John Barnes backs Suarez

[Peter R]

Are you from Jamaica GazX? I only ask because in Jamaica man used to call me "****** bwoy" (even tho I'm only half "******" ) all the time when I was a teen in High School and I never took offence... it was jus how things were... In Trinidad where I now live, you don't do that ;"******" is an offensive term for a person of Inidan origin... different standard.

I am not saying this to justify Suarez, but some people behave like dem figget how tings run back a yard or back in their own culture... after having lived 22 years in the great white north I was very sensitive to referring to anyone by race as North America was and is still coming to terms with dealing with "visible minorities"... when I moved here it took me time to re-adjust to people using race and colour as is done in JA (example "de chinee boy", "red man", "white boy" etc. and it is all good.

When Suarez returns home I don't see him doing any different as that is the ACCEPTABLE norm. His offence is either deliberate if he is, as I think he should be, aware of the UK standards by now, or him slipping back naturally into what might be for him his own norm... either way, in the UK he is guilty of a racial slur... suh him wi jus haffi hug up him punishment, which of course his club is trying to have reduced.

[Peter R]

.."whatever"

[GazX]

Are you from Jamaica GazX? I only ask because in Jamaica man used to call me "****** bwoy" (even tho I'm only half "******" ) all the time when I was a teen in High School and I never took offence... it was jus how things were... In Trinidad where I now live, you don't do that ;"******" is an offensive term for a person of Inidan origin... different standard.

I am not saying this to justify Suarez, but some people behave like dem figget how tings run back a yard or back in their own culture... after having lived 22 years in the great white north I was very sensitive to referring to anyone by race as North America was and is still coming to terms with dealing with "visible minorities"... when I moved here it took me time to re-adjust to people using race and colour as is done in JA (example "de chinee boy", "red man", "white boy" etc. and it is all good.

When Suarez returns home I don't see him doing any different as that is the ACCEPTABLE norm. His offence is either deliberate if he is, as I think he should be, aware of the UK standards by now, or him slipping back naturally into what might be for him his own norm... either way, in the UK he is guilty of a racial slur... suh him wi jus haffi hug up him punishment, which of course his club is trying to have reduced.

But now if Suarez goes back to him ways when back in Uruguay then how can Liverpool as a club be a creditable voice/backer in the kick it out campaigne in football. And what happen if you, J. Barnes, or any other black footballer travel to Uruguay and the same terminology is used.
I guess taking what J. Barnes says a little further then if he or any black man goes to Uruguay and get called the same word, then he/we have to
accept it. Or worse if he went to South Africa and gets called Kaffa by a white person he, we should accept it if it considered the norm?

[Westman]

Peter R, my Indian co-workers often caution Jamaicans by telling them that the term you just mentioned is akin to the "N" word.

[Paul Marin]

little black man as opposed to you f***ing black ********

is the word negrito a racist conotation?

It is my understanding that it doesn't. But we have a problem. We are sending mixed messages to non-black people. On the one hand, we don't like it when people use racist terms to us, but on the other, we use it to each other all the time. We have to stop that sh*t. I just told my 13 year old son that I don't want no rap in the house using the "n" word. He is so desensitized to it that he laughed and asked "what's the big deal?"

[Paul Marin]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england...yside-16309990

"As much as we will say ignorance is no excuse, ignorance is an excuse. "cultural differences have to be taken into consideration".


One thing i know is that I as a Black player, would feel very uncomfortable trying to justify Suarez comments, or backing Liverpool's stance & handling over this matter .

Think about it carefully. Do you think that if you were a white player, you would you be more comfortable trying to defend Suarez comments? Absolutely NOT!!!

My point is that it is only a black player who can make a statement like Barnes's and avoid being painted with a racist brush, which is an unfortunate double standard. In this case, Suarez's defenders have had to be either black or Uruguayan because the unfortunate truth is that a defender of any other stripe would be playing with a potentially toxic hot potato as they could easily be branded racist. (Incidentally, I exclude white folk like KK and anyone else at Liverpool - they have to do what they are doing).

Anyway, I interpret Barnes's comments as honest and heartfelt, which tells me what I have suspected all along - this is a mountain made out of a mole hill by a petulant self-centered little jerk in Evra. I am increasingly of the opinion that Suarez was not saying anything to him intending to be racial, but just trying to wind him up and being the pansy that he is, he had to take it to an unnecessary level.

TO BE CLEAR - if it is proven that Suarez was being racial (and I haven't seen any such proof) then okay - throw the book at him, but I don't think he was from what I have seen so far. In a nutshell, I agree with Barnes; but were Barnes white, how different do you think your reaction would have been?

[GazX]

Think about it carefully. Do you think that if you were a white player, you would you be more comfortable trying to defend Suarez comments? Absolutely NOT!!!

My point is that it is only a black player who can make a statement like Barnes's and avoid being painted with a racist brush, which is an unfortunate double standard. In this case, Suarez's defenders have had to be either black or Uruguayan because the unfortunate truth is that a defender of any other stripe would be playing with a potentially toxic hot potato as they could easily be branded racist. (Incidentally, I exclude white folk like KK and anyone else at Liverpool - they have to do what they are doing).

Anyway, I interpret Barnes's comments as honest and heartfelt, which tells me what I have suspected all along - this is a mountain made out of a mole hill by a petulant self-centered little jerk in Evra. I am increasingly of the opinion that Suarez was not saying anything to him intending to be racial, but just trying to wind him up and being the pansy that he is, he had to take it to an unnecessary level.

TO BE CLEAR - if it is proven that Suarez was being racial (and I haven't seen any such proof) then okay - throw the book at him, but I don't think he was from what I have seen so far. In a nutshell, I agree with Barnes; but were Barnes white, how different do you think your reaction would have been?

I dont think that J.B is in a position to make an honest comment without taking into consideration his high standing at the club. I dont know if you've read/heard the comments made by Stan Collymore about Liverpool's handling of this matter which have been scathing to say the least, and the hate mail/abuse he's received from - so called - Liverpool fans.

As for KK and Liverpool FC, do you honestly think if it wasnt Suarez but another player who wasnt as high profile/ skillful player worth £30+ million, or a player who the club were looking to release from their squad they would be going to such length as printing T-shirts in his defense?

I suspect Liverpool's stance is more to do with protecting a valuable footballing asset worth millions more than anything else.

[Peter R]

... whatever the ACCEPTABLE norm will flyfor me... "kaffir" I believe is not a term of endearment even in SA so THAT would not be acceptable... Alexis Nunez who is the female reporter (a browning if you don't know her) on Sportsmax zone is originaaly from El Salvador (but I assume grew up in JA...) said on the program that in El Salvador calling a person "negrito" is not a racist term but rather one of affection almost (there may be deeper -rooted meaning to that) but the fact is it is not considered by those who are called it to be offensive. An outsider like Barnes in such an environment would quickly have to understand that... something Suarez did not do with the shoe on the other foot (in a different environment).

[Gamma]

come! You guys are talking as if evra and Suarez were having tea and crumpets and Suarez said "please pass the brown sugar negritos". I am not convinced Suarez used it as a term of endearment or in an endearing way

[Paul Marin]

I dont think that J.B is in a position to make an honest comment without taking into consideration his high standing at the club. I dont know if you've read/heard the comments made by Stan Collymore about Liverpool's handling of this matter which have been scathing to say the least, and the hate mail/abuse he's received from - so called - Liverpool fans.

As for KK and Liverpool FC, do you honestly think if it wasnt Suarez but another player who wasnt as high profile/ skillful player worth £30+ million, or a player who the club were looking to release from their squad they would be going to such length as printing T-shirts in his defense?

I suspect Liverpool's stance is more to do with protecting a valuable footballing asset worth millions more than anything else.

I don't think JB's comments have anything to do with his status at the club to be honest. He is an outspoken guy and has come down on them before when they screwed up (read "Out of his skin" by Dave Hill) on racism. This is a non-argument, as all we can do is speculate - we will never know.

As for your theory regarding Liverpool's position being directly linked to Suarez's worth, I don't think this should be surprising. Football is a business, and our attempts to restrict behaviours within the game to moral boundaries is a noble but long road to travel.

But while I agree that Liverpool may not have taken this position were this a situation with Jamie Stephens (who plays for Liverpool reserves) at the same time, I don't think the media attention or the attention from Evra would have been the same either. We can't have it both ways.

My question to you still stands though, do you think JB could have said what he said if he were white?

[Sickko]

Chasing after a man around the field shouting an insult at him 10 times, thats an average of once every nine minutes in the game, should be considered as "cultural differences"?

While John might have been a genius on the field he has proven that he has not translated that off the field at all

[Sickko]

Liverpool players will stick up for each other wonder if he would do the same if the player was from his first team? Doubt that very much

[Sickko]

I have a class mate whose parents own in-bond shops and they are full Indian and at one stage I just took to calling him "****** boy" and he responded by calling me "collie boy"

In India '******s' are the lower servant class and we both knew that and because of the context the names are called it was not offensive at all

[Sickko]

Thats why your mother send you to good school...

[Peter R]

well, by his definition...you could get away with it--if you cite 'cultural' differences.

Kinda disappointed with Barns.

Read his opinion 3 times trying to understand where he was coming from. He knows first hand about this issue. I think he messed up on this one.

That's not quite true IMO... there is a significant number of Jamaicans who do not agree that "fiya bun fif de b-bwoy" is acceptable ... I don't know that there is that number if any at all in CENTRAL and SOUTH AMERICA who react negatively to "negrito".

Let's compare mango to mango.