Untitled
by John Lucas / ABC News, July 9, 2006
Photograph
Although this is not an exact replica of the images included on pages 122-128 of Citizen, this is the scene it illustrates. The images show an Algerian soccer player, Zinedine Zidane, who played for France, deliberately turning around to head-butt an Italian player. This altercation happened in response to the Italian making some derogatory statements regarding the Algerian’s race. To make matters worse, this sequence of events did not occur in an ordinary game. In fact, this unfolded in front of the eyes of over seven hundred and fifty-one million people. As a result of his actions, he was given a red card. Soon after Zidane’ ejection, his team lost. This incident is viewed by many as the one of the most controversial World Cup altercations in recent history.
All things considered, there are still a few questions that arise:
1. International Football players are known to trash-talk, often taunting and even demoralizing opponents. What made Materazzi’s insult so provocative that Zidane could no longer control himself?
2. Although the punishment for Zidane’s actions are known, the consequences for Materazzi’s racial insults are not. Was Materazzi ever fined or punished?
3. Was this image included in Rankine’s work to serve as a message that there is a point when trash-talking amongst players comes to far? If so, would racial concerns be the only subject that crosses the line, or are there others?
The images depicting the scene above were placed directly in the midst of Rankine’s poem describing the World Cup. Additionally, this particular visual element was placed in chapter VI, where Rankine and her husband, John Lucas, collaborated to produce “Situation” videos. (See the first link provided below to watch “Situation 1”). One of the emphases of these videos is racism on the international level. This particular visual element serves as a contemporary example of how racism significantly affects life, even on an international level. The placement of the images helps to illuminate the fact that racial issues are not just a problem in the inner-city, but even in situations where practically the whole world is watching.
Question for Claudia Rankine:
1. Unlike most all other visual elements that you included in your work, these images required seven pages to fully encompass the entire unfolding of events. What was it that inspired you to portray this event in slow-motion?
Image note: The source of the image (above and in the book) is ABC News. They have a collection of photo galleries, slideshows, and picture stories on their website. They usually cover the biggest stories in the world. Their photo galleries cover breaking news, sports, entertainment, weather, and more.
Research from the following websites, follow the links below for more information:
Video of Zinedine Zidane head-butting Marco Materazzi
Statue portraying Zinedine Zidane head-butting Marco Materazzi
John Lucas photography (See “Contributor’s Notes: John Lucas”)
~ Research by Garrison Rosser & Kailey Price