If the Williams' sisters were white, would dementieva's comments been tolerated ?

Question

If the Williams' sisters were white, would dementieva's comments been tolerated ?

Answer 1

I think she's going to be in big trouble after the tournament.

Answer 2

why what did she say ?

Answer 3

If you are making reference to her "family decision" comment, then race has got nothing to do with it in any sense.

The remark was very stupid, and she has previous for it as well.  Her attempts to backtrack on the remark are not good enough.  She made a similar comment in 2001 when Venus beat her in a tournament saying that Richard Williams would decide the result between the sisters.

Insane comments, that just scream sore loser.

Answer 4

One of the sisters is build like a man Lol

she said the final will be fixed between the to sisters

Answer 5

not everything is about race.

Answer 6

Very vague question

Answer 7

It was totally put out of context

Answer 8

no one can touch them (williams sisters)theyre just simply the best on and off the court-and well above any comment made by a loser.

Answer 9

if you are referring to the assumption that she was hinting that the family decided who would win the match beforehand then read this article....

http://www.tcpalm.com/news/2008/jul/03/a...

Answer 10

I think it got lost in translation but it was dealt with by Venus very well.  The statement was and I quote, " The winner of the Williams final match will be a family affair".  the media took it to mean that the family will decide who the winner should be.  I honestly do not believe that Dementieva meant that.  She is Russian and doesn't get caught up in politics so I know the media wants to make an issue out of it.  She had to come out and try to clear the air but the damage was already done.  She said the same thing five years ago and they even brought that up again.  The media shows what they want to show and try to get viewership by creating havoc.

Answer 11

Honestly, I don't even know how you've managed to bring race into this. The Williams sisters are incredibly well respected for their talent, and would be irrespective of the colour of their skin. Also, Venus's comments after she heard what Demetieva said showed just how little tolerance there was for her words.

As an aside, Dementieva can't honestly expect us to believe that she didn't mean EXACTLY what she said. Hiding behind English as a second language is just a poor attempt at backtracking.

Answer 12

Venus handled the situation in a very classy manner. It really comes down to journalists not doing their job properly, and frankly, I'm getting used to that. The reporters should have asked her to clarify her comments, not leave it up to other reporters, the public or the Williamses to interpret what she meant. The media loves to stir up s*@t.

Answer 13

well i do not think demeteva really said anything wrong..... she does not seem like the type of player to stir the pot in negativity or attract bad publicity!

because she speaks broken english things come out wrong... i think she meant the final will be decieded amongs't the willam sisters...

poor demeteva... i really do not think she is a trouble maker.. journalists just trying to create drama

Answer 14

What has colour got to do with it? I read the article and didn't see mention of race.

Answer 15

I'm so tired of this stuff!

Answer 16

I am not sure what she said, but if it is regarding the "match fixing" thing, then this theory has been around for years and years (since the two sisters began playing on the tour)

I actually think that in the early days, they did decide who was going to win prior to the match but now, I think it is definitely NOT the case. Their tennis careers were masterfully orchestrated by there dad (when they were young) but now they have grown up and taken charge, the best player on the day will win (as in any contest).

If this was the comment referred to in the Q, what has their skin colour got to do with anything??

Answer 17

I don't believe dementieva's comment had anything to do with race she just meant it was something to do with the family she wasn't being racist or judgemental. The press are making a big deal out of it because they need a story.

Answer 18

what the h**l did she say?tell me

Answer 19

More info would have been good here to help answer the question

Answer 20

that question was misinterpreted by elena and was taken out of context by some of the media. because if you read the entire answer she lamented them;she was very complimentary....i just think something was lost in translation and she used the wrong word. in other words the final result will be between the two sisters.

and why does everything regarding the williams sisters equate to a race issue? what the h**l does that have to do with what was said. she was talking about the family and they as siblings....she said nothing of them being black. egads.

actually one reporter,after it was mentioned initially,did immediately try to clarify her statements during venus' press conference but venus just said,i don't want to talk about it anymore. so venus never got to hear some of the other quotes from that same answer. so....

i would hate though for venus to just go by that and not get the whole story because elena deserves to be given the benefit of the doubt since quite obviously was just misused wording from somebody whose first and most used language is not english.

here is what she said-

'ELENA DEMENTIEVA: I mean, if they're going to play against each other, I mean, I don't know what to say. I mean, I cannot imagine myself playing against someone from my family. It's really hard. For sure it's going to be a family decision.'

now that does sound as mean and horrible as people are making it out to be.

you can read the rest of the interview that entails this question and you can see for yourselves

http://www.wimbledon.org/en_GB/news/inte...