Racism in football Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Racism in football - Essay Example Racism in football has hinderer fair play, mutual respect, fraternity and peace needed for sports activities. Racism in football has caused public incitement to violent acts, hatred, enmity, public insults, dissemination of racist ideas, and symbols. Racism has caused serious violation of human dignity. Racism in the football matches has always found justices at the altar of emotional expression. Racism has made dirty the standards of football game. Let us look at some of the symbols of racism in football. Racism in football has its roots from the society. Racism in the football has manifested itself through public insults and violence that involves physical confrontation. Another very notable level of racial discrimination in the football game is the failure to acknowledge certain football players and other participants in the game, however much high in the game's ladder they climb. For instance, Arthur Wharton, a top professional for English club Preston North End in 1886, though bearing the title of the first Black Football player in an organized football, died poor and no trace of his activities records until recently when an acknowledgement of his activities came in form of a bibliography (Vasili 1997, p. 15). This was a vivid manifestation of racism in football. Football racism rampantly been manifested among the fans during a football match. This comes in form of flags. These are colourful and harmless club flags, but bear a very strong racial discriminatory message. This problem is common among fans supporting Italian, England, German, Holland and Norway football clubs. Other fans through objects at players they consider unworthy playing while the footballer is in the field. Some throw bananas and chant animal noises at black players. This aims at insulting the players that they belong to the bush and they are not different from the monkeys in the bush. Racism builds on skin colour as a physical indictor of ethnic origin. For instance, cases of trafficking young African footballers by the European football clubs is part of this colour based football racism. Racism in the football marches exists at two levels; overt racism and covert or institutionalized racism. Overt racism manifests through unfair treatment directed to migrants and ethnic minority groups with a weak position in a large society. Overt racism manifests in form of abuse to players from a certain race and display of anti-Semitic banners or chants characterized with stereotypic messages related to that particular race. Covert racism manifests in form of choice of players, referees and administrators in most European football clubs. For instance, there are very few members of the minority groups participating at the administration level of football clubs in Australia. Racial prejudice in football has social and psychological perspectives as it manifests itself from the fans' point of view. Racial discrimination in football games has been associated with fans' quest to settle old feuds, personal arguments and land disputes (Rationis 2009). Football hooliganism is associated with television casting of football marches. Football hooliganism relates with 'reclaiming of the football games by the working class.' Proletarianisation of the football game has had a great impact on the violent behaviour of the youth in the