Filed under: Other Sports
Just because Floyd Mayweather came out with an "apology" for his racist rant toward Manny Pacquiao doesn't mean the outrage is over. The National Federation of Filipino American Associations (NaFFAA), a non-profit organization that promotes the active participation of Filipino Americans in civic and national affairs, released a statement condemning Mayweather for his comments and called upon the boxing world and the NAACP to do the same:
"We are outraged by Mayweather's racially offensive remarks," Greg Macabenta, the NaFFAA's national chairman, said in a statement to ESPN. "This disgusting diatribe against Pacquiao is a racial slur against all Filipinos and Filipino Americans and an embarrassment not only to the boxing community, but to all Americans. Talking trash may be common between boxing rivals, but Mayweather's racially laced profanities brazenly crossed the line of decency and respectability. Pacquiao, on the other hand, has taken the high road and acted like the gentleman that he is.
"We call on National Boxing Association and state athletic commissions to censure Mayweather for behavior that is both abhorrent and demeaning to boxing fans and to the whole world of sports. We also call on the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People to reprimand the boxing star for insulting people of color. We are further asking all civil rights organizations to stand in solidarity with us in denouncing this racist and homophobic rant. Mayweather's apology is unacceptable and he must be made accountable for his damaging statements.
"At a time when immigrant communities are being viewed with increasing suspicion and mistrust, Mayweather's cruel, abusive and hurtful remarks can only stoke more hostility, derision and resentment against individuals who look foreign by virtue of their looks, their size or the sound of their names. Coming from a boxing celebrity with millions of fans around the world, Mayweather's shameless and reckless conduct unfairly paints an entire racial and ethnic group with a broad brush and seriously undermines America's core values of inclusivity and racial tolerance."
Mayweather's camp hasn't responded and will most likely remain quiet for the time being, but clearly Mayweather has gone too far and he will have to pay for his actions.