And lemon in ‘all that you have seen and read’ you will have seen and read plenty about the horrific racist abuse that the Williams family have endured over the years, no doubt? Well I expect they deserved it all for being so successful - how very dare they?
Gransnet forums
News & politics
Serena’s “meltdown “
(94 Posts)As anti- discrimination as the next person, I was nevertheless appalled by her tantrum on court recently.
It was shocking and frankly embarrassing.
Williams insisted that the umpire Carlos Ramos had been sexist because male players don’t get punished for behaving as she did.
“I’m here fighting for women’s rights and for women’s equality and for all kinds of stuff,” she protested, sending up sexist (possibly even racist) grievance flak to distract attention from one key fact: she was a bad loser.
Peehaps she is not entirely wrong. There remains a huge double standard when it comes to how female behaviour is regarded.
However, on this occasion Williams didn’t have a good reason. The stats from the US Open on code violations contradict her: Men 86, Women 22.
What price sportsmanlike behaviour? What is the right way to behave to respect both sport and our opponents?
The bottom line is, Venus Williams may have a great talent but also seems to have a massive ego.
And she has shown herself to be a very bad loser, ultimately doing no favours to women in sport.
Calm down maryeliza - your reaction is as out of proportion as Serena Williams’s.
Parting thought - just imagine in a years time when Olympia turns two and starts toddler tantrums............
If you really can’t see that the ‘daft cartoon’ was unmistakably racist, you need to question your own casual racist tendencies.
Here’s a few clues..
Her opponent (who is actually bi-racial) is drawn as a blonde haired woman asking the umpire to let Serena win, demonstrating that as an (attractive) white woman, she is the superior one in this relationship.
The enlarged facial features, huge lips and the position of a dummy in the cartoon draws on dangerous stereotypes by reducing a successful black sportswoman to an angry, petulant child in need of restraint by her white masters.
Jennifer you have absolutely no idea about racism and as with all the other apologists on this thread are incapable of explaining why the depiction of NO is not part of the racism of the cartoon. Thanks Iam for your eloquent riposte. As for lemons comments, are all other tennis superstars little shrinking modest violets - or would tbst only be the white ones? And especially the males? God it really is open season on blacks and women on GN isn’t it?
I think from all I have seen and read, that the whole Williams family including the Father are totally in love with themselves and everyone else can go hang.They have huge egos, and this [outburst] which was verbally and physically threatening behaviour should be called out.
I didn't see the cartoon as hilarious. I don't see the question as to whether it shows a degree of racism as a 'daft accusation'. I suppose its too much to expect that cartoonists would attempt to avoid using stereotypical images of black or Jewish people, given the recent criticism of the cartoon admired by Jeremy Corbyn. The vast majority of people immediately labeled that cartoon as anti semitic. I do not see it as unreasonable to expect cartoonists to avoid using images generally associated with racism, that is very like the many cruel, derogatory and racist cartoons and drawings much in evidence in the Southern States of America in particular. SW is African American. Her ancestors were slaves. Call her out for having a dreadful temper tantrum but avoid any hint of racism.
Well I guess it was inevitable that the usual daft 'racist' accusations would be made at some point.
I thought the cartoon was hilarious. I think those who complain must be totally totally missing the point that cartoons are caricatures of people - they ALWAYS emphasis prominent physical characteristics of the subject, so in this case Serena's large black lips.
She fully deserved this shaming of her disgraceful behaviour. I just wish she had been disqualified.
The cartoon of Serena Williams was acceptable because it encapsulated perfectly the childishness, aggressiveness, and sheer ugliness of her behaviour.
On to more important matters.
Has she received an invitation to the forthcoming Royal Wedding?
Someone should remind her she was playing in the Arthur Ashe stadium
What a truly astonishing non sequitur to question whether equality has gone too far. Why are so many on GN so misogynistic? It truly baffles me. And no one seems able to explain why the depiction of NO in the cartoon is acceptable?
She was accused of coaching, her coach said he was coaching her, but everyone did it! Seemed to me that the umpire was fully justified. You can't complain because you were called out on an action you were taking. Plus of course she did break her racket.
Her behaviour was a disgrace, what excuse can be put forward for her when she threatened to ram a ball down an umpire’s throat , a female empire ?
I too ask if the balance is tipping to far
I don't see how this incident can in any way lead us to consider that the road to equality between men and women means "the balance is beginning to tip in the wrong direction".
I am not defending SW loss of control in any way. Many of us return to work when our babies are under a year old. Losing control of our emotions shouldn't and couldn't be put down to recently having had a baby. Maybe becoming a mother has been more difficult for SW than she expected. Maybe she is struggling to manage the demands of being a top tennis professional with being a mother. That's for her to consider but losing her temper and behaving badly can't be excused by being the mother of a toddler.
What a disgraceful display of bad sportsmanship by Serena.
If a male player had pointed his finger with such anger at a female Umpire and called her a liar and a thief he would have been in a whole heap of trouble.
If he had said ‘and I have a baby at home’ admittedly he would not have given birth, we would have thought what has that got to do with it.
It was Serena’s choice, I would imagine, to come back to tennis so soon. IMO it was far too soon.
I am all for equality between men an women but I wonder if the balance is beginning to tip in the wrong direction.
That must be Naomi Osaker, completely overlooked on the court and wrongly depicted as a blonde in the infamously racist (or not) cartoon. No the person overshadowing both is Serena Williams throwing a huge wobbly.
Perhaps someone so much better attuned to depictions of racism than me could tell me who on earth the slim, white woman with the blond pony tail talking to the umpire is in the cartoon?
Yes she did Anniebach. Which is precisely part of the debacle! I'm not quite understanding what your point is in asking that?
Did she not call him a thief and a liar ?
I mean falselycharged him with 'racism'.
OldMeg I do so agree with you. Three rules were blatantly and arrogantly broken. The umpire has a job to do and he did it.
What confuses me is where 'sexism' comes into her thinking? Just because, in her opinion, Carlos Ramos would not have penalised a man for the same offences...it was just that - her opinion. She could could equally have charged him with 'racism'.
She is a good tennis player but she has always been a drama queen. She flouts the rules and expects to get away with it, and when she doesn't, she throws a violent tantrum. Remember when she threatened to kill a line judge a few years back? She was out of control and she deserved all the penalties she got.
I'm incensed with the likes of BJK and Sue Barker coming to her aid. What is the point of having rules if they can be broken just because a player is top ranking?
I felt so sorry for the very very good player who won the tournament. All the shine of her victory was 'stolen' by a 'thief'.
Sportsmen throw tantrums all the time & it doesn't make the mainstream news.
That's the point.
Not whether or not its right/wrong to throw tantrums in the first place, we all know its not.
But john Mcinroe was about 30 years ago is that the only example of males losing it anyone can come up with
I saw a clip on the news and thought it was disgusting and showed Her up badly I too wondered if it was connected with baby hormones it was an awful abusive display and let her down big time she looked like a spoilt child and sounded like a fisher woman she’s was loud angry and selfishly took the shine off the other girls win
He got into trouble for it Gillybob. He didn't do it for a laugh at the time. Like Serena he lost it!
Not sure if he was pilloried or laughed at and enjoyed Jane10 . I remember "You cannot be serious" as being a bit of a catch phrase and many people watched his matches just waiting for a "kick off" of some kind.
.
Join the conversation
Registering is free, easy, and means you can join the discussion, watch threads and lots more.
Register now »Already registered? Log in with:
Gransnet »

