Former England international John Barnes believes ethnic minorities would not have been surprised by the abuse suffered by Raheem Sterling as racism remains “prevalent” in British society.
Manchester City forward Sterling was subject to alleged racial abuse during Saturday’s Premier League game against Chelsea.
Barnes, capped 79 times by his country, was the victim of persistent racism during his playing days, including monkey chants and having bananas thrown at him.
The 55-year-old feels prejudice and discrimination extend far beyond football and stems from “hundreds of years of indoctrination”.
“When people talk about, ‘Oh isn’t that terrible what happened to Raheem Sterling?’, you speak to black people in the inner cities and they say ‘this is what we go through every single day’,” Barnes told BBC One’s Breakfast programme.
“It’s not a surprise to us. It’s prevalent in society as you go into the inner cities and see how disenfranchised and what a lack of opportunities there are for members of ethnic minorities.
“So why should football be any different?
“Society has to change. The only way we can change racism is if we change the perception of the average black person in the street.
“It’s a very long-term process, we’re talking about hundreds of years of indoctrination ensuring that there are certain groups of people who are more worthy than others.”