Serena Williams won the 2007 Australia Open looking like the champion of old.
Despite being unseeded she made her way to the final where she clobbered Maria Sharapova 6-1 6-2. That victory 'served' notice that she was back on the tour.
As of this writing, Serena is making her way through the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami. Some of you may recall that Serena was the champion there in 2002, 2003, and 2004.
I will not be surprised if Serena wins this tournament. Yesterday she won her third round match against Czech teenager Lucie Safarova 6-3 6-4. This she did despite suffering racist abuse from a white man in the audience.
The man was obviously trying to unsettle Serena while all around him, including the match officials, just looked on.
Serena said she heard him say: "Hit the net like any Negro would." She described her re-action by saying: "I was shocked. I couldn't believe it. I had to do a double take. I think I hit a double fault on that point."
News reports indicate that the man continued the racial abuse throughout the match and was only ejected by security when Serena complained to the chair umpire. This she did toward the end of the second, and concluding, set.
I am dumbfounded. Why the hell did the chair umpire not act sooner? Also, where were the decent minded people in the majority-white audience? Surely someone, just one person, could of stood up for decency. Or, preferably, kicked his racist ass!
Instead, Serena had to endure the racist abuse for almost all of the match. Sad day for professional tennis huh?
Be that as it may, Serena is taking a "stand". She commented thus: "I shouldn't have let it bother me because growing up in Compton we had drive-bys, and I guess that's what my dad prepared me for, but I'm not going to stand for it."Good for the Sista.
And bad for all of those at the Sony Ericsson Open who 'stood for it' ...
PS: As I was finishing this post I found out that Serena just clobbered Sharapova again. The score in Miami was
6-1 6-1.
Onward Sista :0)
*****UPDATE (31/03/06) ... Serena won the tournament! She beat Justin Henin in the final: 0-6 7-5 6-3*****
4 comments:
sometimes i wonder what makes one race feels superior towards another... because their skin is fairer?.. their eyes bluer?..or they feel they the only god chosen tribe.. that its okay to be rude and ignorant.
where i'm at there is bias and prejudice among the multi racial society.. its not so much in your face.. but its there.
hope your week have been good.
=:O)
I hear you Gigi ... it is so frustrating.
My week is going good here in S. Africa, thanks. I really do wish you are well too sista.
Be well hey.
Peace and dat,
Ridwan
Hey Ridwan,
I love reading your blog, you always write about interesting topics and of course keep me thinking about race. When I read this latest blog about Serena I was shocked that a man was heckling her at a tennis match, first I think that as a fan we should always respect the athletes and the refs for that matter. But for this man to be so indignant to heckle her and to do it racially is sooo disturbing.
I attached two items I thought you may be interested in the first is a blog spot with comments posted -- the comments are interesting but again many negative arguments (you'll know which I am speaking of) are predictable and indicate to me that most white people want to deny that there is a race issue. It may be 2007 but most of the population in the US and the world for that matter, were alive when racism was a national concession (I don't know if concession is the correct word, but US felt that it was ok to be racist).
http://www.aolsportsblog.com/2007/03/26/serena-williams-heckled-by-racist-idiot/
the second is an article in which the man is named and interviewed, the most impressive comment they wrote was that he said, "I'm at my wit's end about this." Can you believe that he did even acknowledge that he may have done something ...WRONG!!! (and wrong is not a strong enough word for his thoughtlessness and selfishness.)
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17804621/
Thanks for the links Kimberly. Geez that man is an ass. But true to racist form is his 'denial' ...
In SA we are following two white rugby supporters who used racial slurs at a sevens game in Hong Kong.
They were upset that the rugby team of seven only had one white member. The issue is that of transformation.
So they called the coach a "kaffirboetie" which can be translated as a "niggerlover".
They then spat on the coach after the team lost to Samoa.
Good thing was that a white South African in the audience took pictures and made those pictures available to the SA media.
Now the two piggies who went to Hong Kong are in big trouble. They are from Klerksdorp and both are used car managers.
People have called their jobs and complained about their behaviour.
They of course deny everything. Even the pictures.
True to racist form, they deny that they were being racist. And, they are shocked to be treated in racist terms.
Oh well, I feel a familiar headache coming on ... !
Be well my friend,
Ridwan
ps. The blogger comments below the post you sent are so familiar and tiresome. The white American pointing out that 'we are all just people and Americans first." The bootstrapper coloured man/woman who wants venus to just work hard and ignore racists, etc.
The knower white man telling Serena about her history, what to be offended by, and what not to.
Then there is the whack one who brought Mugabe into the discussion. Huh???
I need aspirin.
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