Standing tall on Liverpool’s famous waterfront
lies the majestic Royal Liver Building, crowned by two enormous birds. Legend
has it that one of the Liver Birds looks out to sea keeping watch over its
prosperity, while the other turns inland, a protector of the people. The
mythical Liver Bird is the unlikely protagonist in myriad legends of romantic
intrigue but to most, the lofty bird is the symbol of Liverpool. Erected in
1911, the birds have stood tall during triumph and disaster, the years
stripping the shiny copper finish but not the immense 18-foot structure. A
century on, the noble form of the birds silhouetted against the Liverpool
skyline speaks of pride and resilience.
Today marks the 25th
anniversary of the Hillsborough disaster. And with the new inquests underway,
it’s once again making news headlines around the world. As the days go by, more
and more personal tributes flood in, giving faces and identities to each of the
96. This does not make easy reading – 78 of those to die were under the age of
30 and many left spouses and young children behind. And yet it is wonderful to
honour these people, taken before their time, in the pursuit of something they
loved.
I hesitated before writing
this post. This is my third Hillsborough tribute and I wasn’t sure I had
anything new to say. However as the inquests began, I realized that my
focus had shifted to the families of the 96, the survivors, and all those left
behind. The story of the hundreds if not thousands of campaigners who have spent
the past 25 years in pursuit of that most fundamental commodity: justice. As
Hillsborough was not an accident. Hillsborough was a catalogue of errors,
negligence and contempt resulting in carnage. But the disaster that took place
on 15 April 1989 was sadly only the beginning of the tragedy. As the cover up
which later emerged was so watertight and slick an operation that attempts to
seek the truth were batted away with ease. The ordinary public took a sceptical
stance – after all, what the families pleaded was so improbable, and the unjust reputation
of football fans as drunken hooligans did nothing to strengthen the case. The senseless
cruelty of loss was thus compounded by suspicion and damaging slurs.
On 19 April 1989, as
that notorious headline first hit newsstands, the Anfield dawn was laced with
the scent of a million flowers, lying in silent tribute. The visual impact of
those scarves and flowers was startling. Kenny Dalglish claimed it was “the saddest and most beautiful” thing he
had ever seen. A haunting show of solidarity in the face of blackness; a theme
that would continue over the years. But if the families and campaigners had
known of the long road ahead on that cold Wednesday morning, the hopelessness
may have defeated them. For it would take 23 years for the light to break free.
15 April 1989: The worst stadium-related disaster in British
history as (an eventual) 96 Liverpool fans were crushed to death and hundreds
more seriously injured.
19 April 1989: The sun publishes infamous front page article
entitled ‘The Truth’, accusing fans of attacking and urinating on police
officers and pick-pocketing the dead.
January 1990: The Taylor Report judged failure of police
control to be the main reason for the disaster.
March 1991: A verdict of accidental death is returned at the
inquests, ruling that all supporters were dead by 3.15 p.m. in spite of claims
to the contrary.
August 1998: Home Secretary Jack Straw rules out a new inquiry,
while the Hillsborough Family Support Group brings private manslaughter charges
against the men in charge on that day: Chief Superintendent David Duckenfield
and his deputy, Superintendent Bernard Murray.
July 2000: At the end of a six-week trial, Mr Murray is found
not guilty of manslaughter while the jury fails to reach a verdict on Mr
Duckenfield. The judge refuses a retrial, ruling that a fair trial for Mr
Duckenfield would be impossible.
~~~
As one decade and then
two crept by, the families were staunch in their fight for justice. But what
about behind the scenes? How much happiness was lost? How much simple
contentment was tinged with the bitterness of injustice? How many families
buckled under the strain and how many survivors struggled with feelings of
trauma and guilt? Cries of 'Justice for the 96' rose regularly from the stands
and those in possession of the truth aired it with passion. And yet door after
door was slammed in the faces of families and campaigners, key documents
languished under a veil of deception and Tony Blair dismissed the case with the
simple scrawl of 'what’s the point?' When the breakthrough came in 2012, the sense of triumph was overwhelming.
Margaret Aspinall’s rousing, heartfelt speeches and Sheila Coleman’s
impassioned words were as moving as they were awe-inspiring. And who could
forget the steel in Anne Williams’ voice as she claimed, 'I will never go away'. Time sadly did run out for Anne who passed
away last year, but not before she saw the light at the end of the tunnel. The
bravery and sheer dignity shown by the Hillsborough families is incredible.
They are an example to us all.
~~~
April 2009: The Hillsborough Independent Panel is set up
following government minister Andy Burnham’s call for previously unreleased
documents relating to the disaster to be released.
September 2012: After a long inquiry, the Hillsborough Independent
Panel report finds that police orchestrated a cover-up, altered documents and
blamed innocent supporters for the disaster. The document states that 41 lives
could have been saved and absolves fans of any wrongdoing.
March 2014: New
inquests into the disaster begin in Warrington. The inquests are expected to
last nine months.
Hillsborough and the
Justice campaign are examples of the darkness and light inherent to life. It is
a saga that moves like nothing I have ever encountered. As a mourning
Merseyside laid scarves and flowers, grown men sobbed. That people could die
while part of something so joyful was perverse. Everybody knew somebody
suffering at the hands of this unnecessary tragedy. And the years may have
passed but the suffering did not. There was the devastation recorded in the
newspapers and then the private devastation that was never aired. The type that
keeps you awake in the dead of night and casts your life in grey. Too many
tears have been shed in the hours since those cars, buses and trains set out
for Sheffield. Tears of loss and abandonment. Tears of anger and frustration.
Tears of wonder at the bravery shown by these exceptional people who would not
give up.
The families of
Hillsborough have long been admired on Merseyside. They were collectively named
the Greatest Merseysider of All Time in a 2014 Liverpool Echo Poll; the annual
memorial service is always packed to the rafters; and Justice for the 96
stickers can be found as far away as Australia as fans seek to spread the
message. But since the revelations of September 2012, the world has stood in
recognition. The Hillsborough charity single was the 2012 Christmas number one
and Anne Williams was honoured at the 2013 BBC Sport’s Personality of the Year
awards for her incredible commitment to uncovering the truth of what happened
to her son Kevin. 'They're wearing me down,’ she had said. ‘But
I'll wear them down before they wear me down’. And that she did.
~~~
It’s been a long road
but the end is in sight. A spirit of optimism can be felt around Merseyside.
The tide has turned and the truth is out. The 96 are being recognized as the
men, women and children they were – a most basic right. And as we take our hats
off to them, we turn to their mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, husbands,
wives, sons, daughters, grandchildren, grandparents and friends and honour them
too. The people who affirmed, 'we will never go away – until we find Justice for
the 96'.
~~~
And as the salty tears of Hillsborough washed over the land, the Liver Birds stood tall, as did the city: strong, resilient, protectors of the people.
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