photo source, Getty Images
Real Madrid’s Vinicius Junior says Spain is famous for being “racist” in his native Brazil
- reporter, Guy Hejiko
- reporter, BBC News, Madrid
The insult suffered by Real Madrid striker Vinicius Junior sparked a fierce debate about racism in the sporting world and Spanish society.
Spanish police have arrested three people accused of making racist comments towards Vinicius Junior from the Valencia stands at the Mestalla Stadium. Brazil’s Vinicius said after the match that the Spanish professional football league is “a league of racists”.
After the incident, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula Dasouva warned that “fascism and racism” should not be allowed to rule the football field, and the Brazilian government issued a statement expressing “deep regret” at the neglect of Spanish authorities. did.
On the 22nd (local time), in order to emphasize solidarity with Vinicius, the lights that illuminated the giant statue of Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, were dimmed. This issue transcends the borders of Spain and sports.
Spain’s left-leaning government and sports authorities have denounced racism in football unanimously. However, opinions were divided as to whether the incident on the 21st was due to racial discrimination prevalent in society.
Italian Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti told reporters after the game that “La Liga is in trouble”. Vinicius Junior went further: “Spain in Brazil is famous for being a racist country.”
La Liga president Javier Tebas denied this. Tebas tweeted in Spanish, Portuguese and English, claiming, “Neither Spain nor La Liga is racist. This is unfair.”
It was also revealed that the La Liga side had responded to complaints of 9 cases of racial discrimination, and 8 of them were insults to Vinicius.
Other officials took a similar stance. In this case, Valencia as well as Spain are victims of defamation.
Alberto Núñez Pejo, leader of Spain’s opposition National Party (PP), warned that racism and sport are “incompatible” and that the controversy gave “a distorted image of a city like Valencia”.
Ahead of local elections, Pei Ho said at a campaign rally on the 21st, “Spain is by no means a racist country.”
Simo Puig, leader of the Socialist Party in Valencia, claimed that Valencian fans “are by no means racist” and pointed the arrow at some far-right groups for this extreme stance. In other words, it is to blame for the ‘Vox’ party, which is a far-right party and the third largest in the Spanish parliament.
But Puig seemed to attribute some of the blame to Vinicius as well. As Vinicius left the pitch on the 21st, he made a provocative gesture to Valencia fans that could be interpreted as ‘relegate to the second division’.
“Players have to be professional, not condescending,” Puig said.
Others also brought the character of Vinicius into the debate. Tony Freyza, a former board member of Barcelona Football Club, said Vinicius “provokes every match” and wondered why other black players at Real Madrid weren’t racist in the same way.
Writer and social commentator Manuel Zaboas, however, disputed the statement, pointing out that the problem lies in blaming victims of discrimination.
“Because Vinicius is black, he has no right to behave badly, to be angry, to respond to provocation unless he is called ‘monkey’,” Zavoas said.
The aftermath of the match on the 21st reminds us of an incident in 2004. At the time, many Spanish fans gathered at Real Madrid’s Bernabéu Stadium booed the black players of the England team during a friendly match, calling them “monkeys.” International outrage over the incident has sparked a national debate about racism, which is deeply rooted in Spanish football.
The Spanish daily El Pais emphasized in an editorial that the issue was seriously discussed only after the Brazilian president came out to criticize it. He also urged La Liga and the Spanish Football Federation to take stronger action to eradicate racism in the football world.
“There are definitely problems in La Liga, and those problems are not Vinicius.”
2023-05-24 10:19:52
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