Yossarian
3rd Battalion
Interesting that so much has been done in football to try and rid the game of racism, yet amongst players there seems to be a disproportionate amount of homophobia/homophobic abuse by black players; recently Diouf and Kazim Richards at games, less recently Leon Knight's internet rants. I know that some black cultures, particularly the gansta type, can be ultra-macho, so I'm sure this has something to do with it. But it is a paradox that needs addressing in the game if we are to really get anywhere with combatting homophobia. We can argue the role model thing and never agree, but the fact is a lot of young black kids look up to these players (ok, maybe not Leon), so their actions are both hypocritical to an extent (particularly CKR as an ambassador for the Kick it Out campaign), and very damaging. And before anyone starts with the "you can't compare racism with homophobia", try telling that to the victims of violent homophobic attacks.