Hamilton celebrates Piquet’s punishment for racist offenses – 03/31/2023 – Sports
[ad_1]
The English driver Lewis Hamilton celebrated this Friday (31) the fine applied to Nelson Piquet due to the racist and homophobic comments that the former Brazilian driver made about him. The seven-time champion said measures must be taken against people “full of hate”.
Piquet was fined BRL 5 million for calling Hamilton “neguinho” twice in an interview in 2021. At the time of the content disclosure, the former driver denied any racial connotation and said that the expression is part of the Brazilian vocabulary and that was mistranslated.
On the occasion, the Brazilian also made homophobic comments and offended the former drivers of Keke and Nico Rosberg.
When issuing its sentence, the court considered “intolerable” the use of terms that constitute “a serious offense to the fundamental values of society”.
Hamilton said he was satisfied with the decision. “We shouldn’t give a platform to people who are full of hate,” he said in Melbourne, where the Australian Grand Prix is taking place this weekend.
“I would like to thank the Brazilian government. I think what has been done is important, showing people that this is something that cannot be tolerated,” he said. “Racism and homophobia are not acceptable. They have no place in our society.”
Piquet, 70, world champion in 1981, 1983 and 1987, was fined for “collective non-pecuniary damage” and the money will go to anti-discrimination groups.
The former driver apologized, saying the words were wrong but meant no offense. The court held that “absence of intent cannot justify discriminatory behavior against minorities”.
[ad_2]
Source link