Battling Racism on the Pitch the Brazilian Way

As a firm believer that the survival of our species on this planet depends on us all learning to live together (as well as finding solutions to overheating our atmosphere), I was intrigued to learn about the fate of a racist footballer down in Brazil. The culprit? Juventude defender Antonio Carlos has been charged with racially abusing his black opponent by repeatedly calling him a monkey during a match.

Having attended a match at Juventude’s home stadium in Caxias do Sul last fall, I was curious to learn that racism is a serious crime in Brazil and as a result, Mr. Carlos now faces the prospect of spending the next three years in jail for his pathetic behavior. However, he will receive a reprieve from that lengthy term should he instead opt for an unusual form of ‘community service’ and admit his guilt rather than take his case to trial.

The ‘community service’ you wonder? Well, he’ll be required to distribute no less than 10,000 handbills - in part, outside the gates at Juventude home matches - that state “We are all equal” and “Say no to racism”.

I find this to be a reasonable punishment befitting the crime. However, what I find ironic is that if racism is a crime in Brazil (which I believe it should be), then why not also seriously crack down on the idiots who threaten fans of opposing teams simply because they wear the colors of another. To me, this is akin to racism and brings our sport into great disrepute.

When I was in Brazil in October a friend of mine drove me and his girlfriend from Porto Alegre to watch his hometown club, Internacional, take on the Caxias do Sul side, Juventude. After purchasing tickets at the stadium on gameday, Ricardo bought knock-off Inter jerseys for the three of us to wear to the stadium later that day. I wondered about the wisdom of this, but assumed that Ricardo had some knowledge on such matters.

But as we made our way to the entrance later that day, quite a few Juventude supporters clad in green-and-white glared at us in our bright red jerseys. It made me feel a little uncomfortable, but not until some time later did Ricardo inform me that one hometown fan audaciously turned to his friend and proclaimed, “I smell the blood of dead Inter supporters.”

Now, is this racism? Of course not. But the sentiment is still the same - hatred for another because he or she is different.

Attending a live sporting event should be a safe, fun, friendly experience where everyone from all walks of life - including opposing teams - should be able to enjoy themselves. This is why the British government has gone to such great lengths to permanently ban known hooligans from attending football matches. And by-in-large, they have been quite successful in their efforts.

Black or white, Jew or Muslim, Sunni or Shiite, Juventude supporter or Internacional supporter - love who you are and what you believe in and be passionate about it. But your passion should not in any way involve hatred or bigotry for others who aren’t exactly like you.

We should ALL take a page a from the book of one of the world’s greatest footballers - Arsenal’s prolific French striker Thierry Henry. After deciding that enough was enough in the game that WE love, he joined with Nike to raise awareness about racism with the ‘Stand Up, Speak Up’ campaign. And although hardly anybody ever takes notice when I run around with my whistle, I take great pride in sharing in Henry’s vision by always wearing the interlocking black and white rubber bracelets that identify someone as a supporter of his message.

Hopefully, you too are willing to take a stand on this matter. Whether you wear one of these bracelets or not, I encourage everyone to ’stand up and speak up’ against anyone who preaches hatred or bigotry. There’s no room for it on this tiny planet of ours and there’s certainly no place for it anywhere that the beautiful game is played.

That’s today’s view from the middle.

Until next time…

peace,
ac