Hopkins Redemption

[caffrey]

hopkins is an inspiration

fair enough sometimes he speaks out of line(his white boy comment about calzaghe was disgusting) but to keep himself in shape at his age and still show the passion for the sport he does is remarkable

[Tykemania]

I'm sorry, but as far as I'm concerned Hopkins is a rascist and should always be labelled and condemned by that tag. He should no more be allowed to get away with it than, for example, Ron Atkinson has been.

[Tykemania]

No they are NOT racist, i put it down to wrong phrasing. Delboy in only fools and horses always used to say thing like...pop down the [edited by mod] for some sugar or lets go and have a [edited by mod], that does not make him a racist nor me or any of my friends for using such phrases.

What would have happened if Calzaghe had said "no way I'm losing to a black man"? He'd have been pilloried for being rascist. Ergo, so should Hopkins be.

[terminator]

No they are NOT racist, i put it down to wrong phrasing. Delboy in only fools and horses always used to say thing like...pop down the [edited by mod] for some sugar or lets go and have a [edited by mod], that does not make him a racist nor me or any of my friends for using such phrases.

yes they are racist

[sharpei_louis]

Racism is about the intent of what you say if you ask me.

Hopkins' statement clearly meant that he felt white athletes were inferior to black athletes based solely on their skin colour; that is racist.

If you use a term people don't like but do it unknowingly and with no intent to cause any offence then that's not racist IMO.

[sharpei_louis]

Yeah sorry Teddy, I didn't help!

I think there are quite a few threads extolling the virtues of the resurgent Hopkins.

[Rocky Balboa]

I'm sorry, but as far as I'm concerned Hopkins is a rascist and should always be labelled and condemned by that tag. He should no more be allowed to get away with it than, for example, Ron Atkinson has been.

That's your opinion & your entitled to it. I'm white & I do not think Hopkins is rascist. When he goes back to the slums of Philadelphia he treats everyone well, whites, blacks, etc.

The are rascist people out there who do a great deal worse than Bernard Hopkins. Yes, he made a silly comment, & probably now regrets making such a statement. That does not make him rascist.

[Loftgroov]

Hopkins' statement clearly meant that he felt white athletes were inferior to black athletes based solely on their skin colour; that is racist.

I took the meaning differently. I felt he meant it more from a sociological standpoint than an athletic inferiority one. To my mind he was in effect saying “As a black man I’ve come from the slums and seen the white man with all the money and prospects. Now I’m here, there is no way I’m losing to a white man”.

Of course Hopkins dislikes white people. It wasn’t a comment that could be “misinterpreted”. He said in public what I have little doubt he says in private, it’s just that arguably he had the balls to do so.

Many white people are much the same. What they think and what they feel they can get away with saying (e.g. on immigration) are often quite different.

Hopkins is good for boxing. You need people like him to keep interest in the sport in my opinion.

[overhand_right]

I think it was just an observation on the mediocre legacy white fighters have had in boxing, so many in the modern era having padded records and such -- Hopkins never letting himself lose to someone like that. etc.

[observer1]

It's funny how the simpletons accuse Hopkins being racist.

He was having a big fight on PPV. If you can't see he was selling the fight and trying to get under Calzaghe's skin, then i do not know what to say to you.

[tonyevs]

Hopkins for me - is a great boxer, an inspiration to other would be boxers and how he does buisiness inside and outside of the ring a role model other young boxers should follow.

But his fights are most often boring and ugly to watch .. so he would never make my top 10 fighter list ... doubt very much he`d make my top 30 fighters list.

Is he racist? .. no more than the average person .. regardless of their colour ...


He has for a long time been more bark than bite - so he used a guaranteed headline grabber of a remark to sell a fight .. so what?

[Khaosai-Galaxy]

I'm sorry, but as far as I'm concerned Hopkins is a rascist and should always be labelled and condemned by that tag. He should no more be allowed to get away with it than, for example, Ron Atkinson has been.

oh god, stop being so fornicating precious

booo fornicating hooooo


also



slavery

[Old bones Ian]

Racism sells, thats the bottom dollar.
You will always get a slight edge when a white american fights for a title, its sold usually as the wholesome USA boy gets the chance to fight for a title, lots of US flags waving about, they will have a little film of his family, even better if he has kids and has strived to achieve.

If its a black guy, you get the regular shots of the dirty streets he grew up on, and how much trouble he was in when young, the film of a group of black guys hanging out on the street.
Probably nothing to do with the actual boxer.

So you can't blame the boxers for playing up to the bad boy image

[Deserter]

It's funny how the simpletons accuse Hopkins being racist.

He was having a big fight on PPV. If you can't see he was selling the fight and trying to get under Calzaghe's skin, then i do not know what to say to you.

The only simpleton here is you as that's a ridiculous attempt to justify the comment. Those of us who found his statement distasteful were perfectly aware that it was driven by a commercial angle, but still found it unnecessary - if Jim Davidson made anti-black or Asian comments to improve the ticket sales for his live gigs would you therefore say it was justified?

[caffrey]

has hopkins even publicly apologised for what he said?

[DG.]

Bottom line is.......

No Black Man from the Ghetto of ANYWHERE wants to lose to a white guy.

I understand what Hopkins meant - he just said what some people say!

Accept it and stfu!



If a White Athlete said 'I am never losing to a black man...........he better give up sports!



Be clam people, it was said to sell tickets also!

[Deserter]

Bottom line is.......

No Black Man from the Ghetto of ANYWHERE wants to lose to a white guy.

I understand what Hopkins meant - he just said what some people say!

Accept it and stfu!



If a White Athlete said 'I am never losing to a black man...........he better give up sports!



Be clam people, it was said to sell tickets also!

DG, I hear what you're saying, but how would you honestly react to it if the roles for reversed e.g. if Fernando Alonso had said that on the record regarding Lewis Hamilton's title challenge last year? I know I'd have found that equally unacceptable and I'm sure you would as well.

[Khaosai-Galaxy]

Its such a bogus argument to say "if Hopkins was white and said blah de blah then what???"


Imagine if roles were reversed and white people were the ones who were slaves for 200 and odd years


Do you reckon you might have a slight chip on your shoulder if so?

[Deserter]

Its such a bogus argument to say "if Hopkins was white and said blah de blah then what???"


Imagine if roles were reversed and white people were the ones who were slaves for 200 and odd years


Do you reckon you might have a slight chip on your shoulder if so?

I have to disagree KG - if you're going to take a stance on an issue like racism it has to be applied objectively and across the board, otherwise the whole thing is undermined.
Your approach to all intents and purposes means any 'racist' statement regarding a white person is defensible on the basis of history and that's just nonsensical.
It's especially true in the individual case of Hopkins, who is hardly a walking advert for the oppressed given these days he gets around by Bentley..

[black panther]

Funny in the eighties it was world middleweight champion Alan Minter who said "I ain't letting no black fella take my title" right before getting his ass handed to him by the Marvelous One. Personally I don't think Hopkins was being rascist. I get what people are saying - that if Joe had said "I'll never lose to a black man" it would have been different but I think Hopkins was implying people of African descent( gotta be politically correct ) are generally superior to caucasians when it comes to be successful at boxing. Is Hopkins right? (not saying he is,not saying he isn't ). When Alan Minter said as much but vice versa, he meant caucasians are superior to the aforementioned race full stop(cough "WANKER" cough cough). I know its not fair but its also kinda different when you're a minority IMO.

[Phenomenal-Nutrition]

In African American culture, its worse to get your ass kicked by a white man, because of the history of abuses of slavery and lynchings, getting beat by a white person has greater significance and a bigger dent to pride of not only yourself but of your race and in a way reliving past injustices.

Plus any white-black fight sells more with a greater racial slant sadly.

Hopkins has plenty of white people close to him, that seem pretty much family to him. So Hopkins was either being 'hood' or a marketing man

[DG.]

Bottom line is.......

No Black Man from the Ghetto of ANYWHERE wants to lose to a white guy.

I understand what Hopkins meant - he just said what some people say!

Accept it and stfu!



If a White Athlete said 'I am never losing to a black man...........he better give up sports!



Be clam people, it was said to sell tickets also!

DG, I hear what you're saying, but how would you honestly react to it if the roles for reversed e.g. if Fernando Alonso had said that on the record regarding Lewis Hamilton's title challenge last year? I know I'd have found that equally unacceptable and I'm sure you would as well.

I would not be bothered, I an a black man, I have heard and dealt with far worse and I laugh in the face if racists.

Look what happened when Minter sad it about Hagler - it was printed on the Sports pages as if it were nothing.

Still - HE GOT HIS ASS BEAT LIKE A DOG!

I remembered the quote from Minter and had only just began to know who Hagler was and when he beat his arse...oh how we laughed!

Hopkins is not a racist - he said it because that is how it is and ALSO to sell tickets!

[Tykemania]

Th whole slavery argument has been made before and at some length (trust me, I have a degree in the area) but is not particularly relevant - yes it is part of the African-American experience and one which should be appreciated for its formative values and impact upon present day culture, but that does not mean that it should be allwoed to ovrtake the mores of decent behaviour nowadays. What Hopkins said was no different to Minter, Grieg and many other white sportsmen and he should be treated the same. And that is not preciousness - far from it, its actually the only appropriate response - because if you are to confront such issues, you have to be consistent about confronting them every time they occur.

[Deserter]

Th whole slavery argument has been made before and at some length (trust me, I have a degree in the area) but is not particularly relevant - yes it is part of the African-American experience and one which should be appreciated for its formative values and impact upon present day culture, but that does not mean that it should be allwoed to ovrtake the mores of decent behaviour nowadays. What Hopkins said was no different to Minter, Grieg and many other white sportsmen and he should be treated the same. And that is not preciousness - far from it, its actually the only appropriate response - because if you are to confront such issues, you have to be consistent about confronting them every time they occur.

Great post fella.
DG, it's fine that you feel able to laugh in the face of it, but it doesn't make it right.

[Captain Hook]

I find it racist when DG calls me a daffodil miner. I object and will now laugh in his face...