Mike Hall deserves so much better than this

February 3, 2019

A stalwart of the European scene, particularly Italy, and one of the most honest pros on Twitter, Mike Hall suffered racial abuse while in action for Virtus Cassino on Sunday as fans of visitors Siena disgraced themselves. Emmet Ryan on why it’s important to keep stating the obvious

It’s 2019 and we’re still seeing stuff like this, it’s grotesque, devoid of imagination, and utterly dehumanising. What happened to Mike Hall on Sunday has no place in the game or in life yet there are still knuckleheads who think it’s ok.

Here’s what happened in Hall’s own words and what he knows about such situations after over a dozen years in the pro ranks, more than half of which have been in Italy.




It’s that last one that really hit home. I was landing in Venice, just by chance I’m in Italy at this time, and the futility of such apologies after the fact. The damage had already been done and, as Hall said, it is more than just a word.

We don’t live in seclusion, we see this around us, but it’s the failure to act when it’s somewhere safe for us that enables those who would spread hate to do it to those who suffer. That’s irrespective of whatever the group is, the echo chamber, that someone feels safe within, across all kinds of discrimination. Some forms, understandably, require some education but this?

If any non black person anywhere hears someone using that word because they feel safe in said company doing so, cop on and call them out on that. If they don’t feel safe doing it around you, their friend, they sure as hell will think twice about doing it around anyone else.

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There is more to this than just the obvious matter that racism is bad. Organised sport, particularly in Europe, has a dreadful record when it comes to having the backs of players who face discriminatory abuse. Hall expects a fine and I’m not surprised he does, we’ve seen too often where they are told to just suck it up and not react. Those with authority, those with power, need to use that to help players because they are human, they are people, and we should never expect them to be robots.

There was a recent incident closer to home where Irish rugby player Simon Zebo received similar racial abuse to what happened to Hall on Sunday. He was playing for Parisian club Racing in Belfast against Ulster. The action by Ulster was swift and sent a clear message, the fan was identified and banned for life. The reaction was universally one where nobody had any issue at all with the sanction taken by the club.

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This should be the norm. Comedians Chris Rock and Jarlath Regan both used to have bits in their routines about how you shouldn’t be congratulated for doing the thing you are supposed to do. Remarkably, given the back slapping culture in rugby, that sport got the message when Ulster took its action. They weren’t praised from the heavens for their action, it was just accepted for the most part that this was the right thing and now people could begin to move on.

Hall is American-Irish but he’s as much an Italian as anything else. He speaks the language, has played across the country, is a devoted AC Milan fan, and generally seems to love it there based on his tweets. He has given a lot to the game in Italy and, yet, even he can be faced with this kind of treatment.

The job for Siena is simple. Believe Hall, find the culprits, and never let them be associated with you again. It’s really that simple.

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Emmet Ryan
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This post was published on February 3, 2019
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