Eni Aluko, a former England international and ITV pundit, says she is “scared” to leave her home because of the abuse she received as a result of Joey Barton’s social media statements.
Aluko announced in a 15-minute Instagram video on Tuesday that she is suing Barton, who compared her and colleague pundit Lucy Ward to serial killers Fred and Rose West.
Aluko stated that the deluge of online harassment has made her fearful for her safety and warned that the situation could lead to a female broadcaster committing suicide.
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Barton, a former England international, has made a number of unpleasant comments online in recent weeks, aimed at female pundits who work in men’s football.
The former Manchester City and QPR midfielder referred to ITV analysts Aluko and Ward as “the Fred and Rose West of football commentary” on X, formerly Twitter, following the channel’s coverage of Crystal Palace’s FA Cup match against Everton last Thursday.
ITV responded by describing Barton’s comments as “vindictive” and it led to the sports minister Stuart Andrew condemning the “dangerous” comments.
“Now, I’m open and honest and I’m human and I’m more than happy to admit that I’ve been scared this week,” Aluko said.
“I’ve genuinely been scared this week. I didn’t leave my house until Friday and I’m now abroad.
“It’s really important to say that online abuse has a direct impact on your safety and how you feel and how safe you feel in real life.
What She Said in her speech?
“They’re creating a culture where people don’t want to go to work, people don’t want to leave their house, people feel under threat. Obviously there’s a big impact on mental health as well.”
While Aluko did not mention Barton by name, she accused him of being sexist, racist and misogynistic and of having a “violent history”.
Aluko also referenced the late television presenter Caroline Flack, who died by suicide in 2020, when outlining her concerns.
“If you come out and are racist, or sexist or misogynistic and threaten people online, there are laws for that, that govern that behaviour, so it’s not free (speech),” she said.
“There are consequences for that. And over the past week I’ve taken advice from lawyers and a course of action has now been decided upon.”
She added: “My fear, actually, is that the next time this happens, if we don’t really put a stop to this, is that that girl or that woman kills herself.
“I’m not being hyperbolic about that when I say that it’s happened. Caroline Flack, God rest her soul, killed herself, largely because of the online abuse that she was getting.
“At what point are we going to understand that this needs to stop? Sexism, racism, misogyny is not an opinion. It’s not freedom of speech.
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