Azeem Rafiq

[Toodles McGinty]

Karma is a Big Ol' B.i.t.c.h.

He's a racist POS.

He was targeted by racist Pieces OS.

One doesn't cancel the other out, they are all racist scum.

I'm still disgusted by what happened to him.

I'm just not particularly sorry that he was the target, now.

[MICK/GILLY]

Bad publicity is good publicity ( it sells the same ) PT Barnum..or maybe his career is set to run for years and he is giving free interviews to the worlds media as he has got enough money already, sell a good story or sell a good apology or sell both. Maybe I am wrong as I don’t know everything but that’s the feeling I get.

[Stuartli]

Rafiq has asked the Jewish community to accept his "humble apologies" for his previous racism with the claim that he is a better person today. Why then is he not prepared to accept the apologies of the cricketing community for their past racist banter, without broadcasting the whole sordid story via the media, unless it is for some financial gain? He is clearly the worst kind of hypocrite.

It is not for financial gain. If it was, rest assured that the media would very quickly establish if that was so.

But it's a warning that people who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones. You never know what might come back to haunt you.

[MICK/GILLY]

It’s the media that’s probably paying him for the story that’s in all the newspapers tomorrow, hey maybe I am wrong tho and he is doing it for nothing .

[Stuartli]

It’s the media that’s probably paying him for the story that’s in all the newspapers tomorrow, hey maybe I am wrong tho and he is doing it for nothing .

The media reports are just that. He would/will not be paid in any way (unless for an exclusive interview, which is unlikely to happen), as it's a public domain story; it will have originally been lifted from a general news stories pool by the media, including TV rolling news channels, as is the norm.

His appearance before the Parliamentary committee would also be done purely on an information basis, by answering questions put to him by MPs.

[donkey22]

Yorkshire CCC is definitely institutionally racist. Even those being racially abused are racially abusive.
The abhorrent thing Rafiq said and the awful racism he was subjected to should not impact each other, they happened independently, and should be judged independently,

[MICK/GILLY]

Yea I still think he will be selling his story to the media he is not doing this for nothing

https://news.sky.com/story/amp/azeem...-says-12464122

[Ceam]

Ten years ago?? Is the media that short of news?

Does it matter how long ago it was?


It's a little naive giving everyone your sod story about racism when it turns out you're a racist too.

[Desert Region]

The abhorrent thing Rafiq said and the awful racism he was subjected to should not impact each other, they happened independently, and should be judged independently,

You say that, yet within your post you've linked the two...

Yorkshire CCC is definitely institutionally racist. Even those being racially abused are racially abusive.

[donkey22]

You say that, yet within your post you've linked the two...

I didn’t feel I was being particularly judgemental with my first statement. Describing Yorkshire CC as institutionally racist is a reasonable comment to make when taken into context with the emerging stories.

As a victim of racial abuse he should have known better than becoming an abuser himself. I’m sorry if you feel like I was trying to excuse what he said? I most definitely wasn’t.
But what ever he did say, shouldn’t be used as an excuse to lessen the seriousness of the abuse that was levelled at him and other Asian players. Just as vigorously I would hope as into any investigation into what he’s said.

[MICK/GILLY]

Does it matter how long ago it was?


It's a little naive giving everyone you sod story about racism when it turns out you're a racist too.

It might matter yea, if he had raised awareness ten years ago he might have been viewed in a different light and his career may not have progressed as well, those days he probably had to watch what he said. In todays world at the moment it’s normal even fashionable to bring up stuff that happened ten years ago and treat it as if it happened yesterday, sometimes out of necessity or financial advantage sometimes out of political gain whether its racist abuse or an alleged slapped arse to slate the premier.
Has Rafiq finished with cricket now, if his friend was Scottish and not Jewish and he had said this Scottish chap is tight with his money and I bet he has left his wallet at home Scottish folk are all like that would the Scottish all come out complaining ?, I don’t think so it would be passed off as banter as it was probably meant but it will sell newspapers in the morning so paid for being abused paid for apology of abuse and a six figure settlement from the club not bad, there would have been many folk racially abused at the club but only one selling 2 stories and getting a settlement. Will he still play for the club?? Do we know or was his last run in the game running with the money .

[Desert Region]

I didn’t feel I was being particularly judgemental with my first statement. Describing Yorkshire CC as institutionally racist is a reasonable comment to make when taken into context with the emerging stories.

As a victim of racial abuse he should have known better than becoming an abuser himself. I’m sorry if you feel like I was trying to excuse what he said? I most definitely wasn’t.
But what ever he did say, shouldn’t be used as an excuse to lessen the seriousness of the abuse that was levelled at him and other Asian players. Just as vigorously I would hope as into any investigation into what he’s said.

I personally wouldn't posit a link between the racist abuse Azeem Rafiq received at Yorkshire CC and this notion of his subsequently "becoming" an abuser. I'd expect that the start of Azeem's racist beliefs and comments about 'Jews' pre-dated the racist comments and treatment he received at Yorkshire. Similarly, I'd expect the Yorkshire CC racists who abused Azeem and doubtless many others were racists before the influence of Yorkshire CC - although Yorkshire CC's racist culture could have made those racists more racist and/or more openly racist.

Looking in The Times at Azeem's text exchange, I see that it was not just Azeem who said anti-Semitic things:

[N.B. The "Be the first to like this" marketing blurb is part of the The Times image.]

The text exchange between Azeem Rafiq and Ateeq Javid in 2011



https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/a...ages-87snclgr5

[Little Londoner]

The strange thing about all this is the fact that so many people were quick to jump on his bandwagon and people were forced into resigning and being made out to be racist if I started a one man crusade against someone in the Muslim community would I be believed as wholeheartedly as his allegations were ?

Apparently TWO other Asian players were in the room one never heard any racist comments and the other only came out and backed him up after England had been knocked out of the recent World Cup obviously with something so serious his England place was much more important than the vile? comments he was supposedly subjected to. All sorts of people have been implicated by this one man crusade and had their names dragged through the mud and people take everything he says as Gospel yet lo and behold he himself has been posting racist comments.
How the damage has got this far on the word of one man with an Asian team mate who didn't hear any racist comments and another Asian team mate who thought his place in the England team was worth more than backing up the alleged racist remarks which I think speaks volumes. As far as I am concerned he should just apologise and disappear into the background before a lot more people are dragged into this witch hunt.

What a wonderful Country this is becoming when censorship only works one way and people are tried and condemned on one mans word.

[Hamble]

Genuine plea for explanation please?


I do not understand (wholly accept) why the name 'Kevin' is a racial slur particularly as I am bombarded by the Aldi Christmas Advert with a character called 'Kevin.'

[Desert Region]

Genuine plea for explanation please?


I do not understand (wholly accept) why the name 'Kevin' is a racial slur particularly as I am bombarded by the Aldi Christmas Advert with a character called 'Kevin.'

It was a code word.