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Let's kick racism out of football (1 Viewer)
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Jenas's wise words ring out louder than the bigots' boos
Richard Williams
Friday November 19, 2004
The Guardian
A wry little smile crossed the face of Jermaine Jenas as he looked down the row of microphones and notebooks in a corridor under the Bernabéu late on Wednesday night and saw the silver-haired Luis Aragonés giving his version of the night's events to a Spanish television reporter.
An hour earlier, Jenas had been one of the black England players subjected to abuse by a Madrid crowd seemingly intent on demonstrating their support for Aragonés. It seemed a pity that instead of doing the talking, Spain's 67-year-old head coach was not listening to the young England midfield player, not far off 50 years his junior but at least half a century more advanced in his social attitudes.
"It doesn't help," Jenas replied when asked about the Spanish association's failure to apologise or to discipline Aragonés for having referred to Thierry Henry as "that black piece of shit" during a training session last month, an indiscretion caught by a television camera. "It's pretty disgraceful, to be honest with you, that someone at such a high level can make such comments without any backlash."
In a quiet voice, and showing a maturity not just beyond his 21 years but beyond some of his older and younger team mates, Jenas spoke of his anger and disappointment at how the night had been ruined. "The thing that really upsets me is that we came to play a game in a great stadium and all we've got to talk about is the ignorance of racists. We'd been thinking: 'It's Spain, good opposition, great game, it'll keep us on our toes for the World Cup qualifiers.' And we've had to put up with this.
"I wasn't expecting it and I was very surprised. I didn't realise these people were like that. It's happened before, when I've been playing with Newcastle in Europe, but this was probably the worst I've come across. Something's got to be done or, at the end of the day, you're not going to be able to kick racism not just out of football but out of the world completely."
Prompted by the concern over Aragonés's use of a racial slur in an attempt to motivate José Antonio Reyes during national team training at the beginning of October, England trained in T-shirts reading: "Let's Kick Racism Out Of Football" while the Football Association insisted that the two teams lined up for the national anthems behind boards displaying a similar slogan. Jenas said: "Obviously we've got to keep the campaigns going."
Wednesday's monkey noises had started early on, albeit in the relatively subdued fashion that had disfigured the previous night's Under-21 fixture, but as the temperature of the match rose, so did the volume. Yet Jenas was not thinking about that when, after 59 minutes, he was called to replace the subdued Frank Lampard.
"I was just desperate to get out there and play," said Jenas. "I wanted to get out there on the biggest stage and be playing for England. That was the bottom line and it was only thing going on in my mind at the time."
Of the five black players who appeared in England's all-white strip on Wednesday, Jenas was the only one willing to talk about the experience before the team boarded their coach and left the stadium. The rest, it seemed, were too incoherent with anger to be presented to the media.
Shaun Wright-Phillips, the least experienced of the group, suffered the worst, and it was interesting to speculate on the cause. He is, to put it bluntly, the blackest of the five in terms of pigmentation. That made him the easiest target. The paler-hued Jenas and Rio Ferdinand, by contrast, had much less to endure, which said something about the perceptions of those doing the abusing. The Bernabéu Stadium is the ancestral home of Real Madrid. Besides winning the European Cup so many times that their name is virtually synonymous with it, they are also remembered as the club most closely identified with General Franco and the fascist era. In the response of their fans to England's black players on Wednesday, it was tempting to perceive a symptom of that heritage.
In recent seasons, whether by accident or design, Real have purged their ranks of the black players who have made a significant contribution to the cause. Geremi, the versatile Cameroon international, and the tactically astute Claude Makelele of France were moved on. The gifted Samuel Eto'o, also from Cameroon, was allowed out on loan and plays against Madrid tomorrow for Barcelona.
Whatever the crowd's motive, Spanish football brought shame upon itself on Wednesday, and for the authorities to blame "a small minority" compounds the disgrace. Now Fifa must impose the severest sanction available, including a ban on internationals at the Bernabéu for at least a year. Anything less would betray players who have a right to expect protection from bigots.
"Let's hope it doesn't just get pushed under the carpet," the composed and sensible Jenas concluded.
"All we can do is to keep making a stand."
Shame and blame in Spain
There is no room whatsoever for racism or discrimination in our sport. Football is a tool for building bridges and nurturing tolerance. The world is already too full of conflict that has its roots in racism and discrimination."
Sepp Blatter, Fifa president
Our players are strong enough to deal with it - they are strong personalities and strong characters. They know what it takes to handle it but of course they shouldn't have to.
David Beckham
It was very ignorant and wrong. It was disgraceful. Ashley is very upset. That was the worst I have ever experienced.
Jermaine Jenas
If it was England we would probably be kicked out of a competition
Gary Neville
Even the little kids were doing it. It was going around the whole stadium. I don't know what's going on with Spanish football at the moment buy they certainly need to put a plug in it.
Carlton Cole, England under-21 striker
My members were being humiliated. The message should have come down from the FA directors to take them off the pitch.
Gordon Taylor, chief executive of the Professional Footballers' Association
Football as a whole should stand up and express its disgust at what has gone on.
Adrian Bevington, the FA's head of media
We're very disappointed at what happened. Racism has no part to play in sport or anywhere else for that matter. We feel we have made real progress in kicking racism out of football.
Tony Blair's official spokesman
I will write to my Spanish counterpart to express my outrage. I would like the Spanish FA to condemn the scenes.
Richard Caborn, sports minister
Spain condemns any racist manifestations in any public place. We will seriously study what can be done especially regarding the teaching of social values in schools.
María Jesus San Segundo, Spain's sports minister
Racism is endemic in our football to a degree considered unacceptable in other countries. The manager represents Spanish football and should maintain an exemplary attitude towards issues such as xenophobia and violence. Since Aragonés does not appear to understand his responsibilities, he should step down. So should directors who just say: "That's football" - because that is not how it should be.
Editorial in El Periódico
The English FA has done well to protest to Uefa and Fifa. As usual the Spanish FA's reply has been disappointing. If Aragonés is not taken in hand we will have more damaging conflicts. This has damaged the image of Spanish football.
Santiago Segurola, columnist in El País
Racism is a cancer that has touched every aspect of our football and is evident every week all over the country.
Carlos Ferreyra Núnez, co-ordinator of Spain's United Against Racism group
My conscience is clear. I'm only interested in football and in this victory.
Spain's manager Luis Aragonés
The FA is fussing over nothing. If you want bad behaviour, look at those England fans who arrived totally drunk. Are we thus going to say all England fans are drunks?
Miguel Angel Méndez, columnist in Marca
If you are not fucking black jump up and down
Sections of the 48,000 crowd
Richard Williams
Friday November 19, 2004
The Guardian
A wry little smile crossed the face of Jermaine Jenas as he looked down the row of microphones and notebooks in a corridor under the Bernabéu late on Wednesday night and saw the silver-haired Luis Aragonés giving his version of the night's events to a Spanish television reporter.
An hour earlier, Jenas had been one of the black England players subjected to abuse by a Madrid crowd seemingly intent on demonstrating their support for Aragonés. It seemed a pity that instead of doing the talking, Spain's 67-year-old head coach was not listening to the young England midfield player, not far off 50 years his junior but at least half a century more advanced in his social attitudes.
"It doesn't help," Jenas replied when asked about the Spanish association's failure to apologise or to discipline Aragonés for having referred to Thierry Henry as "that black piece of shit" during a training session last month, an indiscretion caught by a television camera. "It's pretty disgraceful, to be honest with you, that someone at such a high level can make such comments without any backlash."
In a quiet voice, and showing a maturity not just beyond his 21 years but beyond some of his older and younger team mates, Jenas spoke of his anger and disappointment at how the night had been ruined. "The thing that really upsets me is that we came to play a game in a great stadium and all we've got to talk about is the ignorance of racists. We'd been thinking: 'It's Spain, good opposition, great game, it'll keep us on our toes for the World Cup qualifiers.' And we've had to put up with this.
"I wasn't expecting it and I was very surprised. I didn't realise these people were like that. It's happened before, when I've been playing with Newcastle in Europe, but this was probably the worst I've come across. Something's got to be done or, at the end of the day, you're not going to be able to kick racism not just out of football but out of the world completely."
Prompted by the concern over Aragonés's use of a racial slur in an attempt to motivate José Antonio Reyes during national team training at the beginning of October, England trained in T-shirts reading: "Let's Kick Racism Out Of Football" while the Football Association insisted that the two teams lined up for the national anthems behind boards displaying a similar slogan. Jenas said: "Obviously we've got to keep the campaigns going."
Wednesday's monkey noises had started early on, albeit in the relatively subdued fashion that had disfigured the previous night's Under-21 fixture, but as the temperature of the match rose, so did the volume. Yet Jenas was not thinking about that when, after 59 minutes, he was called to replace the subdued Frank Lampard.
"I was just desperate to get out there and play," said Jenas. "I wanted to get out there on the biggest stage and be playing for England. That was the bottom line and it was only thing going on in my mind at the time."
Of the five black players who appeared in England's all-white strip on Wednesday, Jenas was the only one willing to talk about the experience before the team boarded their coach and left the stadium. The rest, it seemed, were too incoherent with anger to be presented to the media.
Shaun Wright-Phillips, the least experienced of the group, suffered the worst, and it was interesting to speculate on the cause. He is, to put it bluntly, the blackest of the five in terms of pigmentation. That made him the easiest target. The paler-hued Jenas and Rio Ferdinand, by contrast, had much less to endure, which said something about the perceptions of those doing the abusing. The Bernabéu Stadium is the ancestral home of Real Madrid. Besides winning the European Cup so many times that their name is virtually synonymous with it, they are also remembered as the club most closely identified with General Franco and the fascist era. In the response of their fans to England's black players on Wednesday, it was tempting to perceive a symptom of that heritage.
In recent seasons, whether by accident or design, Real have purged their ranks of the black players who have made a significant contribution to the cause. Geremi, the versatile Cameroon international, and the tactically astute Claude Makelele of France were moved on. The gifted Samuel Eto'o, also from Cameroon, was allowed out on loan and plays against Madrid tomorrow for Barcelona.
Whatever the crowd's motive, Spanish football brought shame upon itself on Wednesday, and for the authorities to blame "a small minority" compounds the disgrace. Now Fifa must impose the severest sanction available, including a ban on internationals at the Bernabéu for at least a year. Anything less would betray players who have a right to expect protection from bigots.
"Let's hope it doesn't just get pushed under the carpet," the composed and sensible Jenas concluded.
"All we can do is to keep making a stand."
Shame and blame in Spain
There is no room whatsoever for racism or discrimination in our sport. Football is a tool for building bridges and nurturing tolerance. The world is already too full of conflict that has its roots in racism and discrimination."
Sepp Blatter, Fifa president
Our players are strong enough to deal with it - they are strong personalities and strong characters. They know what it takes to handle it but of course they shouldn't have to.
David Beckham
It was very ignorant and wrong. It was disgraceful. Ashley is very upset. That was the worst I have ever experienced.
Jermaine Jenas
If it was England we would probably be kicked out of a competition
Gary Neville
Even the little kids were doing it. It was going around the whole stadium. I don't know what's going on with Spanish football at the moment buy they certainly need to put a plug in it.
Carlton Cole, England under-21 striker
My members were being humiliated. The message should have come down from the FA directors to take them off the pitch.
Gordon Taylor, chief executive of the Professional Footballers' Association
Football as a whole should stand up and express its disgust at what has gone on.
Adrian Bevington, the FA's head of media
We're very disappointed at what happened. Racism has no part to play in sport or anywhere else for that matter. We feel we have made real progress in kicking racism out of football.
Tony Blair's official spokesman
I will write to my Spanish counterpart to express my outrage. I would like the Spanish FA to condemn the scenes.
Richard Caborn, sports minister
Spain condemns any racist manifestations in any public place. We will seriously study what can be done especially regarding the teaching of social values in schools.
María Jesus San Segundo, Spain's sports minister
Racism is endemic in our football to a degree considered unacceptable in other countries. The manager represents Spanish football and should maintain an exemplary attitude towards issues such as xenophobia and violence. Since Aragonés does not appear to understand his responsibilities, he should step down. So should directors who just say: "That's football" - because that is not how it should be.
Editorial in El Periódico
The English FA has done well to protest to Uefa and Fifa. As usual the Spanish FA's reply has been disappointing. If Aragonés is not taken in hand we will have more damaging conflicts. This has damaged the image of Spanish football.
Santiago Segurola, columnist in El País
Racism is a cancer that has touched every aspect of our football and is evident every week all over the country.
Carlos Ferreyra Núnez, co-ordinator of Spain's United Against Racism group
My conscience is clear. I'm only interested in football and in this victory.
Spain's manager Luis Aragonés
The FA is fussing over nothing. If you want bad behaviour, look at those England fans who arrived totally drunk. Are we thus going to say all England fans are drunks?
Miguel Angel Méndez, columnist in Marca
If you are not fucking black jump up and down
Sections of the 48,000 crowd
Spain should be kicked out of the competition, plain and simple. This would do two things:
1. It would set an example for other FAs to respond more firmly and fans to think twice.
2. It would serve to discipline the Spanish FA for refusing to take action against not just Aragones, but against racism in Spanish football in general.
While I'm not advocating the disqualification of teams based on minor racist incidents, the attitude of Aragones and the Spanish Football Association towards this behavior, by being as weak, is irresponsible.
Its about time the Spaniards take racism as seriously as the others do and their disqualification while severe, will be a short-term and will go a long way in convincing them of this truth.
1. It would set an example for other FAs to respond more firmly and fans to think twice.
2. It would serve to discipline the Spanish FA for refusing to take action against not just Aragones, but against racism in Spanish football in general.
While I'm not advocating the disqualification of teams based on minor racist incidents, the attitude of Aragones and the Spanish Football Association towards this behavior, by being as weak, is irresponsible.
Its about time the Spaniards take racism as seriously as the others do and their disqualification while severe, will be a short-term and will go a long way in convincing them of this truth.
Yeah, the case with Reyes really made me furious when I saw it an TV...Instead of complaining only about terrace-racism (which is nearly impossible to combat...you can only reduce it), they should also concentrate on racism on the field. Such comments as the comment by Aragonés to "encourage" Reyes are really unacceptable.
It was indeed a sad day for football. The attitude in Spain makes it even worse! How can a coach abuse his players club mate in order to encourage him? 
It is truly shameful! And why should it matter if it is half or a quarter of the stadium? Does it make it excusable that it was done by a 'few bad elements'?
FIFA should act and swiftly else all the effort & campaign against rascism will be in vain.
It is truly shameful! And why should it matter if it is half or a quarter of the stadium? Does it make it excusable that it was done by a 'few bad elements'? FIFA should act and swiftly else all the effort & campaign against rascism will be in vain.
spain cant just be banned. its not the only the only country where things like that are happening. why isnt anyone asking for lazio's expulsion from serie a? there will be a fine, a ban for game or two, but not for a whole year, because there are loads of countries like that. even in lithuania, when we played israel, there were chants "juden raus!". we were fined, thats it. lengthy ban wont eliminate this problem, its not fifa or uefa, tis spanish federation and stadium representatives who should deal with it.
++ [ originally posted by Fliakis ] ++
well lithuanian ff isnt dealing with it very well too. majority of hardcore fans are skinheads. quite easy to ban them from stadium, isnt it?
fig. 1. skinhead:
fig. 2. regular football fan:
problem solved. at least partly.
well lithuanian ff isnt dealing with it very well too. majority of hardcore fans are skinheads. quite easy to ban them from stadium, isnt it?
fig. 1. skinhead:
fig. 2. regular football fan:
problem solved. at least partly.
The same cannot be said of Lithuania- at least not right now.
