Blowing the alarm on racial discrimination terminated my professional journey - Burrell

Warning: This piece includes details of racially offensive language and behaviour

Ex-England player Luther Burrell says that going public to expose racism in rugby union led his professional journey to an premature conclusion.

In a 2022 interview, Burrell described racism as being "widespread" in the sport, displaying Whatsapp messages and remembering training ground "jokes" he had been exposed to while playing for Newcastle.

Then 34 and out of contract, Burrell's only elite playing since has been a handful of games with invitational side the Barbarians.

"I've have definitely had to end my career because of what went on," he told media outlets.

"I wanted to carry on playing, naturally I did. I pursued that, and it collapsed when word emerged that there were inquiries going on.

"That was challenging - I had to simply accept the fate and understand that this entire process is a lot bigger than me."

A sports organization report in April 2023 found Burrell's allegations were true "on the balance of probability", but said it could not gather sufficient proof to definitively say they happened at Newcastle.

Burrell told journalists he also faced discrimination within the England set-up, during a Test career that saw him earn 15 appearances after his debut in 2014.

"I have had several traumatic experiences within the national team," he stated.

"Certain instances of discrimination and other just outdated thinking that's really unacceptable."

Racism had become accepted in dressing rooms, in Burrell's experience.

"It's something that has been disguised as humour and that's been the problem that I've personally suffered and witnessed," said Burrell, who is of Jamaican descent.

"Over a extended period you just learn to think that it's the standard and that is fine and that it's not malicious, but that's incorrect."

Burrell says he was finally spurred to go public after a fellow player at Newcastle called him as a "enslaved person" and told him to put sun cream on his arms and legs "where chains would be placed."

The governing body said Burrell's disclosures had led to "a deeper look at the culture within the professional level and to the implementation of an strategy for the professional game."

"We has placed considerable focus on diversity and diversity in the sport and a great deal of work completed both before and after Luther Burrell came forward and shared his experiences of racism and class discrimination," it continued.

"We are ongoing work with teams and partners in the elite level to strive for a environment of acceptance but recognize this requires patience and is an continuous effort."

Every Premiership and women's rugby club now has face-to-face education on creating inclusive cultures, with its effectiveness tracked via individual reports and feedback.

All England athletes, including age-grade squads, are educated in being "engaged observers" to intervene and defend others from harmful conduct.

"You should be so pleased of what you have accomplished," Burrell's mother Joyce said to him as part of the film Luther Burrell - Rugby, Racism and Redemption.

"We know it has had this impact on you and finished your career, but in our eyes, you have achieved so much. We are so impressed of you and to have you as a son."

Burrell's dad Geoff died soon after the filming of the film, and his sister passed away recently.

Burrell, who was raised on a social housing in his hometown, maintains his work to make the game more accessible.

His 12 Foundation aims to connect with children in disadvantaged communities and support them succeed on and off the field with free sports training, mentoring and dietary education.

"My personal intentions are genuine, I want to see the progress of the game and if nobody else is willing to tell their story then I'll persist to advocate for that cause because I'm not just doing this for myself," he explained.

"Everyone involved have an responsibility to make the game as great as it can be and the more I speak about it perhaps the more confident fellow players will feel about discussing their own stories as well.

"I need to grab the bull by the horns and keep carrying this banner and continue carrying this weight and accomplish what I can to develop opportunities and make the sport more attractive and more inclusive.

"There are a lot of underprivileged young people and a lot of economic hardship and I sincerely believe that rugby has the ability to change their futures, just as it did for me."