Explain: "to compliment Lukaku he used a metaphor that turned out to be racist"

NVP

NVP

NVP

Soldato
Joined
6 Sep 2007
Posts
12,807
An 80 year old Italian commentator has been fired for comments about Romelu Lukaku (recently joined Inter Milan).

His comment:

Speaking on TopCalcio24, Luciano Passirani said: "If you go one-on-one with him he will murder you.

"The only way to come up against him is maybe give him 10 bananas to eat..."
Click to expand...

Obviously racist and I cannot see how it was said any other way than offensively.

But then you have the Programme Director publicly condemning yet defending the old man:

Programme director Fabio Ravezzani said, despite Passirani's "immediate apologies" that "he could no longer participate in our broadcasts".

...

"Mr Passirani is 80 years old and to compliment Lukaku he used a metaphor that turned out to be racist," added Ravezzani.

"I think it was a terrible lack of momentary lucidity.

"I cannot tolerate any kind of errors, even if momentary."
Click to expand...

I can't understand how that sentence could have been said without malice. Unlike the Danny Baker thing where it could have been either way, this seems blatant and I cannot fathom how it was simply "a metaphor that turned out to be racist".

Am I missing some context to the whole monkey thing where it can be said in a complimentary way?
 
NVP said:
An 80 year old Italian commentator has been fired for comments about Romelu Lukaku (recently joined Inter Milan).

His comment:



Obviously racist and I cannot see how it was said any other way than offensively.

But then you have the Programme Director publicly condemning yet defending the old man:



I can't understand how that sentence could have been said without malice. Unlike the Danny Baker thing where it could have been either way, this seems blatant and I cannot fathom how it was simply "a metaphor that turned out to be racist".

Am I missing some context to the whole monkey thing where it can be said in a complimentary way?
Click to expand...

I defended Baker but I can't see this as anything other than a racist comment.
 
Italian football has a knack for burying their heads in the sand don't they. First Inter fans defended rival fans and said the monkey chants were actually affectionate or something, some more monkey chants recently were described as whistling to the ref (not seen or heard it yet though) and now this. What progress we have made as a society.
 
Maybe it got lost in translation, because as presented here in English, it doesn't make much sense to me.

The whole bananas thing is likely to be intended as a slur, but it would help if the sentence made any sense to begin with.
 
NVP said:
The fact that is being passed off as an intended compliment
Click to expand...
I think it was probably both.

A grudging compliment from someone who possibly isn't fond of/comfortable with black people.

You can compliment people you don't like, begrudgingly.

Like it or not, you have to acknowledge that he's 80, and grew up in different times.

I think there is some virtue in letting this drop, and not seeking to make the chap a social pariah. He's been fired. He's 80. You won't change him at that age.

And lastly I suppose it's possible he didn't even think what he said was racist. Again due to age, upbringing, different generation/era.
 
String said:
It was an intended compliment, he was complimenting how tough he is to defend against. He just happened to use a metaphor that was racist.
Click to expand...
He complimented him by degrading him?

I understand what you are saying and that's cool you choose to see it that way, but I can't see how he said that sentence with anything other than contempt.
 
FoxEye said:
Maybe it got lost in translation, because as presented here in English, it doesn't make much sense to me.

The whole bananas thing is likely to be intended as a slur, but it would help if the sentence made any sense to begin with.
Click to expand...

Well, he said it in Italian, the people heard it in Italian, the people fired him for that comment is Italian. There were no translation problem in between the speaking and the firing so whilst you might not think it makes sense (i think it makes perfect sense), that isn't that important.
 
NVP said:
He complimented him by degrading him?

I understand what you are saying and that's cool you choose to see it that way, but I can't see how he said that sentence with anything other than contempt.
Click to expand...

It's not seen by the 80 year old as a degrading comment though, probably because, being 80 and Italian he was brought up differently to people now, like 80 years old's in the UK who ask for "N......... Brown" as a colour for clothes because that wasn't "racist" when they grew up even though to everyone 60 and lower it is.

Different generations consider different things to be "normal", those who grew up in the 40's had Homosexuality being illegal for 30+ years as another example of how different generations can have alternative views to those younger. Imagine in another 40+ years when being a paedo is legal (for example) and how you'd react when younger people say that calling someone a paedo is as unacceptable as "the N word" is now.

Still doesn't excuse the guy or what he said but maybe makes it more understandable as to why he saw no issue saying it as a complement.
 
NVP said:
He complimented him by degrading him?

I understand what you are saying and that's cool you choose to see it that way, but I can't see how he said that sentence with anything other than contempt.
Click to expand...

Because it was intended as a compliment, how he's unstoppable etc... except he's then highlighted his own either naivety re: racial stereotypes or outright racial prejudice with his little extra attempt at a joke.

Essentially he did both, he complimented him and degraded him.
 
Raymond Lin said:
Well, he said it in Italian, the people heard it in Italian, the people fired him for that comment is Italian. There were no translation problem in between the speaking and the firing so whilst you might not think it makes sense (i think it makes perfect sense), that isn't that important.
Click to expand...
Go on then, enlighten us. What did he mean.

Also I'm fairly certain that the word bananas in virtually any sentence combination of words involving Lukaku would have resulted in him being fired, whether it made sense or not. So it doesn't necessarily follow that it had to have made sense.

But I'm now curious as to what you think that sentence means. Does the weight of 10 bananas sitting in his stomach slow him down or something? Why is he eating them all at once? Most athletes eat bananas as it's easily absorbed for a quick energy hit.

So yeah, it can be insulting/perceived as much without making a whole heap of sense.
 
FoxEye said:
Maybe it got lost in translation, because as presented here in English, it doesn't make much sense to me.

The whole bananas thing is likely to be intended as a slur, but it would help if the sentence made any sense to begin with.
Click to expand...
it makes perfect sense, give him 10 bananas to eat and he's going to be too busy with them to be much of a threat as a footballer. much like you reach a monkey 10 bananas it's going to stop doing whatever else it was doing and concentrate on the bananas.

that clear enough of an explanation?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom