Sumit Nagal said that sportspersons, with the kind of following they command on several platforms, should be more vocal about these topics.
Indian Tennis player Sumit Nagal. (Photo: IANS)
Sportspersons should be vocal about issues related to all types of racism, according to India’s top ranked men’s singles tennis player Sumit Nagal. Nagal said that he himself has experienced racism all the time whenever he travelled abroad and in Germany, where he trains.
“I understand from my experience how people feel about it because I have been there,” he wrote in a column for Hindustan Times where he expressed his thoughts on the murder of George Floyd and the protests it has sparked accross USA.
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“I have often been asked different things and singled out in a group merely because I’m darker. I have been questioned more every time I get out of the plane in a few countries because of my colour. These things have happened to me frequently. I’m very, very sure I will be picked again and again—because I know this is seen as normal.”
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Nagal said that sportspersons, with the kind of following they command on several platforms, should be more vocal about these topics.
“Sportspersons must be more vocal about such issues. They are celebrities in their countries where people follow them. It will be really sad if they think talking about racism isn’t a good thing. I really hope people speak up because it just isn’t right. I’m not talking about any particular country, I’m talking about racism in the whole world. It’s not only about black or white; it’s about every type of racism,” he said.
A number of Indian celebrities have posted their tributes to Floyd and used hashtags like “Black Lives Matter.” This has led to criticism online for their failure to talk about caste and religion based injustices in India.
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