It's Not Banter It Is Racist

Hot on the heels of the resignation of the chairman of Yorkshire County Cricket Club following the investigation of racist behaviour at the club, this morning's football news headlines include video footage of West Ham supporters verbally abusing a Chasidic Jew on a flight to Belgium before a European cup-tie. 

There is a song about circumcision that is often chanted by so-called fans of teams playing against Tottenham, a team considered to have a particularly large fan-base in the Jewish community. The video today shows a man dressed in traditional Chasidic fashion making his way down the aisle of an airplane. The song can be heard as he passes by men who are singing it. Many are smiling and laughing, and some appear to be filming the incident. There is no reason to think this man is a fan of any football team, including Spurs. He is clearly being targeted for being a Jew. Some may say this singing is typical football banter. Even if you think that, rather than it being inherently racist, in this moment it was clearly a racist act.

A few years ago I was on a Metropolitan Line train around 2 pm on a Saturday. The carriage was full of West Ham fans on their way to a match. That was the first time I heard the song. On the one hand, it sounded innocuous - a bunch of grown men singing, "we'll be running round Tottenham with our willies hanging out, singing I've got a foreskin I've got a foreskin you ain't!" But typing these words cannot share the menace in those voices, nor the mean hard looks on their faces as they belted out their chorus of hate. Opposite me, a parent with a child sporting a Hammers replica shirt put a protective arm around their loved one. It was scary.

A spokesperson for the club has stated, "West Ham United is appalled by the contents of the video circulating on social media and condemn the behaviour of the individuals involved." They said that if they identify individuals involved, they will receive an indefinite ban from the club. Meanwhile, the video appears to have been removed from Twitter.

Cheerio Dave

Minor good news on a day when a terrible story of evil people dominates the headlines - Dave Whelan is stepping down from his position as Chairman of Wigan FC. He will still own the club, but let us hope that his chosen successor - apparently 23 years old - will have a slightly more enlightened view than his grandfather.

BBC report
The Guardian report
The Daily Mail recounts the whole story, and presents a perspective that suggests Mr Whelan still does not accept or understand how he caused any offence and continues to show no remorse that people have been offended by his language and views.

Football "fans" in Paris, Rome & London

It comes as no surprise to anyone in Europe who loves the sport of football that another group of thugs has been spotted behaving egregiously while supposedly following their beloved team. If you live in the UK you might assume I'm referring to the so-called Chels*** fans filmed on the Paris Metro repeatedly pushing a black man off a train as he tried to board. While our print and online media here were full of reports and responses regarding this incident, I recall no reference or links to reports about the Dutch thugs who damaged the Bernini fountain at the foot of the Spanish Steps in Rome. Police battled hundreds of "fans" and arrested 29. Perhaps because they follow Feyenoord of Rotterdam rather than an English team they were not considered newsworthy.

Not a football problem but a social problem blah blah blah times of economic uncertainty reflected in social unrest blah blah blah we've been working hard for years to eradicate racism in football BLAH BLAH BLAH

Lucia is right when she questions why I would put my passion, my time and my money into such a corrupt and damaged system run by a bunch of old white men - I find it almost impossible to defend. At the same time, another side to this debate is expressed in the new film coming out next week - The Story of QPR. It's full of QPR fans explaining the reasons for their attachment. I'll see it at a premiere on Thursday so I'm not yet sure which part of my interview was used, but the film-makers have promised me a copy of my rough footage :-)

Meanwhile, the news that broke today about more disgusting behaviour by so-called football fans is shown in another amateur vid , shot on Sunday, of WHammers on their way to the derby game with Spurs. The bleeping makes it hard to understand all the words but it sounds like "I've got a foreskin. Haven't you, Jew?"

Some time last year, Lucia and I were on the District Line heading for the East End one Saturday afternoon, sitting in a carriage full of WHam fans. A group of young men started singing a song about running up and down White Hart Lane saying "We got foreskins, we got foreskins - you ain't!". I'd not heard that one before and in my innocence (not having a clue about the benefits, or lack thereof, of having a foreskin, or not) thought it was just a bit of banter. Lucia was scared, and I said to her that as long as the nice middle-aged couple in WHam colours sitting across from us seemed calm, we didn't need to worry. We got out at Whitechapel and had a lovely afternoon together.

Listening to the version of the "song" presented in this new vid with the addition of swearwords and the vicious tone in which "Jew" is said shows me the hate such statements represent. I didn't get it on the train. But that was before last summer, and the public response to events in Israel and Gaza. Now I  really need to be more aware about our physical safety. There's no such thing as banter any more, or at least I'm an idiot if I think so. I am too old and fat to escape trouble. It is cliche time:  better safe than sorry, because I would rather soothe the guilt of betraying my liberal principles than heal the cuts & bruises of an antisemitic attack.

PS for my WHam friends I should also note the spoof vid some WHam fans made this week in response to Paris - the Mail includes it in this article. Russell Brand tweeted his support of using comedy as a "weapon against hate". I'd like to see it like that, rather than just a way to wind up some West London rivals.

Whelan Accepts Charge of Misconduct

So Dave Whelan, chairman of Wigan FC, has accepted a charge of misconduct from the Football Association for recent remarks he made about Jewish and Chinese people.

Forgive my lack of eloquence, but DUH!

He continues to claim that he was misquoted and misrepresented but as I recall there are various examples on film of actual words coming out of his actual mouth. Unless it was his evil twin. Or a clone?

The Guardian's latest report is here.
The Telegraph suggests he may step down as chairman here.
Even the Mail has to acknowledge Whelan is in trouble.

Meanwhile, his team are languishing in the nether regions of the Championship :-)

Anelka is Banned

Nicolas Anelka has been found guilty of breaking Football Association rules by making a quenelle gesture to celebrate a goal he scored for his team. The FA writes:

"An Independent Regulatory Commision has found an aggravated breach of FA Rule E3 against Nicolas Anelka proven and has issued a five-match suspension and a fine of 80,000 pounds, pending appeal.

The West Bromwich Albion player has also been ordered to complete a compulsory education course.

The Independent Regulatory Commission will provide written reasons for its decision in due course."

A summary of the decision may be found here.

The Guardian notes that:

"the punishment was the most lenient that the FA could have imposed under their new anti-discrimination rules. However, the governing body reported that the three-man panel 'did not find that Nicolas Anelka is an anti-Semite or that he intended to express or promote antisemitism by his use of the quenelle.'"

A link to the whole article is here.

The BBC website report quoted the response of the President of the Board of Deputies, Vivian Wineman, who told them that he welcomed the decision to make Anelka undergo a compulsory education course:

"That's one of the most attractive parts. We want to educate people. Anelka said he didn't realise it was anti-Semitic, well that kind of ignorance is dangerous … the quenelle is something that few of us in the UK recognise. In France it's known as being a vicious anti-Semitic gesture."

That article may be found here.

The Telegraph reports that Anelka continues to deny the charges and has asked for an appeal. Their coverage includes a quote from Dieudonné, supporting his friend:

"Anelka is a descendant of slaves and if he wants to remark on this history he has the right to - and we are all very proud of him doing so."

The Telegraph link is here.

free the jena six

this story has been around for a while, but has suddenly begun to appear on the big websites. here is the version from the bbc:

Cries for justice in small-town Louisiana
By Andy Gallacher
BBC News, Jena

They came in their thousands, protesters from across the United States carrying banners and signs that declared "Free the Jena six" and "Enough is Enough". There were nowhere near the 60,000 people that some had predicted. Nonetheless, this small town was swamped by people eager to show their support and have their voices heard. Monica Pearson made the relatively short journey from Baton Rouge, Louisiana. "This is a worthy cause and, like my sign says, justice for justice," she said, holding a placard. "It's a very peaceful march and it's about justice," she added. That was a word on many of the protesters' lips in Jena.

They came, primarily, to show their support for Mychal Bell who has been locked in a Louisiana prison since December. He, along with five other black teenage boys, was initially charged with attempted murder after they allegedly attacked a white pupil at their school in Jena. Racial tensions had been running high at the school after three nooses were found hanging from a tree in the school yard, the day after a black pupil had sat in its shade. The three white pupils responsible for that act were not disciplined and that was at the heart of what the protest in Jena was all about. "What do you call hangman's nooses but racism," said the Reverend Al Sharpton, a prominent civil rights activist and one of the organisers of the rally. He, along with many other high profile speakers and politicians, has been backing the six boys since the incident last September. The charges against Mychal Bell were dropped from attempted murder to attempted battery.

Whilst some of the speakers in Jena thought the six boys should face some kind of disciplinary action, this case for many is an example of a justice system skewed against African Americans. But some of the members of Jena's white community saw the day very differently. One woman, who did not give her name, was typical of many: "I don't agree with all this, it's just a mess, it's ruining our town. We live a simple life and I'm not racist. This is just blown completely out of proportion."

The case of the Jena six, as they have now become known, has now received worldwide attention. But many of the protesters said that it was just one case among many that demonstrate a racist judicial system. "All of these families are suffering," said the Reverend Al Sharpton, shortly after visiting Mychal Bell in jail. "The people in Jena underestimated the kind of support they would get. We brought in these thousands of people. It's about these six kids walking out of this unfair situation together." Other prominent speakers, including Martin Luther King III, also came to show their support. Presidential candidates Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton have reportedly issued statements voicing their concerns about the case.

The six boys are still awaiting their fate but those who turned out in Jena have promised to continue supporting what is now one of America's most high profile cases.

"celebrity" big brother

have you been following all the fuss about 'racist' comments in the big brother house in england? the chavs are lining up against a middle-class bollywood movie star. that's the real issue, i think, it is a class war. i don't get the programme because it is on british television and i am in america. also, i don't have television in my apartment :-) but i have been following it through the bloggers in the times newspaper. the press appear to have stirred it all up into an international incident, with protests across india and questions in the houses of parliament. meanwhile, those who watch get to look at a group of stupid and bored people bullying someone who is different. it's just like school :-(

i was amused by an item about one of the protagonists, the deposed miss great britain (relieved of her tiara for being in a relationship with one of the judges):

"Lloyd made a memorable appearance on BBC One's Test the Nation. When asked "Who was Winston Churchill - a rapper, US President, the PM or King?", Lloyd answered "Wasn't he the first black president of America? There's a statue of him near me - that's black.""