Enzo Fernandez: Allegedly racist chants from Argentina “tarnished the glory” of the Copa America victory

Argentina won the Copa America, but lost the respect of many because of the way they celebrated.

Midfielder Enzo Fernandez faces disciplinary action at Chelsea after posting a video on social media that allegedly contained “racist and discriminatory language,” according to the French Football Federation.

FIFA is also investigating the video in which several members of the Argentine team – celebrating their 1-0 final victory over Colombia – sing a song originally sung by Argentine fans questioning the origins of France’s black and mixed-race players.

The global impact of this song has provoked a reaction from the Argentine government.

The right-wing government of Javier Milei has by nature no sympathy for anything that could be considered “woke”.

But Julio Garro, secretary of state for sport, suggested that team captain Lionel Messi and the president of the local football association, Claudio Tapia, should apologize for the song, which some sang on the bus on Sunday night. “It makes us look bad,” he said.

Others refused to apologize.

When teams from Argentina face opponents from Brazil in continental club competitions, scenes in the stands of Argentine fans making monkey gestures occur with monotonous and depressing regularity.

In interviews, the perpetrators vehemently deny that they are racists. They are just “teasing”. Everything is allowed in love, war and football, they argue. Everything that incites and provokes the opposition is allowed. And in this latest case, such views are widespread.

Attempts by Argentine clubs to combat this behavior were often half-hearted, speaking of “xenophobia” instead of calling it what it is: racism.

What is particularly depressing is the fact that this behavior has been exhibited by some players. There is no excuse for this.

With the exception of a reserve goalkeeper, the entire squad is based in Europe.

These players are part of multinational, multicultural and multiethnic teams. They should know better. Quite apart from possible sanctions, there could be some very awkward moments in the dressing room when they return to pre-season training.

One of the attractions of playing for the national team for these players is being with people from their own culture and singing their own songs.

For them, this is an opportunity to present themselves aggressively and confidently as Argentinians.

Many aspects of the country’s fan culture are wonderful. The songs can be mesmerizing.

But the lyrics of this particular song, which commemorates the World Cup final in Qatar, which Argentina won on penalties against France, are extremely disturbing.

Not only do Argentine players risk offending their black teammates and fans, these songs also insult their own heritage.

Nowadays, it is rare to see a black Argentinian. But it was not always like this.

Even during Spanish colonial rule, the country imported far fewer enslaved Africans than neighboring Brazil and had abolished slavery decades earlier. But around two hundred years ago, a third of the population in Buenos Aires was black.

There are many theories, ranging from yellow fever outbreaks to deaths in the War of Independence.

The most obvious idea, however, is that they were flooded by the millions of immigrants who poured into the country from Europe and the Middle East (especially Italy – Argentines speak Spanish with an Italian accent) in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

The African influence is noticeable in the gene pool. Dark-skinned people are often referred to as “el negro”, although this does not have any negative connotations.

The African influence has left its mark. The most important cultural product of Argentina is the tango. The word is African and the music and dance are, like so many genres in America, the result of a mixture of African, European and indigenous styles.

Due to its low social origins, tango was despised by the Argentine elite and viewed as a vulgar phenomenon – until it took Paris by storm in the early 20th century and was thus legitimized.

Interestingly, tango in Argentina (like samba in Brazil) moved in the opposite direction to football. The music genre started at the bottom of society and moved upwards, while football started with the elite and moved downwards.

One of my friends is a black sociologist from Uruguay.

You would expect him to have a good sense of these things, and he has lived in Buenos Aires for years without having the slightest problem.

On the other hand, the mere presence of so many European immigrants in the southern part of South America was a distinctly racist project.

At that time, eugenic ideas were in vogue – the belief that some “races” were superior to others.

South American leaders tried to “improve” and “civilize” their countries by importing white labor.

The mere presence of so many Europeans in Argentina is therefore the result of racist thinking.

The idea of ​​racial hierarchy has never completely disappeared and is expressed in all its horror in the lyrics of the song with which some of the Argentine players tarnished their glory on Sunday.