English Football: Why Racism Is Seemingly an Unsolvable Problem

Most of you have probably already heard enough of this. And if you haven't, then for your information Liverpool's Luis Suarez has been charged by the Football Association for allegedly hurling abuse at Patrice Evra during a Liverpool-Manchester United match at Anfield on October 15, 2011. 

And although Manchester United have kept themselves away from the issue, and reasonably so, Liverpool FC have stated their support for their player.

Now, although this looks like a very prompt step taken by the FA, it really isn't (whether or not they find Suarez guilty).

Actually, this problem of punishing a player for being racist and hurling racial abuse has a fundamental problem to it, which the FA also will find out in due time if they are really serious about eliminating it.

Firstly, the FA has to decide whether they really want to take it seriously. The fact that John Terry of Chelsea has apparently not been charged yet, even with apparent evidence against him, is baffling to say the least.

The FA also must be forthright in charging players, meaning they must gather evidence (if available) and get on with the task as soon as possible and not sit on their laurels for weeks and then bring it on as a surprise. It doesn't solve matters, and the timing is liable to be questioned, too. Uncomfortable questions could thus arise.

Secondly, a lot of players from various parts of the globe come to play in the Premier League. Language is a certain issue: for example, Suarez is apparently alleged to have said something like "negrito." Now, going by the fact that the only language that Suarez knows is Spanish or maybe Portuguese, the matter becomes even more complicated if such is the case. The word has multiple meanings, and the word is not really considered an abuse in some corners of Latin America.

There are further uncomfortable questions. Unless it is the infamous "monkey" rants by players, to consider somebody guilty on grounds of ethnic origin too might become an issue. For example, it should be difficult to imagine why people would be proud to write on newspapers/websites words like "First Black to Win ___," and at the same time paint somebody as a racist if he angrily calls you black.

The third issue is whether the FA brought this charge just because Evra made a formal complaint. Meaning that if somebody is subject to racial abuse and doesn't complain, would that not be racial abuse by law?

It is perfectly possible for a player to mishear, not hear or not understand a racial abuse if said in a different language (e.g., slang in X language to a person who doesn't know it). This very issue makes the problem of racism a monster to fight against. 

Also consider that there is some truth in Suarez's statements that even Evra's teammates call him by the same name. Why would they not be charged if Suarez says he was only copying them? Why did Evra not complain against them all this while if racism was the issue ? 

Personally, I find it hard to understand why a vulgar abuse is considered less vilifying than a racial one. Abuses are abuses and should be done away with, shouldn't they? In addition, take a look at the fans at the football matches: Almost all of them gesture inappropriately to the opposition. Why should that be  fair?

It would be very difficult for the FA to really prove that a player is guilty of racist abuse just going by the words they understand the player to have uttered, because with all the noise going on in a football field it is next to impossible to make out the exact words (unless there are mikes fitted to jerseys, which is another improbable idea, or the player is so foolish to rant in front of the camera). Just lip-syncing could easily be misleading, as the player may argue that he spoke something quite different with the same lip movement. 

The only logical way out for the FA is to mark down the words and send handouts to the clubs stating that if pronounced, regardless of player or country, these words will be considered guilty. I personally feel that unless these issues (if not more) are clearly answered, it will be impossible to deal with racism in English football or football in general.

Whatever the outcome of this charge, I believe this problem with racism is monstrous and too difficult to be tackled or removed completely. If Marco Materazzi was allowed to abuse Zidane and not be barred from the World Cup winner tag, I doubt these things will ever change.

Although I would love to have racism removed, I doubt it is really possible. Strong actions also may ban a word or two, but will that really solve the issue?