“There is no racism [on the field], but maybe there is a word or gesture that is not correct,” FIFA President Sepp Blatter told CNN. “The one affected by this should say this is a game and shake hands.” http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/15757165.stm
Blatter’s reply came as a result of a recent claim by Anton Ferdinand that he was racially abused by John Terry.
Blatter’s answer has created a social media furor and accusations against Sepp Blatter.
To understand this anti-Blatter sentiment better I went to Wikipedia to consult as to what is the commonly accepted definition of racism.
“Racism is the belief that inherent different traits in human racial groups justify discrimination. In the modern English language, the term “racism” is used predominantly as a pejorative epithet.
Racism is popularly associated with various activities that are illegal or commonly considered harmful, such as extremism, hatred, xenophobia, exploitation , separatism, racial supremacy, mass murder, genocide denial, vigilantism, terrorism, etc.” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Racism
To say that either the FIFA or Blatter are involved in hatred, xenophobia, exploitation, separatism, supremacy, murder, terrorism is very difficult for me to comprehend.
Does racism exists in the world? Definitely.
But does the FIFA or Blatter practice or condone racism? Perhaps, but I can’t infer this from Blatter’s quote.
Most reasonable people will agree that the FIFA has done as much if not more to combat racism as any international organization. Players and coaches, regardless of race, religion, sexual preference, political views or ethnicity can receive very good money and fan adoration doing what they love.
While it is possible that it happens, I have never met an owner, a coach or a player who would not sign, coach or play with a player just because of their race. Never.
I have been passed over for jobs, which I believed I was qualified for, it never occurred to me that it was because of my race or ethnicity.
In football, winning and losing can make a huge difference in the bottom lines of federations and clubs. All sane individuals attempt daily to give themselves and their organizations the edge which will allow them to win and to make money.
In football racism will inevitably lead to sporting and commercial failure. Anyone practicing or condoning racism is insane and doomed to failure.
Are there individuals or groups of people in the terraces who use racial slurs? Yes. Those must be controlled by clubs and leagues and not by Sepp Blatter.
Greek philosopher Plato wrote “Good people do not need laws to tell them to act responsibly, while bad people will find a way around the laws.”
All the statues, rules, codes, decrees, and financial resources spent by FIFA on the ‘Say No to Racism’ campaign could not stop John Terry from allegedly using racial slurs directed at a fellow professional.
Should Blatter be blamed for this? I submit that in this particular case John Terry, Chelsea, the Premier League, and the FA are far more guilty of racism than Sepp Blatter.
