Osei Sankofa - story about racism at City

[Taz]

1 hour ago, phantom said:

 

 @Riaz is the only person I know in this thread, to me he can be the only one who can really comment about how things can be negative in certain social circles and how it affects people. 

Many views on here are the usual people taking offence on behalf of someone else as usual. 

Don't get me wrong I absolutely don't condone this sort of behaviour but it also amazes me that this was his first experience of a situation like this? 

Banter around dressing rooms etc has always been over the line in regards to descency etc.

In this instance it sounds like this black City player played along with the "banter" thus making it seem acceptable. 

I do wonder though if the same story would be retold by others around at the time, or if there is exaggeration somewhere in the story due to what he was speaking about today and his role? 

Not a reply as such to the above but it made me surprised/ angry that this was going on at the club and seemingly nobody outside the dressing room knew about it. In those days it was very easy to speak to a number of the squad on a personal level, compared to other stories that were told at the time I'm amazed this didn't leak out at the time

I just hope in 10/15 years time we don't hear about problems in this day and age,

Like you say attitudes to racism HAVE improved massively in that time so lets hope it's not happened around our club for a longtime. 

That is exactly why it came as a bit of a shock when this was first raised, there were so many stories coming out of the club at that time, nobody had any idea that something like this had happened - bit like a bolt from the blue!

Not saying that Sankofa's account is wrong at all, but I agree with you @phantom, it would be interesting to see if others views of this were the same as his. 

[Cider red]

I know this was a culture in the club around that time. in the academy teams as well.

[Riaz]

The player it was directed at, was actively involved in the banter.

We should laugh at our differences. It’s the total opposite to racism. 

[marcofisher]

2 minutes ago, Riaz said:

The player it was directed at, was actively involved in the banter.

We should laugh at our differences. It’s the total opposite to racism. 

If he had encouraged them to come in wearing blackface instead, saying it would be funny as it would directed at him, would that be fine then?

[underhanded]

We always have a tendency to create dichotomies in everything in our lives. The media are terrible for it, so I think we are ingrained in thinking that way. 

If we admit it was just a bit of banter/a sign of the times/theres a lot more explicit racism going on etc... why does this mean we can't acknowledge that the behaviour of Bristol City players caused, lets fact it, a young black kid feel uncomfortable, and probably quite shit when moving away from home for the first time.

A story like this is one that should be shared, and no one should be crying for blood, just simply reflecting and developing our understanding of things.

And thanks to @CyderInACan for sharing that squad, I now know that City have had a player from the Central African Republic!

[Alan Dicks' Barmy Army]

13 hours ago, Cider red said:

I know this was a culture in the club around that time. in the academy teams as well.

So ONE person outside of the club heard about it at the time?

I was involved with the sponsorship of players around then, with the stories I heard from these players it would certainly hit front pages. But I one hundred percent never heard anything race related

11 hours ago, marcofisher said:

If he had encouraged them to come in wearing blackface instead, saying it would be funny as it would directed at him, would that be fine then?

He we go again, snowflake alert.

Getting offended on behalf of someone else that does not affect you. 

[marcofisher]

1 hour ago, Alan Dicks' Barmy Army said:

 

He we go again, snowflake alert.

Getting offended on behalf of someone else that does not affect you. 

I was merely asking a hypothetical question.

I am not offended on behalf of anyone, purely asking at what point you draw a line in it.

But congratulations on whacking out the snowflake insult and making yourself look like a condescending arse. 

[underhanded]

good ol' snowflake bingo

[OneTeamInBristol]

1 minute ago, underhanded said:

good ol' snowflake bingo

He's not wrong though

[poland_exile]

1 hour ago, Alan Dicks' Barmy Army said:

So ONE person outside of the club heard about it at the time?

I was involved with the sponsorship of players around then, with the stories I heard from these players it would certainly hit front pages. But I one hundred percent never heard anything race related

I'm curious as to people saying "this was the culture around the club at the time". I've clearly missed something. Preceding this we had many successful black players ranging from cult hero Wayner to Andy Cole via the likes of Junior, Leeeeee-roy, Goodridge, Goater, etc, etc, etc. I've never heard so much as a peep from them about ingrained racism behind the scenes. Did this suddenly therefore appear for a season or so whilst i wasn't looking or is this just a load of b***ks!? As you say, I'm sure if there was a racist culture at the club we most certainly would have heard about it earlier. 

[Ron W]

Maybe we didn’t have a culture around the club at the time, maybe we did, but this is a report from someone who was inside the dressing room at the time. At the very least, don’t they deserve some respect for their views?

Many of the replies in this thread are either telling Sankofa he must be wrong, or how he should have felt about it if it did happen.

[underhanded]

2 minutes ago, RonWalker said:

Maybe we didn’t have a culture around the club at the time, maybe we did, but this is a report from someone who was inside the dressing room at the time. At the very least, don’t they deserve some respect for their views?

Many of the replies in this thread are either telling Sankofa he must be wrong, or how he should have felt about it if it did happen.

To clarify mate, I agree with you - my reference to snowflake bingo is the way in which it used as some sort of blanket pejorative term at random, for people that don't agree with a particular way of thinking

[EmissionImpossible]

7 minutes ago, RonWalker said:

Maybe we didn’t have a culture around the club at the time, maybe we did, but this is a report from someone who was inside the dressing room at the time. At the very least, don’t they deserve some respect for their views?

Many of the replies in this thread are either telling Sankofa he must be wrong, or how he should have felt about it if it did happen.

Spot on

[phantom]

11 minutes ago, RonWalker said:

Maybe we didn’t have a culture around the club at the time, maybe we did, but this is a report from someone who was inside the dressing room at the time. At the very least, don’t they deserve some respect for their views?

Many of the replies in this thread are either telling Sankofa he must be wrong, or how he should have felt about it if it did happen.

Very valid point, but surely this story needs some context possibly and even the views of someone else around at these times

I would echo the above in that I heard many a "tale" in a bar from players back then, but I can't ever recall hearing anything racist.

If it was as open as led to believe I can't believe any player would not have said something before now

[Ron W]

7 minutes ago, phantom said:

Very valid point, but surely this story needs some context possibly and even the views of someone else around at these times

I would echo the above in that I heard many a "tale" in a bar from players back then, but I can't ever recall hearing anything racist.

If it was as open as led to believe I can't believe any player would not have said something before now

You’d think so but I don’t think it’s that simple. Not to equate them to this story but think of such of the actually much more serious scandals around in football, Barry Bannan etc., and you could ask the same questions as to why nothing was said. It’s easy for us to look on dumbfounded from the outside.

[Riaz]

Clearly the banter wasnt malicious - because it was never directed at him - only the black player who encouraged it.

This really is a non story.

[cidercity1987]

7 minutes ago, RonWalker said:

You’d think so but I don’t think it’s that simple. Not to equate them to this story but think of such of the actually much more serious scandals around in football, Barry Bannan etc., and you could ask the same questions as to why nothing was said. It’s easy for us to look on dumbfounded from the outside.

I know you're a journalist so what's the goss on Sheff Wed midfielder that most City fans what us to sign, Barry Bannan? 

Or rather you mean Barry Bennell.

[Bris Red]

13 minutes ago, Riaz said:

Clearly the banter wasnt malicious - because it was never directed at him - only the black player who encouraged it.

This really is a non story.

I have to agree riaz. I am mixed myself and have to admitt that if another mixed or black person actively encourages racial banter and gives as good as he gets then I wouldn’t take offence if it didn’t directly involve me. Obviously if you then get dragged into it against your own will its a bit of a different story but this black player wasn’t involved so it is as riaz has said a complete non-story... attitudes were slightly different 15 odd years ago anyway, I’ve 100% seen a big change between now and then.. couldn’t imagine this would even be entertained in our dressing room now..

[Ron W]

17 minutes ago, cidercity1987 said:

I know you're a journalist so what's the goss on Sheff Wed midfielder that most City fans what us to sign, Barry Bannan? 

Or rather you mean Barry Bennell.

You’re right. Always important to get names right in journalism.

[phantom]

54 minutes ago, cidercity1987 said:

I know you're a journalist so what's the goss on Sheff Wed midfielder that most City fans what us to sign, Barry Bannan? 

Or rather you mean Barry Bennell.

 

36 minutes ago, RonWalker said:

You’re right. Always important to get names right in journalism.

You don't work for the Official Site do you @RonWalker ? 

[J-mat]

On 04/12/2019 at 14:34, ZiderEyed said:

Went to a talk today by Osei Sankofa, currently education lead for Kick it Out, and ex-City player (8 games circa 2005).

He told a story about his experience of racism at Bristol City as a young lad moving to an entirely new City, and how the culture of the dressing room meant it was acceptable. He said that the kitman at the time would bring a load of fruit, sweets, and energy drinks with him and would leave them in the dressing room for the players to get at before the game. All the banter in the dressing room at the time revolved around "a 6'3"-6'4" black guy" (Presumably either Bas Savage or Enoch Showunmi?), who would lead everything, give it out to everyone and literally nothing was off limits - private lives, personal identity, whatever. Apparently, at virtually every game senior pros would leave bunches of bananas for this black player and make casual 'monkey' jokes towards him.

Everybody in the dressing room would fall about laughing every time it happened, but according to Mr Sankofa, as a 20 year old lad moving away from home for the first time it really shook him up that everyone could think something like that was acceptable. He said he's known players see similar and it really damaged them. 

Just thought it was interesting. 

Plenty of stories about Buster and Liam To senior around that time too. 

[Cider red]

19 hours ago, Alan Dicks' Barmy Army said:

So ONE person outside of the club heard about it at the time?

I was involved with the sponsorship of players around then, with the stories I heard from these players it would certainly hit front pages. But I one hundred percent never heard anything race related

He we go again, snowflake alert.

Getting offended on behalf of someone else that does not affect you. 

One person, ex youth/first team player who I knew personally at the time, had exactly the experience described , and was rightly royally pissed.