Britain complains to Spain for 'racist' abuse against Hamilton

[Christabel]

Formula One chiefs threaten Spain after Hamilton racism row

The Grand Prix-crazy country could pay a hefty price if abuse is repeated



Spectators in the crowd during pre-season testing in Barcelona abuse Lewis Hamilton



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Thomas Catan, of The Times, in Madrid

Spain has been threatened with the loss of its Formula One Grand Prix races following the racist abuse suffered by Lewis Hamilton at a Barcelona racetrack.
The motorsport’s governing body, FIA, said it was “surprised and disappointed" at the abuse handed out to the British racing driver. "An act of this kind is a clear breach of the principles enshrined in the FIA statutes, and any repetition will result in sanctions,” it added.
The Spanish Grand Prix is scheduled for April 27 at the Montmeló venue, where fans wearing black make-up and T-shirts reading “Hamilton’s Family” hurled racist insults at him at the weekend. Valencia hosts the European Grand Prix on August 24.
Hamilton, detested in Spain following his high-profile rivalry with former Spanish teammate Fernando Alonso, said he was deeply saddened by the incident .
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• Hamilton \'saddened\' by racist abuse

• Hamilton suffers racist abuse in Spain

“The truth is that I feel somewhat sad, I am in love with this country, and especially the city of Barcelona and this circuit, which is one of my three favourites,” the driver said. “The people in Spain have always been very warm with me, and even though I imagined what might happen it has not been pleasant.”
Spanish racing officials have vowed to beef-up security and eject any fans engaging in racial abuse in the future. “There is a lot at stake and we could lose a lot, which means we will not be tolerating this sort of behaviour at the Spanish Grand Prix,” said circuit director Ramón Praderas. “We consider this a very serious situation and we will be toughening up security measures.”
Spaniards have prided themselves on their open-minded attitudes since emerging from a four-decade dictatorship in the late 1970s. But a series of racist incidents – of which the abuse suffered by Hamilton is only the latest – have caused Spaniards to question whether they are really so tolerant after all.
In October, the country was shocked by a surveillance video from a Barcelona commuter train showing a drunken Spanish youth kicking a 16-year-old Ecuadorean girl in the face as he talked on his mobile phone. The shaven-headed youth, identified as Sergi Xavier M.M, was unapologetic when he was later tracked down by the media, saying that he had been drunk and could not be held responsible for his actions.
Spanish sport has also been hit by allegations of racism in recent years. The national football team was fined by FIFA in 2004 after Spanish fans made monkey noises at black players in the England team. The event came after the Spanish coach, Luis Aragonés, called France player Thierry Henry a “black shit”. He denied that his term was racist and refused to apologise.
Despite the perception abroad that Spain suffers from a serious problem with racism, the Spanish Government insists that there is little cause for concern.
“Spanish society does not show a racist tendency,” Estrella Rodríguez, the Government official charged with dealing with the issue, said after the attack on the Ecuadorean girl. “What happened in Barcelona is an isolated incident that cannot be tolerated, but the signs are that society is adapting to immigration in a mature way.“
Not everyone agrees with that assessment. The European Commission Against Racism, a network of pressure groups, said in a report that Spanish authorities were in denial about the existence of racism in the country. It charged the Socialist Government with “cowardice” in tackling the issue.

[Menydh]

Oh, come on! If Hamiton had been white and had a big nose, they would have used fake big noses. Or if he had big ears like Prince Charles, they would have used dumbo ears. And no one would have called it racism.

So everyone can be characterized for what he is different, but if he is Black then it is racism?

[Menydh]

Racism back in Spanish sport

Autosport.com
February 4, 2008


It is not the first time that the spectre of racism has visited Spanish sport and the abuse directed at British Formula One driver Lewis Hamilton shows the country is still struggling to come to terms with the issue.

The insults made by spectators at the Circuit de Catalunya to Hamilton at the weekend were reminiscent of similar incidents that have marred Spanish sport in recent years.

National soccer coach Luis Aragones hit the headlines just over three years ago for derogatory comments about French player Thierry Henry although he has always denied they were racist.

Large-scale racist abuse against visiting black players took place at a subsequent friendly international against England, while monkey chanting and racial insults went on to become frequent at matches.

Two seasons ago, fed up with the abuse, Barcelona striker Samuel Eto'o even threatened to walk off the pitch after being racially insulted by fans in a match against Real Zaragoza.

When the first incidents occurred the initial reaction of sporting authorities was to try to sweep them under the carpet.

But negative media coverage from abroad, particularly in the wake of Madrid's unsuccessful bid for the 2012 Olympics, and the intervention of international federations meant the issue began to be taken more seriously.

The Spanish government moved to introduce a new law dealing with racism and xenophobia while football authorities and many clubs have backed initiatives to combat the problem.

Although many official institutions have become more sensitive to the issue, there has also been a backlash amongst some sections of the media and the public against what they see as an imposition of political correctness.

Many Spaniards fiercely deny racism is a major problem and point instead to what they see as hypocrisy from British media and politicians who condemn them but fail to see that the behaviour of many of their soccer fans is often tinged with xenophobia when they visit Spain.

They say that sportsmen like Hamilton and Eto'o are being insulted because they are rivals and not because of their race and that the use of the word "black" is merely descriptive.

A quick glance, however, at the web page of the country's best selling paper, the sports daily Marca, reveals a different picture.

Marca doesn't moderate racist insults of Hamilton that appear in the comments section made by readers of its website and the McLaren driver has been referred to as a "black monkey" on several occasions.

Estaban Ibarra, spokesman for Spain's Movement against Intolerance, said these manifestations of racism were a reflection of worrying trends in Spanish society and the lack of institutional action.

"Racism and xenophobia are present in Spain just as they are in the rest of Europe, but our observations show that they have grown in Spain in recent years as evidenced by the proliferation of racist Internet sites and the activity of ultra groups," Ibarra told Reuters.

"It is not just racism, it is xenophobia too directed against people from Eastern Europe or North Africa for example and people of different religions such as Muslims.

"In sport it started in football but it has spread to other arenas. We've observed that a patriotic excitement in motor sport, for example, can lead to a lack of respect to competitors from other cultures or countries.

"The government has introduced new laws but the problem is their enforcement has largely been limited to football. What we need is a more rigorous and energetic application of the laws. We need a specialist prosecutor to deal with the issue of racism and xenophobia."

Only 30 years since the death of right-wing dictator Francisco Franco and the subsequent transition to democracy, Spain is still coming to terms with resulting social, political and demographic changes, according to Ibarra.

"Spain now is a bit like Britain in the 1970s and 1980s," he said. "The country is experiencing widespread immigration and some people are struggling to adapt, while the institutions are behind the times."


[source]

[Marcus Marulus]

People who watch races (like Formula 1) are racists by definition, aren't they?

[Señor Malo]

Originally Posted by Marulus

People who watch races (like Formula 1) are racists by definition, aren't they?

For Formula 1 races, I don't Know. But for rallies, maybe :

[Señor Malo]

Originally Posted by Mynydd

Oh, come on! If Hamiton had been white and had a big nose, they would have used fake big noses. Or if he had big ears like Prince Charles, they would have used dumbo ears. And no one would have called it racism.

I agree with you. They are just emphasizing an INDIVIDUAL trait. Now if they put gorilla-masks on, then yes I would say that there is some racism there.

Originally Posted by Mynydd

So everyone can be characterized for what he is different, but if he is Black then it is racism?

It is, believe me.
I'm even sure that if that Hamilton was an Amerindian, an Asian or an Australian aborigine there would not had made all that mess.
It seems to me that blacks have became the favourite teddy bear of politicians (after the jews, of course ) and every time it comes about an Afroe / Black individual (and about the individual himself, with no reference to the blacks) and to anything related to blacks and even to afro-centrism you'll be hardly attacked

My self I've been labelled as "racist", "close-minded", "Intolerant", "Ignorant", "biggot", "Neo-Nazi", "fascist", "Grand-son of Nazies refugiated in Argentina" aetc aetc aetc just for refuting afro-centrism, for saying that almost every Afro-centrist claim was based on lousy speculations and on the fact that "as africans had oral traditions and no written documents it was easy to whites and other peoples to steal their far advanced knowledges " and for refuting the "black inventions" myths spreaded during the US Black History month.
Moreover, every afro-centrist sympathiser (which are not always and necessarely blacks) systematically refutes your arguments saying that "you are being racist", "you surelly pick up those argument form a KKK website" and without listening what you have to say. It seems that the deal is just to believe their word as it comes.

[Galaico]

Originally Posted by Mynydd

Oh, come on! If Hamiton had been white and had a big nose, they would have used fake big noses. Or if he had big ears like Prince Charles, they would have used dumbo ears. And no one would have called it racism.

So everyone can be characterized for what he is different, but if he is Black then it is racism?

I agree. I remember when Solari still played in R.Madrid, he wore long hair, and I don't remember in which stadium they were playing at, but the people started singing "¡Solari es una niña, Solari es una niña! (Solari is a girl!)". Homophobia? Long hair racism? Just a laugh? Who knows...

[Christabel]

Do you remember when Fernando Alonso was called a miserable Spaniard? The Spanish media was not so loud.
Do you remember when (i don't remember if it was in a World Cup or European Championship) the English media said that all the spanish had moustache? (and it was not Carnaval). Spanish media took it as a joke (¿?).Many Spanish girls bought fake moustaches to go to the matches. We did not accuse anybody of being racist. Where is the sense of humour?
people dressed up as blacks in Carnival and lots of booooos is not a big deal. Hamilton is the target of pointing fingers because he's Hamilton not because he's black.
I think that type of media is damaging highly the image of Spain abroad. We are not more racist than any country in Europe, or the people who accuse us or even the people that support those accusing us.
It's really sad...

[Breogan]

Originally Posted by Mynydd

...
So everyone can be characterized for what he is different, but if he is Black then it is racism?

Exactly, if you don't worship, like British-USA media, the negro, then you are a racist bigot; the other way around is fine: slandering, insulting and despising other European nationalities (or white people in USA) is the new state religion; a new phenomenon, known by our scholars as ethnomasochism.

[M.R.]

Originally Posted by Mynydd

Oh, come on! If Hamiton had been white and had a big nose, they would have used fake big noses. Or if he had big ears like Prince Charles, they would have used dumbo ears. And no one would have called it racism.

So everyone can be characterized for what he is different, but if he is Black then it is racism?

Well yes, because he's characterized for being of different race. It's not the same as having big ears...

Not that I'm in agreement with this article or anything, I do agree that there is a double standard when media is calling someone racist. If black fans would insult Alonso for being Spanish no one would give much damn.

As for the Spanish fans, I don't see a problem, this provocations are common in sport, that doesn't mean they're 'racist' (the word itself has less and less meaning, almost like being a 'fascist' or 'nazi').