilience he learned from his mother.

The governor is accustomed to sparring with Republicans on social media. Ring-wing furor over his remarks, whether justified or politically motivated, is likely to continue as he flirts with a 2028 presidential run.

“We’ve gotten so used to loud, chest-pounding politics that when someone speaks about shortcomings, people try to twist it into something else,” Dickens, said in his post on Instagram. “Let me be clear though. This is Atlanta. We don’t need anyone to tell us when to be offended. And history has shown… when we are, you’ll know.”

Hundreds of Britain First protesters faced larger antifascist crowds in a tense Manchester city centre standoff.

Manchester, United Kingdom – Chants of “send them back” echoed through a damp underpass as hundreds of far-right anti-Islam protesters prepared to march through the streets.

Union Jacks fluttered in the wind as protesters – some visibly under the influence of alcohol – chanted a series of anti-immigration slogans and derisive comments about British Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

In response to the demonstration organised by Britain First, a far-right political party that calls for mass deportation and the removal of migrants and Muslims from the UK, a counterprotest was also planned for midday on Saturday.

It formed a much larger crowd made up of antifascist protesters who gathered a few streets away, carrying antiracist banners and waving an array of flags, including the Palestinian flag.

Ruby, 20, a student from South London, took a five-hour coach ride to show her support for the counterprotest and told Al Jazeera that attending was a “no-brainer”. She asked that her surname not be published, fearing repercussions.

‘A master race’

Ruby said her grandparents, originally from Montserrat, were part of the Windrush generation – immigrants invited to the UK between 1948 and 1971 from Caribbean countries – and, despite having given so much to their adopted country, are now feeling increasingly unwelcome.

She said her grandparents had told her they were witnessing a return to the levels of racism they experienced when they came to the country in the 1950s.

It was a sentiment echoed by Llowelyn, 16, a counter-protester from Wales who said her father, who is British Guyanese, has received more verbal abuse based on his race in the past few years than at any other point.

The tension was palpable before the two marches were due to begin, with far-right agitators livestreaming to their followers as they entered the area assigned to the counterprotest.

John – a stocky, tenacious counter-protester from Wales – confronted them with arms outstretched as police officers looked on.

“They come here to cause a ruckus and make money of it online, but I come here to protect the left. These guys [far-right agitators] try and intimidate … minorities because they think they are a master race”, he told Al Jazeera.

As the Britain First march began, flanked by police and led by Paul Golding, a portly, combative far-right activist who has previously been imprisoned for religiously aggravated harassment, the celebratory mood quickly turned aggressive as they came across counter-protesters in the city centre.

“Leftie scum,” screamed one member of the Britain First crowd as they harassed three young people who staged a sit-down, forcing riot police to encircle and pull them to safety.

‘Divisive, racist positions’

The two marches finally met in an expletive-ridden crushendo as police struggled to hold ranks.

Britain First protesters prodded counter-protesters with flag poles, and some slipped through the porous police lines as they shouted anti immigration and anti-Palestine slogans.

A number of counterprotesters and bystanders expressed frustration that the police allowed the march to go ahead.

“We, as Jews and internationalists, are having to confront Britain First, the fascists who are organising on the streets, who have been permitted to market their divisive, racist, dictatorial positions on our streets,” Pia Feig, of Jewish Action for Palestine, told Al Jazeera.

Audrey, a teacher and counterprotester who was pushed away by police after being shoved by a Britain First protester, said the police always “protected” the far-right groups.

A police officer told Al Jazeera that the day required extensive planning and was a particularly difficult operation, as the two groups kept changing their planned route.

He said on condition of anonymity that handling the two conflicting protests, a rally in support of Ukraine, and managing crowds at large football fixtures held this weekend had stretched the local police force thin.

Real Madrid’s Brazilian forward Vinicius Jr alleges he was racially abused by Benfica’s Gianluca Prestianni.

Real Madrid has sent UEFA, football’s governing body in Europe, “all available evidence” of an alleged racist insult against Vinicius Jr in a Champions League match against Benfica.

“Our club has actively collaborated with the investigation opened by UEFA following the unacceptable episodes of racism experienced during that match,” the Spanish club said on Thursday without elaborating on the evidence.

UEFA appointed a special investigator on Wednesday to gather evidence about what happened in Lisbon on Tuesday in Madrid’s 1-0 win at Benfica in the first leg of the knockout round of the Champions League.

Vinicius accused Benfica player Gianluca Prestianni of calling him “monkey” after the Brazilian scored the only goal. Prestianni was among the Benfica players upset with Vinícius after the forward celebrated by the Benfica corner flag.

Prestianni covered his mouth with his shirt when he allegedly spoke to the Brazilian player and denied racially abusing Vinicius, who is Black and has been subjected to repeated racist insults in Spain.

“Real Madrid appreciates the unanimous support, backing, and affection that our player Vinicius Jr. has received from all areas of the global football community,” the club said. “Real Madrid will continue working, in collaboration with all institutions, to eradicate racism, violence, and hate in sports and society.”

Benfica said Prestianni was the victim of a “defamation campaign” and welcomed the investigation opened by UEFA, saying it “fully supports and believes the version presented” by Prestianni.

FIFA President Gianni Infantino said on Wednesday he was “shocked and saddened to see the incident of alleged racism” and praised the referee for activating the antiracism protocol during the match, which was halted for nearly 10 minutes at the Stadium of Light.

Champions League Match of the Day pundit Guillem Balague, who attended Real Madrid’s match at Benfica on Tuesday, explains the aftermath of the alleged racist incident between Vinicius Jr and Gianluca Prestianni.

READ MORE: Vinicius: Eight years at Real Madrid, 20 cases of alleged racist abuse

Available to UK users only.

⁠Vinicius Jr scored a sublime second-half winner as Real Madrid beat Benfica 1-0 in their Champions League playoff first leg, a night overshadowed by the Brazilian accusing Benfica’s Gianluca Prestianni ⁠of directing a racist slur at him.

The alleged incident occurred moments after Vinicius had curled Real ahead, five minutes into the second half at the Estadio da Luz on Tuesday, before referee Francois Letexier halted the match for 11 minutes under FIFA’s ⁠anti-racism protocol.

Television pictures showed the Argentinian winger covering his mouth with his shirt before making a comment that Vinicius and nearby teammates interpreted as a racial slur against the 25-year-old, who has repeatedly suffered racism in Spain during matches.

“It is unbelievable that, with dozens of cameras in the stadium, that none could have caught [Prestianni’s] racial slur, but if you cover your mouth ‌to say something, that says a lot,” Real captain Federico Valverde told Movistar Plus.

“According to my teammates who were close, they heard something very ugly. Many people have been fighting against racism in football; Vinicius is one of them. I’m proud of him and his great game.”

The Associated Press news agency reported that television cameras picked up Vinicius Junior telling the referee that Prestianni had called him a “monkey”.

Benfica began the game on the front foot, but the visitors gradually assumed control while the hosts appeared content to counterattack, with goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois producing a stunning one-handed save to keep out a 25th-minute strike from Fredrik Aursnes.

Real finished the first half strongly, and only goalkeeper Anatoliy Trubin’s brilliance kept ⁠the score goalless at the break as he produced stunning saves to deny Kylian ⁠Mbappe and Arda Guler.

The breakthrough came five minutes after the restart. Mbappe burst forward and fed Vinicius on the left. The Brazilian cut diagonally towards the box, shifted inside and unleashed an unstoppable curling shot into the far top corner.

Vinicius celebrated by dancing with the corner flag and ⁠was booked by Letexier for excessive celebration.

As the forward argued with the referee, he became involved in a heated exchange with Prestianni, with Vinicius and several teammates suddenly running towards ⁠the referee.

Letexier crossed his arms in front of his face to activate ⁠FIFA’s protocol and stopped the match. Real’s players threatened to leave the pitch as tensions flared, before play eventually resumed 11 minutes later.

The atmosphere turned hostile, with Vinicius loudly booed whenever he touched the ball, and the broadcast camera appeared to show an outraged Mbappe calling Prestianni “a bloody racist” to ‌his face several times after the game resumed.

Tempers flared again in the 85th minute, when Vinicius fouled Richard Rios. Benfica manager Jose Mourinho stormed towards the fourth official, demanding a second booking for the Brazilian, but was himself cautioned ‌for ‌his protests.

An incensed Mourinho continued remonstrating, and was promptly shown a second yellow card.

Benfica pushed late on, but managed only three shots on target as Real secured a slender advantage to take back to Madrid for the return leg.

Real Madrid coach Alvaro Arbeloa decried the alleged abuse against Vinicius Junior.

“I think everyone can see what happened with Prestianni,” he said.

Arbeloa added, “We have to fight against this type of attitude”, and, “If we don’t respect each other, then it is a problem”.

Madrid right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold told Amazon Prime that what allegedly happened during the match was a “disgrace to football” and overshadowed the performance and an amazing goal.

“Vini has been subject to this a few times throughout his career,” he said. “To ruin a night like this for our team is a disgrace. There is no place for it in football or society. It is disgusting.”

Mourinho criticised Vinicius Junior’s celebration and defended the club – if not Prestianni – against allegations of racism.

“Words were exchanged. I want to be independent. I don’t want to say I believe in Prestianni or believe in Vinicius,” he said.

“I told [Vinicius], ‘When you score a goal like that, you just celebrate in a respectful way’. When he was arguing about racism, I told him the biggest person [Eusebio] in the history of this club was Black. This club, the last thing that it is, is racist.”

Galatasaray thrash Juve 5-2

Elsewhere on Tuesday, Dutch midfielder Noa Lang scored a brace as Galatasaray thumped Juventus 5-2 in a pulsating contest in Istanbul in the first leg of a Champions League playoff.

In a nerve-shredding atmosphere, Luciano Spalletti’s Juventus actually led 2-1 at half-time after Teun Koopmeiners replied to Brazilian midfielder Gabriel Sara’s opener with a brace of his own.

But Colombian full-back Juan Cabal was dismissed for two bookings in a calamitous second half for the Italian side, as Lang’s brace and goals from Davinson Sanchez and Sacha Boey sunk Juventus.

Meanwhile, Champions League holders Paris Saint Germain overcame a horror start and a two-goal deficit to beat 10-man Monaco 3-2 away in the first leg of their knockout round ⁠playoff tie.

Desire Doue came off the bench to engineer an impressive turnaround for PSG, who conceded a goal in the opening minute and were 2-0 down after 18 minutes as Folarin Balogun grabbed a double for ⁠the hosts.

The 20-year-old Doue replaced Ballon d’Or winner Ousmane Dembele, who went off injured after 27 minutes, and proved decisive for the visitors as he struck two superb goals, as well as setting one up for Achraf Hakimi.

In Germany, striker Serhou Guirassy ⁠scored one ⁠goal and created another as hosts Borussia Dortmund claimed a ⁠2-0 victory over Italian visitors Atalanta in the first leg ⁠of their Champions League playoff tie on Tuesday.

The president of the United States posted a racist video Thursday night depicting Barack and Michelle Obama as apes. On Friday, the White House dismissed criticism — but the president deleted the post. Was this episode disappointing? Yes. Surprising? Not anymore.

Last spring, after Pope Francis had died, Donald Trump posted an AI image of himself as the pope just days before cardinals convened to elect a successor.

So, no — it is not surprising that the president would choose to post virulent anti-Black imagery during Black History Month.

But it is disappointing here in 2026 that an occupant of the Oval Office is still thinking like that.

Back in 1971, the president of the United States laughed when the governor of California referred to the African delegates at the United Nations as monkeys. Less than 10 years later, that governor became the president of the United States. And here we are, half a century later, and yet another president has amplified that racist trope.

Meaning white supremacy is still on the ballot.

That Nixon-Reagan-Trump throughline isn’t tightly wound around policy or principle, but simply that shared worldview. After all, Nixon created the Environmental Protection Agency and Reagan offered amnesty to immigrants — highly un-Trump-like moves. No, their commonality is best revealed in the delight each man took in an old racist attack against Black people.

For Americans who are 50 and older — roughly a third of the nation — this worldview has been the architect responsible for White House policy for most of our lives. And yet, when Kamala Harris lost the 2024 election, the forensic investigation focused on grocery prices and her absence from Joe Rogan’s podcast. Some — in trying to explain why Harris lost — mischaracterized her role at the border or inflated her influence on the war in Gaza.

For some reason, race did not seem to receive the same level of scrutiny.

This factor was slighted despite decades of data, such as the wave of white nationalists endorsing Harris’ opponent and the birther movement questioning President Obama’s citizenship. The trio of presidents who are on the record as enjoying depictions of Black people as monkeys — Nixon, Reagan and Trump — all used racist dog whistles in their combined 10 presidential campaigns. Their administrations have tended to be more anti-civil-rights movement than post-civil-rights movement.

Our nation’s attempts at understanding ourselves are continuously undercut by the denial that for some single-issue voters, race is their single issue. Not the price of bacon or their religious convictions. Not Gaza. Just the promise of having a safe space for prejudice. And when the president of the United States entertains racist jokes as Nixon did in the 1970s or shares racist videos as Trump continues to do, undoubtedly there is a sense among the electorate that such prejudice has a home in the White House.

Before Trump used social media to push yesteryear’s ugliness, earlier in the week Harris relaunched her 2024 social media campaign account, calling it a place where Gen Z can “meet and revisit with some of our great courageous leaders, be they elected leaders, community leaders, civic leaders, faith leaders, young leaders.” She exhorted: “Stay engaged. I’ll see you out there.”

Whether she plans to run again in 2028 is unclear. What we do know is she would not have posted an AI picture of herself as the new pope while Catholics were mourning Francis (or any other time). We know she would not have advocated for immigration officers to racially profile Black and brown Americans or disregard the 14th Amendment to detain children. We do not know how many of her policy proposals she would have been able to get across the finish line in Congress, but we do know her record of public service to the American people, in contrast with the current president who is suing the American people for $10 billion.

There is nothing wrong with revisiting Harris’ missteps on the campaign trail or debating her electability as she reemerges in the public spotlight. But now that Trump has resorted to posting monkey jokes about Black people, perhaps updated forensics will consider our well established history of racism among the factors in the 2024 election.

It is not a shock that a president of the United States thinks poorly of Black people. Not when you know that more than 25% of those who have held the office were themselves enslavers. But it is disappointing that 250 years into our nation’s story, some of us still deny the role that racism plays in shaping our politics and thus all of our lives.

YouTube: @LZGrandersonShow

United States President Donald Trump has again stoked outrage over his online posts, this time for sharing a video depicting former President Barack Obama and his wife, Michelle Obama, as apes.

The reposted clip came as part of a flurry of late-night messages on Trump’s Truth Social account.

By midday on Friday, the video had been removed — but not after an outpouring of bipartisan condemnation, slamming the post as blatantly racist.

In a post on the social media platform X, Tim Scott, the only Black Republican currently serving in the Senate, said he was “praying” that the video “was fake because it’s the most racist thing I’ve seen out of this White House”.

“The president should remove it,” he added.

Another Republican, Representative Mike Lawler, also called on Trump to delete the post, calling it “incredibly offensive — whether intentional or a mistake”.

Democrats, meanwhile, sought to tie the video to Trump’s history of insensitive remarks, and they called on Republicans to condemn this latest episode.

“President Obama and Michelle Obama are brilliant, compassionate and patriotic Americans. They represent the best of this country,” said Hakeem Jeffries, the top Democrat in the US House of Representatives.

“Donald Trump is a vile, unhinged and malignant bottom feeder. Why are GOP leaders like John Thune continuing to stand by this sick individual?”

The White House, for its part, initially defended the post as an “internet meme”. Later, it said the post had been shared “erroneously” by a White House staffer, not by the president.

Stoking outrage

Trump has long had an adversarial relationship with the Obamas, who became the first Black couple in US history to serve as president and first lady.

One of Trump’s first forays into national politics came during Barack Obama’s 2012 re-election campaign, when he pushed false claims that the Democratic leader had not been born in the US.

Trump, a Republican, is known to be a prolific social media user, and he co-founded Truth Social in February 2022 after being temporarily banned from other major social media sites.

There, he often reposts memes and videos generated through artificial intelligence that promote his public image and political platform.

The video that includes the Obamas came at 11:44pm Eastern US time (04:44 GMT) as part of a series of shared clips.

The image of the Obamas as apes comes about 59 seconds into a video that only lasts one minute and two seconds.

It appears dropped into a documentary-style segment that pushes baseless claims that the 2020 presidential election was marred by malfeasance involving electronic voting machines. Trump has repeatedly spread lies denying his loss to Democrat Joe Biden in that race.

The video, which bears the watermark of a site called Patriot News Outlet, briefly pairs the doctored image of the Obamas with the 1961 song The Lion Sleeps Tonight.

Critics have regularly accused Trump of intentionally stoking outrage to distract from politically damaging domestic issues, including the recent release of millions of files related to disgraced financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Trump’s name has featured in those files.

Midterms ahead

Some Republicans, like Lawler in New York, also face punishing re-election campaigns ahead as the country nears its November midterm elections.

Trump has warned that, if Republicans lose control of Congress, he could face new impeachment proceedings.

Initially, in the hours after the video was reposted on Trump’s Truth Social account, the White House dismissed the backlash as overblown.

White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt told several US news outlets that the image of the Obamas was excerpted from an “internet meme video depicting President Trump as the King of the Jungle and Democrats as characters from ‘The Lion King’”, a 1994 animated feature film.

“Please stop the fake outrage and report on something today that actually matters to the American public,” she said in a statement to ABC News.

But that explanation did not dampen the bipartisan push for Trump to renounce the video.

Republican Senator Pete Ricketts of Nebraska was also among those calling for the post to be taken down.

“Even if this was a Lion King meme, a reasonable person sees the racist context to this,” Ricketts wrote on X.

“The White House should do what anyone does when they make a mistake: remove this and apologize.”

Democrats, meanwhile, questioned Trump’s fitness for the presidency. In a social media post, Representative Raja Krishnamoorthi drew a line between the video and the long history of racist depictions of Black people in the US.

He pointed to similarly dehumanising illustrations that were shared during the Jim Crow era, a period from 1865 to the mid-20th century when Black people faced segregation and unequal rights following the abolishment of slavery.

“This kind of Jim Crow-style dehumanisation is pathetic and a disgrace to the office,” he wrote.