Hamilton: Not all F1 drivers yet on board with anti-racism message

Lewis Hamilton says there is still "silence" among a few of his colleagues regarding embracing F1's anti-racism message, but the Briton vowed to dialog with those who are perhaps reticent to publicly voice their support.

Through his online activism against racial injustice and as the sport's only black driver, Hamilton has become F1's leading voice in its quest to improve diversity and inclusion.

Numerous initiatives were recently launched by F1 and by Hamilton himself to boost diversity in all ranks of the motorsport industry.

A collective display of solidarity against racism was expected on Sunday before the start of the Austrian Grand Prix, like drivers taking a knee to express their support for the Black Lives matter movement.

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But on Saturday, the GPDA issued a statement in which it said that drivers will have "the freedom to show their support for ending racism in their own way and will be free to choose how to do this ahead of the race start on Sunday".

Hamilton admitted that no collective plan involving F1's drivers had yet been devised for Sunday's pre-race period.

"Honestly I don't have any plans at the moment," Hamilton said. "I've not thought that far forward. I'm sure over the evening we will.

"We spoke a bit in the drivers' briefing. Yep. Interesting. But it was good that we're kind of all at least in discussion.

"I don't know what we'll see tomorrow. I think potentially people paying their respects in their own ways."

When anti-racism protests emerged in America following the death of African-American George Floyd in Minneapolis in May, Hamilton took to social media to denounce those in F1 who remained silent on the subject of racial injustice.

Several drivers subsequently voiced their support for Black Lives matter.

But the six-time world champion later clarified his message, insisting he was not specifically targeting his colleagues but the motorsport community in general.

However, the 35-year-old claimed on Saturday that not all his F1 rivals were willing or ready to step forward to voice a political support for change.

"In the meeting I just acknowledged a lot of the drivers, that there was an interpretation of a message that I posted asking for people to speak out and their silence, just saying thank you for those who have said something on their social media platforms," Hamilton said.

"They've got a great voice, a great platform, and [I was] then encouraging the others that haven't to say something. I just described the scenario that silence is generally complicit.

"There still is some silence in some cases, but I think it's also part of a dialogue of people trying to understand.

"Because I think there are still people that don't fully understand what's happening and what are the reasons for these protests.

"I continue to try and be that guider, try to influence as many people as I can with it."

Asked if a disparate display of unity against racism on tomorrow's grid - with some drivers taking a knee and others failing to do so - would only highlight an issue, Hamilton said: "Well we know there's an issue. We don't need an experience like tomorrow to prove there is an issue."

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