Kick It Out chairman Lord Herman Ouseley said there has been a "shameful silence" over the criticism of Manchester City's Raheem Sterling.
Sterling was the focus of negative attention in parts of the media for a tattoo on his leg depicting a gun. He has also been in the newspapers for driving an unwashed car, shopping at a discount store and buying sausage rolls from the bakery Greggs.
Despite England's run to the World Cup semifinals yielding widespread praise across the country, Sterling's performances were often the subject of criticism -- and Lord Ouseley has called on English football's governing bodies to give the former Liverpool man some support.