The white American media Are like Wolves Waiting In The Darkness to Attack Serena Williams With Any Opportunity They Can Get

charging-the-net.jpgserena-holding-australian-open-title.jpg             

               Well it was bound to happen I am surprised it took the white American media this long at the US OPEN to commence their usual annual anti Williams racist rhetoric.  Usually the white American newspapers complain about the Williams Sisters during the first week of the US OPEN. I wonder why they waited until now to attack Serena Williams? Oops I  guess the minute they “found something” really “horrible” that they just had to report it.  Its like a broken record and its so pathetic and  lame of the mainstream USA press. The latest uproar is that Serena did not give “credit” to Justine Henin? Did Justine Henin give credit to Marion Bartoli when Henin choked the Wimbledon 2007 semifinals? Henin claimed the match with Serena the day before was too “emotional” for her and that contributed to her loss to Bartoli. Henin wasn’t exactly very nice to Bartoli either. Did the UK or American newspapers complain about that? Of course not.

             It is racist incidents such as this why I suggest to the readers of my blog to pick up the book on black tennis called “Charging The Net” by Cecil Harris and Larryette DeBose. Harris and Debose compile sixty five interviews with black tennis players and coaches. The truth about the white American tennis establishment is exposed in this book but of course I am sure my dear readers you haven’t heard much about this wonderful book. Harris and Debose point out the obvious but they back up their claims with proof that the white American tennis establishment has a unwelcome mat for black tennis players.  Is it any surprise that this wonderful book hasn’t really gotten much press in the mainstream USA media? The USTA certainly doesn’t want to be reminded of their racist and sexist history against black people. And don’t expect USA network or CBS to be promoting this book either.

                 Today in various American newspapers  the white American media have lashed out at Serena Williams for her “attitude” after her loss to Belgian Justine Henin. Serena lost last night in the  quarterfinals of the US OPEN.  And I guess the white American tennis player Andy Roddick is perfect? Roddick is  very unprofessional on the court and off the court in press interviews. Roddick also has had tense press conferences. Yet you will never read anything in the mainstream American newspapers complaining about Roddick’s immature behaviour with the media. Roddick swears at his opponents, at the lines people, at the chair umpires. Yet Roddick is the white American tennis hope that has faded into oblivion.  Andy Roddick has proven to be just a bunch of hot air and hopeless he’s no longer a top contender in men’s tennis. The hype machine has burst for Roddick he hasn’t won a grand slam singles title since 2003. Why doesn’t the white American media complain about Roddick and his often outbursts on the tennis court? ESPN commentator Patrick McEnroe applauded Roddick for his disgusting behavior at the 2007 Australian Open when he played a black Frenchman Jo Wilfred Tsonga the match was close and Roddick was cursing at Tsonga. I guess in the USA media there are different standards for black and white American athletes.

           Is Serena supposed to be happy or thrilled that she lost to Henin? Of course not.  I can honestly say that Justine Henin was the better player on the court last night she simply out played Serena.  Justine is a very quick player and her speed won her the match. I felt like Serena was kind of slow tracking down balls.  

     The  real reason  the white American media are so “distraught” is because they want Serena to say that Justine Henin is a “better” tennis player then her. Serena is never going to utter those words. Justine may be having a more “consistent” year then Serena  but  I personally believe Serena at her best is the superior tennis player. Henin and Serena are tied 6-6 in their head to head matches .  My personal opinion is when Serena is playing her best she is better then everybody else on the WTA TOUR.

              Isn’t it interesting that the white American press are so quick to turn on an American tennis champion such as Serena Williams because they  want her to give praise to a foreign player Henin just because Henin is white? Let’s be real here that’s the real reason the white American press are so “angry”.  The white American media have no respect for Serena Williams as a great champion so why should she give respect to them? Respect isn’t just one way traffic.

                   It just goes to show in this world nationality can be thrown out the window because race always matters. And in the USA since Justine Henin is white and Serena is black the USA mainstream media will be firmly in Henin’s corner. Henin is a great tennis player she’s a lot better then the blonde bimbo of the WTA Maria Sharapova that’s for sure. Henin is a champion but Serena is also a champion and I certainly didn’t expect Serena to sit in a press conference and give ten minutes of praise to Henin. I think the speed and the swiftness of the white American media’s hatred for Serena Williams speaks a lot about them and how disgusting American racism truly is.

       After the difficult loss Serena was well within her rights during last night’s  press conference to answer  the questions the way she wanted to. The  press conference was short and quick and the white American tennis reporters just didn’t like that. The avalanche of negativity is not only surprising its a bit disconcerting but typical of white America. Although I am a foreigner I am cognizant of how the white American media operates in relation to black people. The public lynching Serena got in the USA press just demonstrates  and speaks volumes to the kind of vindictive white reporters there are in America.

             I watched the match on TSN alternative feed and I  had to turn the volume down low because I wanted to concenrtate on the match. I just didn’t want to hear the termagant tennis analyst Tracy Austin and her sidekicks the two spineless  cockroaches John McEnroe and Ted Robinson.  John McEnroe is no fan of the Williams Sisters everyone knows that. McEnroe’s along with Austin and Robinson have been anti Williams for the past ten years.  McEnroe never has anything  intelligent or insightful to say he’s just a   bitter old man. Ditto for the for  “scarecrow” Ted Robinson he has zero credibility and veracity at all.  Tracy Austin was at least kind of professional but that’s saying a lot about her. Austin its hard to believe actually was netural which is surprising for her. Austin usually always has something negative to say about Serena yet last night she was quiet. Austin let McEnroe and Robinson do all the bashing.

                I read various articles on the web in American newspapers and no surprise the white American tennis reporters unleashed their racism, their bigotry and their lack of class against Serena Williams in print.  Serena already lost to Justine Henin isn’t that what the white American tennis reporters wanted? Will they ever have the guts to admit the truth? Of course not.  Why can’t these white American tennis reporters just be honest? They don’t like Serena Williams because she’s a  strong, inteligent, young black woman that has talent, confidence and she won’t kiss their white asses. And why should she? Serena owes the American press nothing.

            Its just like clockwork though whenever Serena Williams loses a tennis match the white American media always have to find something to complain about. I am not American but I am not blind to the legacy and history of this obvious pernicious racism. The white American tennis reporters are intelligent enough not to pull a Don Imus in print. However, these covert racists aren’t fooling anybody that’s for sure.   The white American press always have some negativity against the Williams Sisters. Race, class, and gender, are framed. The white American tennis media want to paint a negative picture of Serena Williams. These tennis crtiics have always had a gruding disrespect for Serena and last night she just wasn’t interested in it.  Why can’t these racist tennis reporters  just be real for five seconds? People are smart enough to discern and read between the lines.  The white American tennis establishment should be thanking Serena  and her sister Venus because they are the only American women winning grand singles titles. The other American women currently playing behind the Williams Sisters simply are not talented enough to become champions.  Serena won the Australian Open in January and Venus won Wimbledon.The last American woman that wasn’t a Williams Sister to win a grand slam was Jennifer Capriati five long years ago.

               Serena is a champion she’s not like James Blake she’s not an Uncle Tom she’s a fighter. Serena didn’t want to be fined $10,000 dollars so she showed up at her press conference. Serena did her part of the job. The white American tennis media are just “upset” that Serena didn’t give them the answers they wanted. However, Serena owes the American press nothing she did her job she gave the answers she felt best to answer. I doubt Serena cares what the white American media thinks of her because she already knows they are a bunch of anti black bigots. As I have written on this blog before racism in tennis is not just overt its also covert.

        For decades the white American tennis establishment has had little respect for black tennis players.  The USTA so called “tribute” to Althea Gibson was conducted posthumously. It was so disgusting the way the USTA has treated the late great Althea Gibson for all these years. The USTA contacted Gibson only twice during her lifetime for a tribute. Of course the USTA waited until Gibson was sick and unhealthy to contact her. Why didn’t the USTA have the tribute in 1987 when Althea was healthy and strong? I think Althea declined the USTA tribute because she most likely felt the USTA was insincere  and not genuine.  The USTA’s actions  speaks volumes about what the USTA thinks of black tennis players.  I thought the USTA tribute was not only very insincere I also thought it was just a very contrived and deleterious public relations ploy.

                           The USTA does not reach out to black youth or other minority youth. The American tennis estabishment and the white American media want a white American girl to be the USA’s next big tennis star. Its the reason why the USA press fawn over the blonde Russian Maria Sharapova. Sharapova wasn’t exactly thrilled when she was upset in the third round she was also sullen in her post match press conference. Why didn’t the white American media go after her? Oops I forgot even though Sharapova is Russian she’s still white and blonde.

                  The sad thing is there are plenty of  white American tennis journalists and the white American tennis establishment that were openly rooting for the foreigner Justine Henin of Belgium. I have checked out various internet tennis websites and there are plenty of  white and Asian American tennis fans that openly cheer for Henin even though Serena Williams is an American. I think the callous and bigoted attitude of some of these white American tennis reporters speaks volumes about the lack of class they have.

      Also, I find it very sexist that people expect female athletes to act differently then male athletes when they lose. There are too many male sports stars to count that lose big matches and I don’t see them get the kind of blood thirsty venom that Serena Williams received today. Just because Serena Williams is a woman doesn’t mean she doesn’t have a right to her own feelings and emotions. I think its pretty pathetic for the press to bash an athlete that just lost a major tennis match. When you lose are you supposed to be smiling and all happy? Also, this is professional tennis its not Serena’s job to praise Justine Henin if the white American media want to do that they can. Serena’s been around for ten years so I don’t understand why they are surprised by her behaviour? Should Serena have given Henin credit I have to say no I think the match speaks for itself.

     As I said yesterday the white American media want their black athletes to be nice losers like James Blake. Serena Williams is not a loser she’s a winner and she’s got eight grand slam singles titles.

           The NY TIMES writer Selena Roberts  slammed Williams in an article today and the Sports Illustrated writer John Wertheim of course bashed Williams as well.  Yet would Roberts or Wetheim have the courage to write about the covert racism in American tennis or of the USTA? I have not read any articles by Roberts or Wertheim criticizing racist tennis analysts such as Mary Carillo, John Mcenroe, or Tracy Austin.

      Wertheim has no credibility he’s been anti Williams for the past decade and a  classic  racist bigot. Wertheim and Roberts are  like wolves waiting in the darkness just waiting to rip Serena Williams apart.  I guess for white American tennis reporters Serena cannot be sad about a loss. Serena was unhappy and she’s human she just lost a tough match against the world number one Justine Henin. It is also weird that Serena has lost to Henin three times in a row usually this just doesn’t happen to Serena. The white reporters of course reported what they wanted to see and hear. I never listen to just what the media presents I remember from reading Dionne Brand’s work that the white media have their own anti black prejudices.

        Bill Dwyre the Los Angeles Times writer is the same writer that wrote a piece earlier this year saying that Williams Sisters should return to the racist Indian Wells tennis event they boycotted six years ago. Since the Williams Sisters are the only superstars on the WTA the Indian Wells event has lost its  commerical value and importance on the WTA tour.  I also have to  point out Chris Evert the former tennis champion is a part owner of the Indian Wells event. Dwyre bashed Serena as well. Its really tiring but not surprising when these white American tennis journalists claim that Serena should be more “nice” and credit her “white opponents” when they just hate her because she’s a proud black woman.

     Its just like clockwork whenever the Williams Sisters lose the white American media’s tentacles become unleashed. Let’s be honest here, the white American media just wanted an opportunity to gang up on Serena and naturally they did.  They want to destroy Serena’s spirit and soul but she won’t allow it and that’s why the press conference was a very quick one.  Serena Williams is still the best player on the WTA tour she has won all four grand slam singles titles and she already won the Australian Open title this year. The Williams Sisters don’t care about rankings they play the events they want to play and they proved this year that can still win grand slams. Serena had a solid year she won a grand slam and a tier I event in Miami this year. Serena has nothing to prove to anybody and I am so proud of Serena that she’s true to herself she doesn’t allow these racist bigots to try to force her to play by their rules. The Williams Sisters have always done things their own way and I applaud them for that. Well done Serena!

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About orvillelloyddouglas

I am a gay black Canadian male.

14 responses to “The white American media Are like Wolves Waiting In The Darkness to Attack Serena Williams With Any Opportunity They Can Get”

  1. Out4Blood's avatar
    Out4Blood says :

    Calling everyone rascist is a lame attempt at justifying her contempible behavior. She behaved childishly in front of the national media. Of course that’s news. That’s what they reported. It has nothing to do with her race – it has to do with her being a spoiled little brat. YOU on the other hand, are clearly the rascist one. Since you’re making distinctions based on race to condemn behavior. Ironic, no?

  2. Bruce's avatar
    Bruce says :

    Serena lost. So What! Doesn’t matter the color of ones skin. I think you are Al Sharpton’s half brother. You are the racist and should burn in HELL.

  3. Joe's avatar
    Joe says :

    AGBM, yes (covert) racism is alive and well and most racists are unbelievably in denial about their (race’s)racism (eg “it has nothing to do with her race” & “Doesn’t matter the color of ones skin”) but I can’t agree with you on this one.

    I don’t know how bad “they” crucified her in the press but what I saw during the press conference was just plain bad behavior – borderline nasty. IMO, Serena is an even bigger cry baby and “sorer” loser than Fernando Alonso – and that’s saying something! Having said that, I follow F1 a lot more closely than I do tennis and I have yet to see the press blast Alonso for comments and behavior this year that has been woefully unbecoming any professional athlete let alone a 2 time world champion(in response to the unexpectedly massive challenge being provided by rookie team mate Lewis Hamilton). Wonder why that is?

    Notice how fast the press jumped all over Lewis Hamilton however, for alledgedly using the F word in his radio communications with team boss Ron Dennis in Hungry? The fact is, they were just repeating unsubstantiated internet rumor so the next week Hamilton insisted that McLaren put out a press release stating that he never used the F word with Ron Dennis. Isn’t one of the main tenets of journalism fact checking & verifying your sources? Anyways, I digress but it just goes to show how fast the press will even turn on Hamilton who’s been a media sensation.

    As for Serena, the commentator talking to Al Trautwig was right, someone from her entourage needs to pull her aside and say be a little more gracious when you lose. And her comment about the only reason she came to the press conference is because she can’t afford to pay the fine was extra pathetic.

    I still enjoy your rants however! If you want something that is really worthy of getting your blood boiling, how about doing a post on the Jena 6? Even with a case as blatantly racist as that one, deniers like “Out4blood” & “Bruce” will still maintain that race has nothing to do with it and that we are the real racists.

    Whatever.

  4. Rachel S.'s avatar
    Rachel S. says :

    I didn’t see how she behaved at all because I haven’t followed the US open, but I can say it is clear that the tennis establishment has been after the Williams family for years, and much of that is race (and class) based.

    Remember when they were criticizing Venus and Serena saying their hair beads made too much noise? I don’t know who said it, but if that is not racist, I don’t know what is?

  5. zbrain's avatar
    zbrain says :

    For God’s sakes, this has nothing to do with race; I admire Serena for her game, her fighting spirit and never say die attitude. However, when she gets beat (and yes… she got beat handily, and no… contrary to what Serena wants to believe, her opponent Henin didn’t get lucky… she was soundly beaten and the whole world will attest to it) she does not credit her opponent – it’s always something to do with her wrist or leg, or her not feeling great or as in the latest loss… her opponent hitting “lucky” shots for two sets of tennis.

    If you were to go back and look at press conferences after her losses, you’d see that there is a certain pattern to this. It doesn’t help that Justine Henin has had her number now for the last three grand slams. She can certainly learn from Andy Roddick and/or James Blake on classy behavior inspite of repeated “devastating” losses at the hands of Federer.

    Let me reiterate… I love Serena’s game, her attitude… she is a great player, but as a person, she has a lot of growing up to do, and for her sake I hope she does soon because life will be less forgiving than tennis.

  6. Vincent's avatar
    Vincent says :

    This just MIGHT have something to do with race. And true Serena “could” have acted a little better in losing. But she doesn’t have to. I’m tired of seeing the basically identical interviews from different players. They all say the same thing, “I didn’t play my best”, “He/She was just better today”, “error”, blah blah blah. Whatever, finally someone is being real and showing emotion off of the court. It is true the media has been waiting for one of the Williams sisters to show some imperfection so that they can jump on it, now they have something. And In tennis there is a lot of race issues. For along time they would speak of Black tennis players differently from other tennis players (Never commenting on thought, they have admitted to have been instructed not to) and they would never give as much backlash if another(race of) player would have done something like this. And its not just because Serena is a big star because other stars have existed. Case and point 1# Martina Hingis 10 years ago. She would make some of the most pompus remarks even degrade her opponents in the media. And there was not even half the coverage seen instead she would continue to be praised for her “thought and play” without even reference to her outbursts. Which is CRAZY! 20 years ago 2 black players were ranked in the top 12, one of which being Zina Garrison, and neither player had a SINGLE sponsor while the player ranked 75 did. I don’t blame Serena sometimes you just get upset and this time she just happened to be upset with her match and it was on camera.

  7. Joe's avatar
    Joe says :

    Vincent, now that you brought it up, you’re right about Hingis, I do remember her being very arrogant.

  8. Ann's avatar
    Ann says :

    While watching the beginning of the Venus Williams/Justin Henin match the other day, as the players were warming up, one of the termangant (God, how I love that word you use) reporters made the following comment which I am paraphrasing:

    “Look at her (Henin), she’s just all of 5′-0″. So tiny, so dainty, so petite.”

    In contrast, this same reporter said of Venus:

    “Yes, she’s so AGGRESSIVE in her style of play. She (Henin) is going up against a very athletic player who plays almost as hard as the men players.”

    In other words, these racist termagants are ascribing ‘masculine’ qualities to Venus, and ‘feminine’ qualities to Henin.

    To be honest, this is nothing new to me. White men have been attacking and tearing down black women ever since they were forcibly brought here to this country centuries ago. This racist, sexist hatred of black women, whether they be tennis players, or regular Jane Smoes, the controlling image of black women created by white men centuries ago has always been to disparage black women abd girls. This type of stereotypical dispargement did not start with Venus and Serena. It was also very evident when the U.S. skater Debbie Thomas was competing in the 1988 Winter Olympics. She was treated to condescending reportage as well, and her opponents, European skaters, were given overwhelmingly glowing coverage.

    So, this callous treatment of black women, period, is ongoing, and centuries old.

    Just more of the same ‘ol, same ‘ol disregard for black women.

    Only now, unlike in the days of slavery, Reconstruction and Jim Crow segregation, mass media gets this racist, sexist treatment out to the world much faster.

  9. aardvarx's avatar
    aardvarx says :

    Spot on. Yet, you get called the racist for daring to speak the unspeakable. Pure madness. Kudos to you for cutting through the BS. The mainstream media have shown a complete disdain for the Williams sisters over the years. When they dominated, it was supposedly bad for tennis. All the griping about fixed matches and boring finals filled the reportage, as well as all the racist focus on hair beads and athleticism. Then, injury hit both. When Lindsey and Capriati failed to take advantage of their absence, allowing a couple of Belgians and a series of nondescript Russians to dominate the women’s game, the impact of the sisters’ absence was clear–the decline of the sport’s popularity in the United States.

    Tennis needs the sisters more than they need tennis. That absolutely kills the McEnroes, Austins and Carillos of the world. It offends them to the core that Venus and Serena get away with playing on their own terms. So, when Justine defeated both, a collective cheer rang out from the media. “She can stop them. She doesn’t fold like our darling Sharapova–who btw is suffering from a shoulder injury–and the rest of women’s tennis. Henin IS the Great White Hope, protector of the sport. How dare the sisters not bow down to her “Federer-like” greatness (an absurd comparison currently making the rounds). Serena is “classless” for even mentioning the word luck, and Venus is just making excuses by revealing her poor health (anemia).”

    It truly is maddening.

    Venus is certainly powerful, but the woman is rail thin! AND, something was clearly off in that second set. Yet, she did give Henin her due credit…which, of course, was not enough for most of the media. This is all just another insult aimed at the Williams clan. These insults seem to follow them around the world. Earlier this year at the OZ Open, the Australian press were obsessed with Serena’s derriere. The descriptions were blatantly racist, so essentialist as to hearken back to the Hottentot Venus.

    Yes, Serena is a sore loser. No excusing her behavior. That is one of her weaknesses. But, so is Roddick and a number of other sports figures. It’s not the big story the media attempted to make of it.

    Again, kudos to you for calling a spade a spade (every pun intended).

    BTW, the American media are completely ignoring a story that has been widely covered in the European press. Oracene Williams accused Henin’s coach, Carlos Rodrigues, of on court coaching during the Serena match.

    http://www.rtlinfo.be/news/article/30992/–La+famille+Williams+accuse+le+clan+Henin+de+tricherie

  10. Vincent's avatar
    Vincent says :

    and lets not forget how little press Lindsay Davenport got a couple year back (about 7) for calling Mauresmo a “Man”! If that was Serena she would have been fined and suspended.

  11. Vicky and Dre's avatar
    Vicky and Dre says :

    look, serena acted like a brat that day, no denying. she didnt handle herself in a proffesional way, and she got called up on it, end of story. its not because she’s black, and the media are not as in love with sharapova as you think. we constantly here them saying she’s cold and shes not liked by audiences and have you noticed that whoever sharapova is playing, the crowd is supporting the opposition? and the media do not shy away from mentioning that sharapova need to be more gracious sometimes.
    I noticed how you dont talk much about the press crucifying Venus in the same way, thats because venus does not misbehave like serena does. after Venus’ loss to henin a few days later, she wasnt kissing henin’s ass, but she did give henin credit- and part of being a tennis player is to accept defeat graciously.
    and to be fair, even though we’re in England, we dont seem to hear much excitement over linsey davenport’s return. its not just a race thing, dude.

  12. orvillelloyddouglas's avatar
    orvillelloyddouglas says :

    I disagree Vicky and Dre there was a Toronto Star reporter Rosie Dimano she went after Venus calling her a “dizzy loser”. Dimano has been writing anti Williams articles for years. It isn’t just the USA reporters its the North American media that have a negative attitude towards the Williams Sisters. Serena lost an emotional tough tennis match she doesn’t owe Justine anything. The USA media like to attack the Williams Sisters for anything and everything. I’m tired of the double standards and the racist American reporters. I don’t see anyone white in the USA tennis establishment challenge the racism of the white American reporters like Jon Wertheim? And what about that white American guy Andy Roddick he is a disgusting SOB. The USA white media of course let the white boy Andy Roddick off the hook. Roddick has a pretty disgusting attitude on the court and off the court. Roddick swears at lines people, he swears at fellow players. Roddick has no respect for anybody. I don’t see the NY TIMES or LA TIMES or other major newspapers writing articles about Roddick’s obnoxious attitude. Oops I forgot Roddick is a white male so he gets a free pass for the pretentious and racist USA media.

  13. Phillip Moore's avatar
    Phillip Moore says :

    To say that Mary Jo or McEnroe (either one) is racist towards the Williams sisters is just absurd. I have played tennis since I was 10, I watch every match I can on TV and live, so I have sat through countless viewings of hearing nothing but “Venus is a “true champion” and “Surely Serena wil start to play her A game any minute now” till I want to shoot my TV. I have never heard a negative word said about the Williams from Mary Jo, and to be honest, I wish she would say something different…hearing her basically put down every opponent the Williams play, looking for excuses when the Williams lose, its just ridiculous and so annoying to hear. As for Serena, after hearing all of her excuses and failing to give her opponents that have beaten her in the past any credit, I am glad to see her lose, I pull against her in every match, and I don’t care if the person she plays is purple! At the 2008 Australian Open, how many of the Williams sisters matches did we see? ALL OF THEM! They even showed tape of Venus while American Sam Querry was playing live…a white US male player battling it out live on court…nah lets watch a tape of the Venus match that has already been broadcast, in case anyone missed it. Talk about the pot calling the kettle black

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