Serena Williams

[Blitzgal]

Originally Posted by fluxquanta

Whenever I say I don't like Serena (online, anyway -- people IRL don't give a shit about tennis) people always call racism, which is pretty fucking stupid. Why can't a cunt just be a cunt, regardless of skin color?

Please note I'm not saying that you personally hold these feelings due to racism -- I don't know you so I don't know where they come from in your head. But the cultural stereotype of the "angry black person" is very real. Whereas Agassi and McEnroe were known as "bad boys," Williams gets treated very differently by the public for exhibiting the exact same behavior that they did. Is it because she's a woman? Is it because she's black?

This is not to say that she behaved in a professional manner. She did not. I'm only questioning why the public sees her as this demon woman but McEnroe and Agassi got the "boys will be boys" attitude instead.

I'm specifically talking about the public's reaction here. McEnroe was consistently fined for his behavior just as Williams has been. He never got anywhere near a $90K fine even though he also fought with umpires and even smashed a juice cart with his racquet but it looks like there were caps on the amount you could be fined back then.