His skills would offend the opposition, often...

"His skills would offend the opposition, often leaving them feeling foolish and flailing victims of Gil’s fancy footwork. There were scoundrels in places like Skokie, a suburb of Chicago then primarily inhabited by Europeans, who treated soccer like an ethnic heirloom. My mother talked about incidents when opposing players had felt forced to foul, going for his legs instead of the ball, not trying to tackle him but to injure."

- Gil Scott-Heron discussing his father’s soccer career in his posthumously published memoir. Gil Heron was the first black player to turn out for Glasgow Celtic’s first team in 1951, having built his career playing in Detroit and Chicago. Explore the story in the forthcoming inaugural issue of XI in an illustrated portrait of father and son.

#Gil Scott-Heron #Gil Heron #Celtic #Soccer #Football #Chicago #History

11 months ago

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XI Quarterly