Banned for objecting to racist abuse and rape references on Soccer Forum...

15-06-2021 05:54PM #1

A footballer is accused of racially abusing another, in which he also invoked the alleged mass rape of Kosovo Albanian women in the Balkan conflict of the 1990s. Marko Arnautovic, or Serb descent, is alleged to have said to another player of Albanian descent "I f****d/I'm f*****g your Albanian mother". Footage showed his teammates trying to shut him up. He has apologised and UEFA are investigating it.

I posted news of the incident on the Soccer Forum, I prefaced my post with "if this is true" and added the comment "he is a clown". I think, if anything, my criticism is fairly understated. I would have thought anyone accused of racist abuse and using the mass rape of women in a conflict could expect some serious condemnation and a lot stronger descriptions - a previous manager said he was "a child".

I've received a 3 month ban from DM_7 for making derogatory remarks about a player.

I have to say, I find it pretty remarkable that a Mod sees my criticism of racist and vile abuse as meriting a ban at all. It would seem incredibly tone deaf that Boards is making a stand to protect the reputation of someone who has already apologised for his outburst where he invoked racism and sexual assault. Is it really a rule as absolute as this? Is Boards.ie comfortable banning posters for condemning fairly vile racist abuse including a reference to extreme sexual violence in this day and age?

The main exchange in DMs is set out below...

Me - You've lost me. Banned for saying a player is accused of racist abuse? He is, in fact FIFA has now opened an investigation...

DM_7 - You received a warning for calling a player a clown which is not allowed under the charter (abuse).
Your ban is under forum rules where a 4th card in the forum carries a three month ban. This is your 4th warning since September 2020.

Me - And I'd say all from you! Before we take it up the chain, you are saying that a person accused of racist abuse invoking the mass rape of women in the Balkan conflict, if those accusations are correct, cannot be called a "clown" and you issue bans to protect his reputation?

DM_7 - You received warnings from more than one person. Since you prompted me to check your forum history today's warning is your 5th since the August 2019 so your ban should be six months rather than three. The answer to your question is also no. It is simply a case that the charter sets out abuse is not welcome and you received a warning under those rules.
Any abusive language directed towards a player/manager/ref, regardless of what they just did (or how justified it is), will be carded.
If you can't accept the forum charter then I have no basis for removing the warning.

Beasty · 15-06-2021 10:06PM

To be clear you picked up a yellow for that post. It's your wider behaviour that resulted in the ban which is entirely in line with the stated soccer forum totting up process (which you agree to when requesting access to post in the forum)

I will alert the CMods who will consider if your post contravenes the forum charter

15-06-2021 10:36PM

Beasty wrote: »

To be clear you picked up a yellow for that post. It's your wider behaviour that resulted in the ban which is entirely in line with the stated soccer forum totting up process (which you agree to when requesting access to post in the forum)

I will alert the CMods who will consider if your post contravenes the forum charter

Thank you.

If it's cumulative I should point out that one of the infractions was because I unwittingly called a player Freakish instead of Grealish. The Mod refused to accept that it's predictive text. If you have 5 seconds, try it! When I pointed it out and changed the post, he just insisted it wasn't changed...:D

If a CMod is considering matters, I would add that DM_7 reviewed a thread recently where there are posts describing the Irish manager as a wheelie bin and a CPR dummy, said he was incoherent and only in the job because he was in the LOI...I think as derogatory comments go, on an Irish soccer forum that's far more OTT and provocative than my posts about an Austrian player, yet I don't think any cards were handed out. It would at least suggest the rule is not as absolute as DM_7 insists, or is unevenly applied.

awec · 17-06-2021 11:28AM

Looking into this now, sorry for the delay.

17-06-2021 11:40AM

awec wrote: »

Looking into this now, sorry for the delay.

Oh not at all, there is no particular rush. If it takes a few days, TBH that's fine.

If it is an absolute rule, that a footballer who makes a very ugly comment can't be called a clown, so be it.

It just seems to me to lead to a bizarre situation where, for example, a quick search tells me a highly pejorative and derogatory word like "pikey" appears over 2,000 times across various forums on Boards.ie, but use of the word "clown" in response to a very specific incident cannot be used. And as noted above DM_7 who carded me went though a thread with very derogatory references to the Irish manager as being like a wheelie bin and a CPR dummy and they did not seem to register with him.

awec · 17-06-2021 11:44AM

You called him a clown, this is against the charter.

The tone of this DRP is disingenuous, implying that by carding you for breaching the charter we are seeking to defend the reputation of someone who allegedly made racist remarks. Your interaction with the mod in question was equally disingenuous.

Your record in soccer is very poor in 2021, 3 yellows which led to 3 bans.

I am upholding this card, and therefore the ban stands.

17-06-2021 01:16PM

The charter is certainly not evenly applied, others have said far worse about the Irish manager and DM_7 has turned a blind eye.

And tbh I'm not that bothered. I haven't posted in After Hours for years because I dislike the charter/modding there, which tolerates the most derogatory comments about travellers, and Mods who themselves have a certain view. Similarly I have little interest posting in soccer if it really cards anyone calling a racist a clown.

What is of bigger interest to me is that Boards.ie tolerates slurs against an ethnic group, but not a specific comment about an individual who made a racist remark which glibly dismissed sexual violence. In one instance it's all about free speech and the right to criticise travellers, but on the other using the word "clown" about a racist leads to a card. I'm sure you can see why that all might seem very tone deaf and right wing/conservative.

It might be a matter for the Feedback forum so you can close this. Thanks.

Banned for objecting to racist abuse and rape references on Soccer Forum...

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