Posted on 04/14/2006 1:47:44 PM PDT by mucho muchacho
Warming up on the touchline, a black player jogs toward fans at the Parc des Princes soccer stadium. As he gets closer, a barrage of monkey chants explodes _ "OOOH! OOOH! OOOH!"_ and racist insults fill the air.
Such scenes are increasingly common at the home stadium of Paris Saint-Germain, or PSG, one of France's top soccer teams, and are finding expression in elite soccer leagues across Europe, raising fears that a global sport that calls itself "the Beautiful Game" is getting uglier.
...
"Understand one thing: PSG has no police authority or lawmaking power," the club's director of communications, Jean-Philippe d'Halliville, said in an interview. "You can't ask PSG to arrest and judge people. Things don't work that way in France."
Yet former hooligans have been hired as stadium ushers, and at a recent match, some on them were on first-name terms with known troublemakers and were letting them in without tickets or a search.
When told of this, D'Halliville appeared surprised and said only that he would "make some calls." However, he did not condemn the presence of former hooligans acting as ushers.
"Even if there are former hooligans who work in the security services, are you not allowed a second chance?" he said. "Should they bear a cross all their lives?"
In general, a lot of people in (Western, Northern, and Southern) European countries love to point out racism in other countries with prediminantly white populations. They don't hold themselves to the same standards though, and are frank and open about their own racism.
I think that liberal politics makes racism worse. Income redistribution undermines work ethic and family structure, making the people who are taxed resentful.
Racism against blacks in France??? Nah
Tell me it aint so Joe.
The American South is the only racist place in this world. Other than the Nations Capitol where poor pathetic Cynthia McKinney is picked on so badly it is sinful.
Thats sarcasm folks.
What, soccer? This is what they call soccer? Puhleeze. The unimaginitive, boring, useless waste of time and resources is more like it.
No wonder the fans are *ssholes, having paid all that money to sit there and watch it all the time. The ought to take up miniature golf or something.
Well said. This is a game in which a score of 0 to 0 is considered exciting. As for racism in Europe, that is number 17 on their list of major problems.
"Racism against blacks in France??? Nah"
France has had a reputation for being accepting towards blacks, but personally, I'm not so sure. You won't see any blacks in France in high positions in government or business.
Acceptance seems to be putting them in low cost housing and then ignoring them, If the burning cars are any indication of that acceptance.
Very true. I saw some of the wonderful accommodations the French immigrant Muslims have. They look worse than our "projects". That may have something to do with the occupiers as well.
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