A former British soldier defends James McClean from ‘poppy facism’

James McClean has more important things on his mind over the next 24 hours than the ongoing concern at his refusal to wear a poppy.

The Derryman has explained his choice on more than one occasion, but the winger is till gets grief from football fans, or the general public, who refuse to accept his viewpoint. https://twitter.com/JamesMcC14/status/663100721353592833 The Ireland man is getting ready for Monday night's clash with Bosnia, but his refusal to wear the poppy in November has been defended by an unlikely source; a British soldier. In the Derry Journal , a former member of the British Army who served in Northern Ireland during The Troubles, Lee Lavis, and other members of the British armed forces ,feels= that abuse aimed at McClean over his failure to wear the poppy is the worst form of discrimination,

"We, having dutifully served in our nation’s armed forces, are writing in response to the annual vilification of Derry born footballer James McClean, because of his decision not to wear a team shirt embroidered with a red Poppy." “Furthermore, we would also like to collectively assert our understanding of his reasoning and support for the decision he has taken. "Consequently, to those who have accused Mr. McClean of being a war monger, anti-British and a terrorist, issued death threats or set up a Facebook Page calling for him to be ‘booted out of English football’ we would ask the following question: Does this landscape of hate represent a fitting a tribute to those who have died in a war, or is it a case of ‘Poppy fascism’ at its worst?”

The statement was issued to the Derry Journal ahead of a public event at which Lavis and another former British soldier were due to speak about their experiences in the armed forces.