July 18, 2018

"Daily Show host Trevor Noah is accused of racism after joking that 'Africa won the World Cup' because most of the France team players are black."

The Daily Mail reports (with a clip showing the comic riff: "Africa won the World Cup. I get it, they have to say it's the French team. But look at those guys. You don't get that tan by hanging out in the south of France, my friends").
French former reality TV star Martin Medus... said: 'You're a f****** racist. Those people are French and p***** to always be reminded of their background. They fight hard to tell people they are proud French people and yet you disrespect them calling them African. Are the Lakers an African team?'

Elise Frank added: 'So basically, Trevor, all the African-Americans in the US are just Africans, right? Know that as a french of Algerian, German and Spanish descent, I find it insulting. We are all french, we are one people. Ask the players,they'll tell you they're proud frenchmen!'

One man said: 'This is so racist to think that because they are black they are not French. They claimed their love of France. You denied them the right to be French? Is this what you want to deliver to all afro americans also? 98% of the players were born in France. Only two players were born in Africa, but they came at the age of two. So they've grown up in France.'

112 comments:

Expat(ish) said...

Dem torpedoes.

-XC

PS - That's it, I'm so pleased with that I'm just going to go home and read some Thurber and nap for the rest of the day.

David Begley said...

In Tom Wolfe's "I am Charlotte Simmons" he had many funny observations on race and college basketball. Basically, coaches would favor the black player if a black and white player looked to be about even on the court.

Larry J said...

They're not going to like living under their own rules.

chuck said...

France 1, Africa 0.

CJinPA said...

Race and Sports: Touching the third rail.

One of the most politically correct, high-profile shows makes an obvious joke and is punished by the grievance commandos they help to inspire.

Is there a upended version of the Althouse Rule for this? "You can note differences in athletic ability among races as long as it doesn't suggest any superior traits among black players."

Then again, I guess the complaints are, at least on the surface, about immigration and citizenship.

Henry said...

You forgot the "Era of that's not funny" tag.

darrenoia said...

It never gets old seeing them hoisted by their own petard. Imagine Noah's response if Ben Shapiro or Jonah Goldberg had argued that some American was actually African and not American.

David Begley said...

Chapter 2. The Whole Black Player Thing.

MikeR said...

He's real lucky that he's black.

Gunner said...

Has Noah already bent over in submission?

Fernandinande said...

Simpsons: "This match will determine which country is the greatest in the world, Mexico or Portugal!"


Sabrina Siddiqui thinks there is some connection between enriched culture, whatever that means, and kicking a ball around on a lawn:

"Sixteen of the 23 players on France’s team come from families that recently immigrated to the country, most of them from Africa. Seven players are Muslim. A testament to how immigrants enrich a country’s culture."

gspencer said...

Another showcase event for Liberal Hypocrisy.

Sal said...

I did notice that the black players were singing France's national anthem before the game. Some stuff stands out.

rehajm said...

Knowing the French their outrage is about French patriotism and not about race. It will give both Noah and his accusers wiggle room to keep Noah fighting on the leftie team.

rehajm said...

Lefties will have plenty of room under the salary cap after putting Musk and Noah on waivers this week.

Anonymous said...

"Daily Show host Trevor Noah is accused of racism..."

Pass the popcorn.

Mike (MJB Wolf) said...

Why are Progressives on TV such ugly racists? Because Progressivism is built on principles like Darwinism, white supremacy, rejection of the Declaration of Independence, rejection of God, and “culling the weak and infirm” in order to strengthen and quicken the natural selection process. That’s why Margaret Sanger is one of the founding saints of Progressivism.

Char Char Binks, Esq. said...

Noah is right.

Sprezzatura said...

Not only are the French unused to homegrown negative POVs re recently migrated black families, aka racism. They also don't have any sexism re gals and girls.

Etienne said...

American Football is mostly African.

Gunner said...

Shouldn't the entire audience who laughed at the joke be harassed too?

Known Unknown said...

"He's real lucky that he's black."

Half black.

Known Unknown said...

The French are touchy fucks, aren't they?

Known Unknown said...

And finally: Africa isn't a country, but thanks for playing, Trev.

madAsHell said...

Is "The Last Race Card to be Played?" a book by Francis Fukuyama, or a country western song?

DanTheMan said...

Funny he never made that comment about the NBA or the NFL.
I wonder why?

MAJMike said...

So I guess the National Basketball Association should be renamed the African Basketball Association?

prairie wind said...

I miss the days when we could laugh--or not--at that joke and life went on. I miss the days when a racist could also be a good guy who just hasn't experienced enough about life and people to abandon his/her racism.

Does everything have to be a big deal?

rhhardin said...

New offenses are needed. The public is tiring of these.

Sebastian said...

"American Football is mostly African."

Maybe the players will stand for the African flag.

Big Mike said...

So was Noah saying that black professional athletes need to be shipped back to Africa?

rhhardin said...

I'm reminded of Wheeler Walker Jr's song title, Which One of You Queers Gonna Suck My Dick. Suitable line on entering a Texas bar.

There's a new offense to try.

Birches said...

I sense a theme today on the blog....

buwaya said...

A clash between American and European forms of Political Correctness.
It all has to do with political dynamics in different places.

The American form insists on superiority of ethnic distinction, and denigrates the national identity.

The Europeans, for now, are sensitive about being seen as alien.

robother said...

So, for Trevor, the only tough question when deciding which African football (or basketball) team to root for is whether a team is mostly Hutu or Tutsi.

rhhardin said...

Cultural lesson: what Europe calls basketball, we call soccer.

Fernandinande said...

"Pelosi suffers face spasm"

How can they tell?

"Maybe the players will stand for the African flag."

I bet most of them couldn't recognize the African flag if it were waved in the faces and don't know any African words except maybe "ubuntu".

Carol said...

"a good guy who just hasn't experienced enough about life and people to abandon his/her racism."

Or has experienced too much - ?

buwaya said...

Europe is behind the curve of PC.
This is not the same as political attitudes in terms of traditional socialism-capitalism.

Unless I am getting obsolete, the educational systems there still insist on teaching the European literary and historical canon more or less as its always been since the beginning of mass education, and this aspect of culture was never politically controversial.

Very much unlike US education, which has undergone a politically loaded nihilistic revolution over the past three decades. Trevor Noah (not American himself) relies on American comedy writers.

etbass said...

"You can note differences in athletic ability among races as long as it doesn't suggest any superior traits among black players."

You can note differences in academic ability among races as long as it doesn't suggest any inferior traits among black students."

Nonapod said...

Evidently the most important and defining aspect of a person is their genetics, their ancestry. Or at least in the world of identity politics it is. Your nationality, your upbringing, and all your personal experiences are all subordinate to your ancestry. And further, America itself isn't really significant since there's no common ancestry.

I'm Full of Soup said...

Libruls never fail to see race, color and ethnicity yet rarely notice much else.

Inga...Allie Oop said...

And Muslims born in France are French too. I hope we don’t hear all that claptrap about the loss of the French culture from you rightists either.

Ralph L said...

I believe some of the players are caucasian Africans, so I don't see why it's a racial joke. Some people assumed that's what he meant.

narayanan said...

https://top.quora.com/Why-does-France-have-more-African-origin-players-in-their-national-soccer-team-than-any-other-European-nation

"... French laws forbid ethnic statistics (to avoid discrimination)"

In US it is mandatory!!!

exiledonmainstreet, green-eyed devil said...

Inga said...

And Muslims born in France are French too."

My dear, dumb Mrs. Magoo:

They are French if they assimilate. They don't assimilate these days. The Muslims who emigrated to France in the 1960's and 1970's often assimilated. Their children and grandchildren - born in France - do not.

You have never taken a train through a predominately Muslim suburb of Paris. I have. Those are places the French police will no longer venture.

MayBee said...

Prairie Wind - exactly Why does everything have to be a thing?

The Drill SGT said...

And Muslims born in France are French too. I hope we don’t hear all that claptrap about the loss of the French culture from you rightists either.

Nationality
Culture
Assimiliation

The situation is complicated. Some portion, perhaps large, of those Frenchmen with African roots are Christian, fleeing Muslim problems in Africa. I suspect most want to assimilate.

Muslims in France, seem more like colonists. Keeping their own culture and resisting assimilation.

Infinite Monkeys said...

Don't people understand he was trying to make fun of the white people who cheered for their team? White people! He should stick to making jokes about Trump so his viewers don't get confused.

Kevin said...

America is a Constitutional Republic. There are many who’ve been here for generations who are currently unwilling to assimilate.

I'm Full of Soup said...

The outrage du moment....wait five minutes or so and there will be another coming along.

traditionalguy said...

If the new Soviet/American War doesn't catch on, there is always the color of skin tone to divide the world into 50 some Warring teams.

And the pics of Putin standing next to Trump can be a big message. They are very similar in appearance, both being of Scandinavian Viking descent. Which brings us back to Hans Christian Heg whose statue ignited the Wisconsin Riots.

exiledonmainstreet, green-eyed devil said...

Noah is a swarmy, snotty lefty. It's very entertaining to see the SJW knives turn on him.

Kevin said...

Apparently Noah forgot blackness isn’t a shield from criticism in France.

Bad Lieutenant said...

I work at a French bank. We have all kinds here. Including a girl of Persian origin who may have convinced me that instead of Ivanka Trump being the most beautiful woman in New York, she may only be the most beautiful blonde. I wouldn't dare tell her that she's not French. She might hurt me. (I would let her)

IMO the whole idea of professional comedy is suspect. Can anything so scripted and mass manufactured, really be funny? Cause what passes for funny these days, isn't. Wit is for conversation.

Drago said...

Inga: "And Muslims born in France are French too."

LOL

The muslims in France by and large do not want to assimilate. They want to establish sharia law and create essentially an Algeria North.

But that's cool, because they hate Israel too, just like the left.

Leland said...

Here we see the inherent racism of identity politics.


When you identify people as different, which you do by characterizing certain traits from skin color to mannerism; you are the one stereotyping them. After that, racism is usually just a matter of suggesting one trait superior to another. However, I think many are at least equally offended by a racism that suggests a particular trait means you have to behave to the stereotype assigned to you by the person characterizing the trait. In this case, Trevor Noah demanding black people accept that they are Africans, and not any other culture they may wish to claim.

Most people around the world recognized the French team by the jerseys they wore and the anthem they sang, not by the color of their skin.

James Pawlak said...

VERITAS NON GRATIAM TYRANNI

My name goes here. said...

Inga:
"And Muslims born in France are French too. I hope we don’t hear all that claptrap about the loss of the French culture from you rightists either."

Inga, agreed, that those born in France are French (because I assume they have birthright citizenship), but I would like a point of clarification. Here's a hypothetical question, if they convert the Notre-Dame to a Mosque, are those rightists allowed to complain about the loss of French Culture then?

If they surround the Eiffel Tower with a Trump like wall to verify everyone that approaches the Tower is not a anti-assimilationist wanting to bomb/demolish the Tower with guards brandishing automatic weapons, are those rightists allowed to complain about the loss of French Culture then?

Thanks!

Fernandinande said...

Is Saudi Arabia in or near Africa? If so, this is sexist AND racist:

"A Dozen Camels Disqualified From Saudi Beauty Pageant Over Botox Injections"

stevew said...

Kudos to Noah for moving the OUTRAGE® from Treason to Racism! With a splash of xenophobia thrown in for good measure.

-sw

Etienne said...

The loss of French culture occurred during Napoleons time, when he forced everyone to communicate in French.

bagoh20 said...

For lefties, racism is everything, but you can't really talk about it openly.
Same thing with the differences between women and men. Gender is very very important, but you can only address it in limited ways, such as women's differences are always superior, and gender confusion is a good thing, and the more confused we all are, the better.

bagoh20 said...

It seem the only real overriding principles are that everything is offensive, and the status quo is always wrong.


Achilles said...

Inga said...
And Muslims born in France are French too. I hope we don’t hear all that claptrap about the loss of the French culture from you rightists either.

Inga and the Muslims that want to destroy the countries they immigrate to are on the same side.

Enemies of freedom.

The Muslims that want to assimilate are on the other side.

TrespassersW said...

Shorter headline but just as accurate: "Daily Show host Trevor Noah is foolish."

Trumpit said...

I don't care about this story that is being used by racist Trumptards to push their hateful, pro-rich agenda. What we are about is defeating the Rethuglican party and Trump once and for all. In addition, the Democratic party has to be made over for being in bed with corporations, lawyers, developers, hedge fund devils, medical doctors, etc. Environmental-protection, pro-people, pro-animal parties will take over from their smoldering ashes. I vomit every time I read the same idiotic, right-wing trolls comment on every post. They and Trump are deranged. I pray they will soon succumb to cancer caused by pollutants, toxins in the food, pesticides, etc. They supported bought-and-paid-for-by-big-oil Scott Pruitt to wreck the EPA, and contaminate every steam; chop down every remaining forest; open protected lands to despoliation. He bit the dust by his own greed, and so must all the Trumptards. They should die in a flood caused by global warming. Send them all back to African were we ALL came from originally - to remind them of that fact. They need to take a course in Swahili before their boat leaves for Kenya.

jaydub said...

This brings to mind something an SEC basketball coach (C.M Newton at Alabama?) said when the SEC first allowed black players into the league. He was asked by a reporter how many black players he would put in the game at the same time and replied "two at home, three on the road, and five when we're behind." Don't know why it brings it to mind, it just does. But it's still funny after all these years.

n.n said...

African-French or some other class of diversity.

the educational systems there still insist on teaching the European literary and historical canon

Europeans' problem is that immigration exceeds the rate of assimilation and integration. Americans' problem is that immigration replaces and marginalizes Americans after Planned Parenthood. A problem for everyone is that immigration reform is a cover-up of externalities (e.g. social justice adventures), avoidance of emigration reform, and persistent local disruptions and decay.

Trumpit said...

@n.n, Planned Parenthood will be there for you to terminate your pregnancy should you get pregnant. You've proven yourself to be a bad mother. They do good works especially for poor women.

Martin said...

The fundamental racism of the Left is embodied in Trevor Noah. It's actually very Nazi--your racial blood is all that matters. You cannot become anything different from your racial destiny. Julius Streicher and Alfred Rosenberg would nod approval.

Interesting that many liberals will let you self-define what sex you are, where sex differences are obvious and real, but won't let you define your nationality or racial identity, nationality being largely under your conscious control and race in large part socially constructed (i.e., what makes differences in levels of melatonin so important that some people want to categorize the whole human race based on it?).

I don't know how long this denial of reality can continue without collapsing in on itself--history suggests it can be a long time.

Robert Catesby said...

Do you remember when we "judged people by the content of their character and not by the color of their skin?" Good times.

n.n said...

Trumpit:

Planned Parenthood et al operates abortion chambers to aid and abet women to terminate wholly innocent human lives that are deemed unworthy (e.g. selective-child) of life for secular, trivial causes. They operate clinics for profit to salvage their remains (i.e. recycled-child). As an advocate, you are an accessory to this unprecedented (i.e. normalization) violation of human rights again, and again, and again.

Jay Vogt said...

There's not enough fucking valium on the whole planet to even put a dent in how messed up we are about race.

robother said...

Trumpit: "I vomit every time I read the same idiotic, right-wing trolls comment on every post."

Come on people. Lets do our best to help Trumpit reach his/her/its ideal body mass index.

n.n said...

Noah is a bigot (i.e. sanctimonious hypocrite).

Do you remember when we "judged people by the content of their character and not by the color of their skin?"

Remember it. Celebrate it. But the bigots place color, sex, gender diversity before individual diversity. The doctrine of "color" diversity is derivative of Pro-Choice that reduces human life to colorful clumps of cells that can by redistributed, recycled, replaced at will. Pro-Choice is a transhuman religious/moral philosophy justified by the Twilight (a.k.a. penumbra) faith.

TRISTRAM said...

There's not enough fucking valium on the whole planet to even put a dent in how messed up we are about race.



Valium seems like an inappropriate treatment. Lithium? Other anti-psychotic? Those would be more apropos.

exhelodrvr1 said...

He's safe from criticism, though, because he's African. Like President Obama, right?

n.n said...

Nazis (and Jew privilege), Hutus hacking Tutsis, Mandela faction lynching competing black factions, Mao's progressive leap, Stalin's purges, Progressive liberals' diversity, selective-child, White privilege, catastrophic anthropogenic immigration reform (i.e. anti-nativism), etc.

Jay Vogt said...

. . . Kristian Holvoet said...Valium seems like an inappropriate treatment. Lithium? Other anti-psychotic? Those would be more apropos.

Both

President-Mom-Jeans said...

Maybe Noah could celebrate his heritage with one of those Mandela tire necklaces that used to be all the rage.

stever said...

He makes fun of Trump so he's given a pass.

Leon said...

"yet you disrespect them calling them African"

Now that's racist. As if being African was some horrible thing.

Howard said...

Trevor Noah is anti-funny. Unwatchable.

mtrobertslaw said...

For posterity's sake, we must be grateful that somebody recorded Trumpit's oration on politics. Unfortunately, after this spellbinding speech, he veered off onto his favorite subject: the little green transsexuals from Mars who live in his bathtub.

Bilwick said...

Racism: like anti-Semitism and homophobia, acceptable only from the Left.

gerry said...

Are we allowed to refer to these French people as black French people? Or do we have to call them French African-Americans? I am happy to call them simply French people. But how can Democrats refer to these French people unless Democrats have an identity-politics term for them?

Balfegor said...

Re: Drago:

The muslims in France by and large do not want to assimilate.

I think it varies. There are certainly some Muslims in France who despise the French Republic and have no interest in assimilating to French culture. But that's certainly not all French Muslims -- there's plenty who are fine with wine and cheese, and women smoking cigarettes in public and the usual French stuff. Maybe not the lardons, though -- I think most people who identify as "Muslim" are pretty strict about that.

becauseIdbefired said...

Will someone please write the rules down?

My head is swimming. Are these not African-Frenchpeople?

Intersectionality: what a mind-fuck.

exhelodrvr1 said...

Frafricench

Drago said...

Balfegor: "But that's certainly not all French Muslims"

I think I was quite clear that its not "all French Muslims"

Hagar said...

"Black" or "African-American" in America generally refers to Negroes descended from Sub-Saharan peoples.
"Black" European soccer players will generally be North Africans of more or less Berber heritage.

Known Unknown said...

"So I guess the National Basketball Association should be renamed the African Basketball Association?"

I did have a somewhat racist thought of referring to African-Americans as "Basketball-Americans"

Oso Negro said...

@gerry - Try the term "Fregroes"

Balfegor said...

Re: Drago:


I think I was quite clear that its not "all French Muslims"


Oh to be sure. But I don't think that "by and large" is accurate either. Obviously I don't meet the unassimilated immigrants and their children out in the banlieus, but my subjective impression is that the Muslims who are content to let France be France are a majority. Only 30% of French Muslims reject secular laws. I mean, that's actually shockingly high, but it's far from "by and large."

That said, I suppose there are degrees of assimilation. I accept the primacy of American laws, and I work professionally under a Western name, wearing ordinary professional dress, but I'm not particularly assimilated to American values or culture, and am not making any particular efforts to do so other than as necessary for work. Perhaps Muslims who are like me -- assimilated in public, unassimilated in private -- count as "unassimilated" for these purposes.

Fernandinande said...

Are these not African-Frenchpeople?

If French African Americans are not Africans, we should just call them "French Americans" to avoid any confusion.

PM said...

Afrench?

exiledonmainstreet, green-eyed devil said...

gerry said...
Are we allowed to refer to these French people as black French people? Or do we have to call them French African-Americans? "

During the London Olympics, I actually heard a broadcast refer to a black British athlete as a "British African American."

n.n said...

a black British athlete as a "British African American

Diverse or perhaps unidentified. Half-breed with implied diversity: black, brown, yellow, white?

FleetUSA said...

And they proudly sang the French national anthem at each match unlike some NFL spoiled s***s

Rosalyn C. said...

If you are old enough you remember the different polite words we have used: colored people, Negroes, African Americans, people of color, blacks. Saying a French guy is black is now a bad word, Noah has been schooled. That in itself is funny.

Now the word Negro, meaning black in Spanish, is considered derogatory, although it didn't used to be. The word black in English, still maybe OK; black in Spanish, definitely not OK. In this amusing video the guy talks about how white liberals have gotten blacks programmed to get upset about certain words. "People are mad about The Spanish Word For 'Black' After Woman Loses Dog"

FIDO said...

So Noah considers every black man an African, one assumes, including himself, instead of an American.

Tres Surpris

Dude1394 said...

Well, it IS racist and bigoted.

JaimeRoberto said...

On the one hand, it's a joke. Lighten up, people. On the other hand, I kind of enjoy seeing Noah hoisted on his own retard.

Tina Trent said...

What goes around comes around . . . then it bites you in the ass.

Tina Trent said...

What goes around comes around . . . then it bites you in the ass.

Bill said...

A friend of mine loves him. His success is a mystery to me.

rcocean said...

Noah Joke?

No. I need my comedy writers.

Mark said...

Ann, he had a rebuttal on last night's show that I found of interest (it made some good points)

What strikes me is that the same people here decrying how immigration is ruining Europe (people have claimed police no-go areas around P daris) are mocking Noah.

Funny how they ignored their comments about Muslim immigrants when hailing these Fremchmen.

Bad Lieutenant said...

What strikes me is that the same people here decrying how immigration is ruining Europe (people have claimed police no-go areas around P daris) are mocking Noah.

Funny how they ignored their comments about Muslim immigrants when hailing these Fremchmen.


As usual with your whining about hypocrisy, you're doing the same thing in reverse. You support the Muslim immigrants and you support Trevor Noah insulting them. Funny how that works.

mikee said...

Mark, are you admitting to watching Trevor Noah more than once? Wow.

Rich Rostrom said...

"France's electrifying 4-2 World Cup win over Croatia represents a victory for Africa..." wrote "the Barbara Jordan Chair in Ethics and Political Values" at the University of Texas, for CNN.

Incidentally, the Swiss national team includes seven players born to immigrant parents, four of them from ex-Yugoslavia, and three childhood immigrants from ex-Yugoslavia.

So it's not just the Africans (though there are also seven "Africans" on the team, two of them Swiss-born). White non-Swiss immigrants are disproportionately represented as well.

It's not as though Swiss can't play - seven of the eight "ethnic Swiss" on the team play for top division teams (Bundesliga, Serie A, Premier League).