Jason Kidd Thinks Team Spain Got Off Easy

a little biased there, mr. kidd.

I dont see how you can only punish the players that are in the NBA, if it was a team/Spanish olympic association descision

Where in all this did people miss that it was done for an advertisment for Li Ning or what ever there called basketball appreal. They sponsor the Spain team and had produced that advertisment. A CHINESE company them selves directed the shoot! The blame should be on the appearal company which is chinese. The players did what anybody else would do for advertisment and sponsorship, aqnd that just ask how high. He’ll the whole american contingincy would have slanted there eyes while walking in the opening ceremonies if Ralh Lauren required is as part of the style need to set off his ensamble.

Man this world is so sensitive. Blacks, chinese, spanish, white, dumb polacks. I mean, so what?? Everybody knows Chinese people have slanted eyes. John Wayne would have never stood for this queerness.

Do not step up, we need Calderon!

i hate spain go USA jason kidd is exactly rite i agree with him

Thats kind of pompous and arrogant of Kidd to think that the US team would be treated any differently. He should be fined and/or suspended for saying the Euro team got off easy. Man Up Kidd

Justin’s post was hysterical. He’s like “so what if people point out blacks, whites, chinese…” then immediately goes racist and refers to the Polish people in the nicest way possible.

Chuck D’s take on John Wayne is similar to mine.

As for this incident, it needs to be thought about seriously. All I’ve seen so far is the ad and condemnation, but we have to understand why things are offensive, and why there exists a possibility of legitimate double standards. There is a history in the US of anti-Chinese racism, dating back basically to when Chinese immigrants came in as cheap labour at the turn of the last century (incidentally, this is also true in Canada, so this would apply to us too). Examples of this even sprang up in popular culture, which if viewed today would make most people uncomfortable.
I don’t know if this is true in Spain or not, but I have a feeling there isn’t the same history of it, otherwise someone on the team may have said something before the ad was created. If it does, I suspect it’s not as pervasive (if we were talking about anti-black racism, then it would be different, as there are contemporary problems with that in Spain).
I think the thing we have to consider is both history and current intentionality. The act of altering your features in such a way isn’t inherently offensive: I think the ad was trying to say look, we’re becoming Chinese. The reason we in North America understand it to be offensive is because when it’s been done here, it was done to harm people. It can be thought of in similar terms to the black experience in the US.
The N-word is offensive, not because of what it means (it means in itself almost nothing, having derived from either negro, which means black in a couple of languages, or neger, which is Dutch for black) but because the word was backed up with other insults as well as violence, its now highly offensive. Same with same can be said with painting your face brown to imitate someone from India or someone African or black (or Sri Lankan, etc.). It’s not the imitation that’s necessarily bad, its an imitation or caricature used to inflict pain at someone else’s expense. The whole blackface persona was about making black people look highly inferior for white people’s amusement, at a time when white people were beating up on black people. For that reason, its still a sore issue (though it can be done tastefully, like in Tropic Thunder). I do think that the movie white chicks would have been received negatively if roles had been reversed, but not because it was overly offensive, but because of the history.

The problem Kidd (and others) is making is that he is viewing it from an American context. I think that the total ignorance of the Spanish team to the issue, combined with the Chinese companies role in creating that ad should give critics pause, and cause them to examine the issue. The only problem is that issues like this are never dealt with intelligently but in a reactionary way, fuelled by know-nothings on television news that refuse to do any investigation into any issue, other than to report the outrage.

James is a smart man.

James is “THAT” guy.

they did get off waaay too easy… they’re frown men and had no idea that this would cause controversy?!?!?! cmon!!! lol. what kind of explanation is that?!?! As far as I know (and no offense) but Spaniards are in fact quite racist. Look at all the things that have happened in and out of the sports world.. and they always respond with a but I had no idea its was such a big deal!” like when the crowd painted their faces black to show support to a black soccer player or a coach being overheard calling one of his players a “black peace of sh!t” I mean this are the same people that killed off most of the native people in the Americas… and I guess if you would have told them back in 1543, that killing off all the native indians would cause a stir I’m sure they would have just replied… “really?! wow, we had no idea it was such a big deal!”

We need James back to do another piece for us again.

It seems like American people is more offended by the advertisement of the Spanish basketball team, than the 2.5 billion people of Asia.

As am I James. Well, as busy as I can be.

R3Z, or you comparing Americans to the Nazis because of the atrocities committed against Native Americans or because of our actions in the global arena. I’m just curious about that point.

Now that sounds like a sweet job. Reagrding ya’lls points: I agree with both sides of the coin and it is a very interesting topic when considering all the variables involved. My stance? If China was quick to forgive them, then it is time to move on.

I’ve worked here since I was 19 (8 years ago). I could have a job here if I wished to, but I prefer to slave away in university.

re: nba suspensions – the nba have no jurisdiction to suspend the spanish nba players, surely only the IOC and FIBA could do such a thing?

What applies in the USA does not necessarily apply to Spain in the way these kinds of issues are viewed. They are two different cultures with two different histories. Coming from a wife beater who got off rather lightly himself, he should be the last to be throwing stones.

about the whole racist aspect of it, i don’t think it was intentionally meant as racist – if the chinese players did a ’round-eye’ gesture that wouldn’t be seen as racist would it?

public urination?

Jason should stop worrying about the Spanish team and become more concerned with the fact that his legs might spontaneous combust at any moment he has to play defense.

Sanjeev, read the context. Chinese company asked them to pose like that. Where is the insidiousness there?

Hold up guys: there’s a lot of stupidity starting to spread rampant here. First off, Spain actually has serious racism problems in their country, and a lot of it are against asians americans. Secondly, it was not “the sponsors” idea that the Spanish do this. The sponsors said that Spain’s basketball team should all wink or something to that effect… Spain took it a step farther and did the Chinese eye thing. Sponsors found it funny, but it wasn’t their idea. Thirdly, did someone say David Stern has no power over Spanish NBA players? He can suspend anyone he wants from the NBA. As well he should.