Finding a balance !

Football games have always been lively affairs with encouragement from the crowd.  Spectators who follow teams have their favourite players and their success in adding to the score often results in derogatory remarks from followers of the other team.  Unfortunately " sledging " has taken on a racist element in recent times.

Two incidents marred this weekends games.   A thirteen year old girl was removed from the ground by the security people when she called Sydney Swan's player Adam Goodes an " Ape ".   Goodes is indigenous and he took umbrage at the insult.   The girl has since apologised - and that apology has been accepted.

Another spectator used a mobile phone camera to record an adult male yell  " Give it to Goodes - because he is black ".   Club officials are trying to identify this person, and if successful he will probably be banned from getting a seat at future games for a period of time.  All the sporting codes are trying to eliminate racist chants to improve crowd behaviour.

This is not just an Australian problem.   World wide, sporting event crowds contain an element with racist views on the colour of players skins.   Soccer crowds in Europe are well known for throwing bananas onto the grounds and making " monkey " sounds when black players are part of a team.

We need to be very careful that we do not stifle crowd participation by being too " thin skinned " on remarks that may not be deliberately offensive.    Calling somebody a " bastard " can in some cases be a term of affection, but calling that person a " black bastard " would be an entirely different matter.   Whenever the word " black " appears in conversation, it evokes sinister undertones.

We should also be aware that being deliberately racist can be a weapon to smear the good name of an opposing team.   Just as football hooligans provoke fights in stadiums, some followers deliberately adopt the opposing teams colours and mingle in the crowd,  yelling racist remarks which are blamed on the opposing team.   They get a strange satisfaction from stirring up trouble - and then disappearing into the crowd.

The good thing is that football crowds generally support action against racist chants.  That was evidenced by crowd behaviour when that thirtenn year old girl was being removed.   She was roundly " booed " as she made her exit.

We will never completely eliminate people with a racist outlook from attending sporting events, but it is clear that making offensive remarks is fast becoming a breach of etiquette that is falling out of favour.   Today, there are few teams on the field without indigenous representation !