Chelsea fans arrested for allegedly racially abusing Anton Ferdinand
NEWS that a Chelsea fan has been arrested for alleged racist chanting on a train after the Londoner’s match in Norwich is, at the time of writing, the top story in the BBC website.
British Transport Police (BTP) officers suggest there will be more arrests following an incident on the 16:00 GMT train from Norwich to London Liverpool Street.
Were you there? Did you hear any racist chanting? And if you did, who was it aimed at?
Chelsea have had trouble with racist fans in the past. But the club is now owned by a Russian Jew and continues to rely on the goals of Didier Drogba, a black African. It is not a racist club.
Update: The Daily Mail says the racism was aimed at QPR defender Anton Ferdinand, the player allegedly racially abused by Chelsea captain John Terry. Ferdinand was not on the train. But someone the train was upset enough to call the police.
Are Chelsea responsible for their fans making their way home from a match? Of course they’re not. But still the club feels a need to speak out and show its anti-racist credentials on its website:
“Chelsea Football Club is concerned to hear that a small number of fans travelling back by train from Norwich were alleged to be involved in racist chants and comment. We are working to help the relevant authorities identify those responsible and will take the strongest possible action should these allegations prove to be true. The club, like the overwhelming majority of our fans, strongly believe that all forms of discrimination are abhorrent and have absolutely no place in society.”
Why does the club - with its obvious multi-racial make up – feel any need to say that? It is because anti-racism is a campaign being used to unite a nation. It’s no longer enough not to be racist, you have to be seen not to be racist…
Posted: 23rd, January 2012 | In: Sports Comments (2) | Follow the Comments on our RSS feed: RSS 2.0 | TrackBack | Permalink
January 23rd, 2012 at 10:21 am
I want to know…what was Anton Ferdinand doing on that train in the first place?
January 23rd, 2012 at 10:02 am
…because if you aren’t seen to be 110% anti-racist , people will assume you are racist now. Secretly racist , because no-one is going to be openly racist unless they are stupid , its the hate that dare not speak its name.
The media have seized on anti-racism as a cause to support , along with the anti-child abuse campaign , as its one that nobody can really oppose : no decent person could be pro-racism or pro-child abuse. The British media , from the Guardian to the Daily Mail to the Sun , all want to have the high moral ground so there has to be some sort of enemy to unite their readers against , there has to be some ‘ other ‘ : Tories , Lefties , Romanian gypsies selling the Big Issue , paedophiles , racists etc.
Readers meanwhile can feel morally superior for being on the ‘ right side ‘ : moral panic and flattery of the ego are a powerful combination for selling newspapers. Everybody wants to be on the side of the good guys in the Disneyfication of modern society.