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A group of Holland fans have come under criticism for doing ‘blackface’ in their attempts to dress as Ruud Gullit during Sunday’s Euro 2024 opener against Poland.
It was a happy day for Dutch fans, who saw their team come from behind to win 2-1 at the Volkspark Stadium in Berlin. Adam Buksa gave the Poles the lead in the 16th minute but Cody Gakpo levelled before Wout Weghorst netted a late winner. However, somewhat of a sour taste has been left after some supporters painted their faces black to look like Gullit.
Blackface is a historical practice that dates back around 200 years. It’s seen as racist and many people find it deeply offensive.
It commonly refers to when someone (typically with white skin) paints their face darker to resemble a black person.
It is a particularly controversial issue in Holland, where the tradition of Christmas character Black Pete causes much division.
The presence of ‘Zwarte Piet’ at Christmas festivals and on television is an annual source of debate in the Netherlands, with critics and protesters calling the character a racist throwback to the colonial era. He has traditionally been played by white actors in blackface, wearing a curly afro-style wig and red lipstick. Striker Wout Weghorst came off the bench to snatch a late winner with his first touch and give Holland a deserved 2-1 comeback victory over Poland in their Group D opener.
Weghorst had barely been on the field when he slid home Nathan Ake’s perfect pass into the area in the 83rd minute to send the tens of thousands of ‘Oranje’ fans at Hamburg’s Volksparkstadion into raptures.
It was his third consecutive goal as a substitute for the national side.
Holland were shocked in the 16th minute when Adam Buksa, replacing Poland’s injured goal machine Robert Lewandowski, towered above three defenders for a beautiful flick into the net from stand-in captain Piotr Zielinski’s corner. — Daily Mail.
Online Reporter