Thursday, April 20, 2006
It was recently reported that FIFA would be condemning Israel for shelling an empty soccer field. Will they now enforce their own "anti-racism" rules and take action on this? (H/T: isirota1965)
YNet: 'They called me Jewish garbage'
by Miki Sagi
Only two weeks ago FIFA, the world soccer body, issued a list of new disciplinary measures as part of its efforts to fight racism in soccer stadiums. It seems FIFA did not expect that so soon it would needed to implement the new penalties.
Rodrigo Goldberg, the non-Jewish Chilean striker who starred with Maccabi Tel Aviv from 1997 to 2003, won two cups, and later moved back to Chile to play for Snatiago Morning, is demanding the new penalties be used after being subjected to anti-Semitic abuse during a recent match.
Last Saturday, Goldberg made headlines in Chile after fans of Palestino, a Chilean team set up by Palestinian refugees in the South American country, mistook him for a Jew and hurled racist comments against him.
"I've heard many curses against me; people think I am a Jew because of my name, but what happened last Saturday broke all records," Goldberg told Ynet.
What did they shout?
A combination of every swear word you can think of and the word Jew. They called me "Jewish garbage," "son of a bitch Jew," many curses. As I said, it happened in the past but this time it crossed the limits.
So you decided to seek the implementation of the new FIFA regulations?
Yes, I went to the disciplinary committee of the Chilean Soccer Union to ask these fans be banned from stadiums for two years. I asked the team not be punished because they are not guilty and their president apologized to me after the game. I want them to punish the four or five fans who swore. FIFA penalties are clear: A ban from attending games for two years for fans who use abusive language and maybe abstracting points for the team.
Were you seriously offended by the insults?
I am not ready to suffer these things at a soccer stadium. People in Chile don't like the fact that I support Israel whenever the opportunity arises, but I don't care. I already said they called me a Jew on many occasions, although I am not, but it is not insulting. To the contrary, for me it's a compliment. I respect Jews and love them dearly.
"Palestino, a Chilean team set up by Palestinian refugees in the South American country" is something of a mis-nomer as the Arabs of Palestinian background who moved to Chile aren't the same type of refugee we associate with the word today -- Palestino was set up in 1920, as noted in this entry by Jonathan Edelstein in his post that looks at the Palestinian Arab diaspora of Latin America. "Immigrants" would be a better term.
Atlas also posts about the soccer issue, here.
Article on this guy makes you sick. Could you just f***ing imagine if it were Israeli expats in Chile or Brazil hurling invectives at an Arab player?
The MSM would be in hyperventilation mode.... Ironic that the other story we heard about soccer racism is in Europe towards a black player.
Edelstein's post was interesting as was the Haaretz article. The early Palestinian" and Lebanese immigrants, mainly Christians had and have much in common with the Jewish diaspora immigrants to the US particularly the Jews at that time, mainly Russian and Eastern European. Both did not maintain victim status though fleed from oppression and both became successful and emeshed into their new homelands.
Be interesting to ask a few who their relatives still there tell them who is really responsible for the most recent (since 1994) fleeing of most of the Arab Christians from Bethlehem and Beit Jalla, etc...
Mike