Dominic Raab has been ridiculed for claiming “taking a knee” was a symbol of subjugation originating from the fantasy TV drama Game of Thrones.
The foreign secretary said he would not take a knee in support of the Black lives Matter movement, adding he only kneels for “the Queen and the missus when I asked her to marry me”.
The de facto deputy prime minister told Talk Radio: “I understand this sense of frustration and restlessness which is driving the Black Lives Matter movement.
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“I’ve got to say on this taking the knee thing – which I don’t know, maybe it’s got a broader history – but it seems to be taken from the Game Of Thrones.
“It feels to me like a symbol of subjugation and subordination, rather than one of liberation and emancipation – but I understand people feel differently about it so it is a matter of personal choice.”
Asked if he would take the knee, Mr Raab replied: “I take the knee for two people: the Queen and the missus when I asked her to marry me.”
Labour’s shadow justice secretary, David Lammy, described Mr Raab’s remarks as “deeply embarrassing”.
He tweeted: “This is not just insulting to the #BlackLivesMatter movement, it is deeply embarrassing for Dominic Raab.
“He is supposed to be the foreign secretary of the United Kingdom.”
Labour’s former shadow home secretary, Diane Abbott, wrote: “Taking the knee began in 2016 with American athletes refusing to stand for US national anthem.
“They were protesting police brutality and racism. But Dominic Raab thinks it comes from Game of Thrones!!!”
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Mr Raab later sought to clarify his remarks, tweeting: “To be clear: I have full respect for the Black Lives Matter movement, and the issues driving them.
“If people wish to take a knee, that’s their choice and I respect it. We all need to come together to tackle any discrimination and social injustice.”
It comes after Premier League football players took a knee at kickoff in support of the Black Lives Matter movement in Wednesday’s games.
Taking a knee has come to be regarded as a symbolic act of opposing racism in recent years.
It originated in American football, when National Football League player Colin Kaepernick knelt while the US national anthem played to call attention to racial injustice.
In Game of Thrones, “bending the knee” is a formal act of submission to a monarch or lord.
