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AS the weeks since the Hillsborough disaster have become months and the months have turned into years so the number of people saying the time has come for English football’s worst ever tragedy to be consigned to the past has risen.
An inquest held at Bolton Coroners Court last week exposed the folly of such arguments. The death of Stephen Whittle, who took his own life due to what can only be described as survivor’s guilt, was a tragedy in its own right. That his personal suffering had its roots in what occurred at Hillsborough on April 15 1989 makes the unnecessary loss of yet another life poignant in the extreme.
The “it’s time to move on” brigade may not agree but the pain, suffering and injustice that stem from Hillsborough are as relevant today as they were twenty two years ago. There are countless hidden victims of the disaster who struggle on a daily basis with the terrible events they witnessed, the mental and physical scars from that terrible day or the acute sense of bereavement that comes with the loss of a loved one.
Mr Whittle was one of them. At 50 years of age he should have been enjoying the prime of his life, but he was unable to. His family were aware that he was suffering from a combination of depression and anxiety but he did not confide in them that the cause of his psychological suffering was a profound personal guilt relating to a decision to pass on a ticket for the ill-fated FA Cup semi-final between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest to a friend. Like 95 others , Mr Whittle’s friend perished in the death trap that was the Leppings Lane end.
“That awful tragic event that happened so long ago is still reaching out and touching people,” Jennifer Leeming, the coroner, quite rightly said when reaching a narrative verdict on Mr Whittle’s death. “Especially for a man who was so keen on football, it was a big part of his life and to have that awful event associated with such a pleasure must have been troubling as the years went on.”
It is for people like Mr Whittle and everyone else who has been affected by Hillsborough that the fight for justice must continue. There will be no shortage of people ready to dismiss the battle as a futile one, as an abstract search for something that cannot be delivered, as an irrelevance. If there is one thing in this whole saga that has gone on for far too long it is the criticism of the justice fight from naysayers who have nothing to offer besides negativity.
Why should Hillsborough be accepted? Why should the cover up that followed it go unchallenged? Why should one of the greatest injustices this country has ever hosted continue without being contested? There are no reasons why the fight for justice should come to an end before it is delivered. None whatsoever.
At Anfield a week last Saturday the refusal of the Liverpool supporters to accept injustice was once again evident. It was writ large in the banners, including those that showed the boycott of The Sun newspaper is as strong as ever, and it could be heard in the chant that brought an entire stadium to its feet in solidarity with the 96 and their families.
The story of Mr Whittle’s death was not publicized widely enough for it to have been known by all who were present at Anfield for the visit of Sunderland but even without knowing his tragic tale everyone who stood up or chanted for justice were doing so in his name and all of the other victims of Hillsborough. Until justice is finally delivered than the campaign must continue, no matter how many years pass.
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