Vineet Raj Kapoor

Andrew Symonds Monkey Controversy - Racial?

Hanuman is the monkey God, and the paint on the face of Andrew Symonds Andrew Symonds Monkey Paint strikingly resembles the way Indians drew their God. And that said, the image that comes to every Indian's mind on seeing these images is the same. You check out these images yourself and decide.

Andrew Symonds was he called monkey by Harbhajan? Andrew Symonds says yes he was called, whereas Harbhajan denies. Inconclusive, since except Andrew Symonds no one knows that. Neutral.

What evidence is there regarding the abuse? Sure, the video shows them (Andrew Symonds and Harbhajan Singh) having a friendly chat, and there was no anger on Andrew Symond's face. The video is the only evidence as nobody could have heard the personal friendly discussion they were having. Sachin Tendulkar denies it while Matthew Hayden says he heard it. So, it's one's word against another. So no evidence. Neutral.

Is monkey a racial abuse? Mostly, No! Well it matter about what we think about our forefathers - monkeys. I think here we would need a dictionary of racist words since a lot of words are confusing. Is Gay a racist word? Is bastard (uttered by Brad Hogg for the Captain Anil Kumble) racist? Well, one thing is certain. Monkey may be abusive to some extent, but ranks way below Bastard and F***er. Thumbs Down.

Is there a resemblance between Andrew Symonds and Hanuman - the monkey God? Hanuman is the monkey God, and the paint on the face of Andrew Symonds strikingly resembles the way Indians drew their God. And that said, the image that comes to every Indian's mind on seeing these images is the same. You check out these images yourself and decide. So, it is same as calling Inzamam an "Aloo" potato, or Harbhajan a "Turbanator" - hats off to Inzamam and Harbhajan since they grin and bear it! Thumbs Up.

Is the punishment justified? Well, since there is no evidence of an abuse, and there is a debate on the word being a racial abuse, a maximum of verbal reprimand or a 10% match fees is the maximum they could have gone just to send a strong message. Racial abuse is a strong charge, and surely different from abuse, and cannot be made without strong evidence. Thumbs Down.

Are the issues (of bad umpiring decisions and racial abuse charge) linked? Well they are getting linked by media and the crowds. A lot of people see it as a attention diverting tactic which is expected to move the focus from the bad umpiring to the racial abuse event, at least temporarily till the hurt of being cheated settles down. Bad tactic. Thumbs Down.

Source: Free Articles from ArticlesFactory.com

ABOUT THE AUTHOR