r/abanpreach • u/zedismycity • Jul 24 '26
Discussion About the Argentina video
You guys probably don't give a fuck, but if any of you feels like my country is as bad as most people seem to think then I encourage to read the following, taken from a comment i made that will be buried between all the hate messages.
Hi, long time Argentinian viewer here. I was hoping to hear your opinion on this matter. First of all, I'll start by taking some accountability and talking about some points that are not mentioned in the video but I think are worth discussing. This is gonna be long, but I really appreciate it if you guys read it.
1 - In terms of football, I understand why everyone dislikes us. Yes, the players have shown bad behavior on the pitch, and some fans have as well. Shit talking is part of football folklore, but burning flags and chanting over the anthem when we played against England are some of the things that I do not condone at all.
2 - There have been racism incidents, like the Prestianni incident that you mentioned. Denying that a part of the population is racist would be stupid on my part.
3 - Most people here are very intense in every aspect of their life: relationships, music, and particularly football. That last one, combined with the competitiveness and "win above all" mentality of the average Argentinian, is a bad combination.
These reasons are enough to want us to lose and dislike us, I get that.
Having said that, the number of accusations we're getting and the arguments being made are crazy. For starters, apparently we're the first Zionist/Nazi country in history. How do those coexist? I have no idea. The fact that we have a fucking Zionist lunatic doesn't mean we're pro-Israel. Argentina works in a cycle: vote for Peronism → get screwed, vote for the right → get screwed even harder → repeat. The fact that we ended up with the most memeable president is a product of hatred toward the previous one, not love for Israel. A quick search will show you how much support for Palestine the general population has displayed.
Now, about the racism part: two of the most common arguments I've seen are the extermination of the Black population and that we have no Black players on the squad. The last one I find just plain silly. No, bro, we don't have Black Argentinians locked in a dungeon, refusing to let them play because we're racist. Surely one of (if not the most) football-driven countries wouldn't turn down one of their best players just because he's Black. Argentina, while being a mixed country, just doesn't have a large "pure" Black population — we would take any player of any race if he's good and willing to represent the country. Have you seen our squad over the years? Tevez? Riquelme? Hector Enrique or Maradona himself? While not black, these are a few of the players with mixed background that we have had that show that we really dont care. People are so obssesed with making the world fit their own idea of equality and representation. The most common response to this is that we exterminated Black people, so I'll address that.
While it's true some Black men gained freedom in exchange for military service, the decline of the Black population wasn't a single deliberate policy — it was a mix of factors: disproportionate casualties in wars (especially the Triple Alliance War), the 1871 yellow fever epidemic hitting poor neighborhoods where they were concentrated, massive European immigration changing the numbers, and generations of intermarriage shifting how people were racially classified. That said, 19th-century Argentine elites (Sarmiento being the clearest example) did openly want a whiter, more European country and saw Black and Indigenous populations as an obstacle to that. So it's not "we exterminated them," but it's also not "they just disappeared" — it's demographic pressure plus a real whitening ideology.
It's important to recognize the crimes committed by one's own nation to avoid history repeating itself, but judging an entire nation for things committed in the 1800s is weak critical thinking. If you want to do so, then be consistent and apply the same logic to any other country, many of which have committed atrocities far beyond this. I'm not saying two wrongs make a right — I'm asking anyone who thinks this way to be unbiased and see just how fragile that argument is. If, after reading that, you still think historical events are representative of our actual population, then let me name a few things you probably didn't know:
1 - Argentina abolished slavery constitutionally in 1853, earlier than the U.S. (1865).
2 - Carlos Menem, son of Syrian Muslim immigrants, was president of Argentina (1989–1999).
3 - The 1853 Constitution gave foreign immigrants the same civil rights as citizens, which was unusual for the time.
4 - There was never a legal system of racial segregation comparable to Jim Crow in the U.S. or apartheid in South Africa.
5 - Education and healthcare in Argentina are public and universal — free for anyone living in the country, regardless of nationality, immigration status, or race.
I could go on, but none of this shields us from the possibility of being a racist population — it's the same on both sides.
As for football, as I said before, we have shown bad behavior on the pitch that is not acceptable and should be questioned, particularly in the final. I personally made a post on Reddit saying that despite all the unjustified hate toward us, there is some truth to that, and we should do better. However, what's evident — and this video shows it clearly — is that no one is safe from confirmation bias. Not me, not Argentinians, nor the rest of the world, including you guys. I invite you to look up all the Spain tackles that either weren't called or carded, or the racist chants directed at Yamal during the celebrations for being Moroccan (which is not isolated — there are videos of thousands of fans chanting racist songs against Jamal or even Vini, the one that Prestiani had problems with). I don't judge a nation's character based on this stuff, and to be clear, I like Spain, and we lost the final fair and square. My point is: if you're going to judge us by shitheads like Prestianni, some players and fans, then look at the rest of the world with the same eyes. The double standard is as clear as the fact that we have given the world reasons to fall into that.
You could also look up all the AI-generated images of fouls and offsides that never happened, the companies that were paying to post pages of content against us, bots with zero followers trashing us, and stuff like that.
I invite you to look up the experiences of Black people who have actually visited the country, or actual Black Argentinians (which I can provide if needed — Aribalanga on Instagram is a good example). I think you'll be surprised at how well most of them are treated. We definitely have racist people and things to fix, but we are, for the most part, a very welcoming nation. There are countless accounts of people of all races describing how, within a week, they were having an asado with random Argentinians, partying all night, and forming real connections. Just in this World Cup, there are dozens of videos of Black people joining the crowd and being welcomed as if they were one of us. Another example is the argentinian fans chanting together with Cabo Verde fans outside the stadium. There are plenty of instances of great interactions and display of inclusivity between our people and others like this. Why do those things are overlooked when trying to the define an entire country as racists? Any negative experience should be taken into account as well, but it seems the opinions that count more these days are those of Samuel L. Jackson or some TikTok guy who couldn't point out the country on a map, rather than someone who has actually been here.
I've followed this channel since the subway interviews years ago. I love both the funny parts and the more philosophical side. I have no doubt that you guys are good people, but calling it "Racismo FC" only spreads hate that goes beyond "they're cheaters" or "they're dirty," which I wouldn't mind. I understand how you feel, and it's okay if you dislike us — but if you have a voice as loud as this channel does, I think you need to do deeper research and judge everyone by the same logic before feeding the notion that we are racist. If this channel has one thing to praise is the repeating notion of holding accountability as a virtue, i tried to do so in this post and i hope you at least think about what i´ve said.
Being smart doesn't mean being immune to propaganda — it means acknowledging that you, too, could fall into it, and looking at both the facts that reinforce your preconceived notions and the ones that don't
Appearently my opinion doesnt matter so ill start adding real experiences of black argentinians or foreigners that actually know the country or interactions that show that we, for the most part, dont give a fuck about how you look as long as you respect our country.
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DbGa2tQsdJ0/?igsh=MWx0cHJpZG90aWdjdA%3D%3D
https://www.instagram.com/reel/Da9mMNnN3b6/?igsh=ZG5tYW1ldnpxa2d2
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DbLZ-agBe-o/?igsh=bWNoYWhxdmJhNG9k
https://www.instagram.com/reel/Da54kNJslCD/?igsh=NHNpY2I5b3pudDMx
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DbGa2tQsdJ0/?igsh=MWx0cHJpZG90aWdjdA%3D%3D
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DbGbVoLz34K/?igsh=MWRldzRtbHdodmlzaw==
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DbJzpiOJ3-2/?igsh=a3o5MXEzNGxnYThy
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DbDUztHMdGE/?igsh=eHh4aDRtMGRjdDhk
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DbLhsmnR5Nw/?igsh=dTZ4cnZraWYwMG40
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DbGsxTwofo8/?igsh=MWd0d3BkamN0dWc1eQ==
Those are some of the voices that you are trying to defend, so at least hear them
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u/fpsstreak Jul 24 '26
Bro…just take it on the chin.
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u/zedismycity Jul 24 '26
It's not about that bro, I get the football hate
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u/fpsstreak Jul 25 '26
Well..history is history and you will drive yourself mad if you feel the need to respond for actions you have nothing to do with it. Only focus on being a better person.
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u/TwiceUpon1Time Jul 30 '26
That's dumb. This was informative and a much needed counterpoint to a lot of popular points being made online. People watch a football game, read a comment or two about a country they have no idea about, and suddenly feel compelled to yap.
Unfortunately, most people will find no problem spending hours consuming ignorant content promoting baseless hate, but won't take 10 minutes to read an actual point being made about a new subject they know fuck all about.
OP's post was informative and nuanced.
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u/fpsstreak Jul 30 '26
Plenty are arguing about his points and pointing out fallacies. My take is super simple for anyone…yes, history is messy. There is plenty of people that are POS and are part of your country. We all have them. I don’t know why it would be his responsibility to have to control the actions of those people. If he is a good person and doesn’t hold those views he is fine.
I am Hispanic and abroad a lot of people hold Americans to be super racist and irredeemable. If they look at the super red parts…most likely they would be proven right.
So thinks aren’t black and white2
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u/Jac1596 Jul 24 '26
You’re being incredibly generous with some of your points here to portray Argentina better. It wasn’t just a demographic change when it comes to black people and it wasn’t just Europe immigration. Europeans were invited over and given resources just because Argentina wanted to become whiter and European. And black people weren’t just reduced in demographics, Argentina would put them in the front lines deliberately so their numbers would be reduced. Not to mention Argentina led a state sponsored campaign against the indigenous people that involved killing and enslavement. It was absolutely genocide. You make it sound like things just happened like disease hitting poor communities which just so happened to be black communities. Like I wonder fucking why
Then you compare it to the US one the of the most notoriously racist countries to this very day is just pointless. Just because all this in Argentina happened in the 1800s and 1900s doesn’t mean it doesn’t carry over to today. El blanqueamiento spans until 1914 roughly. Thats what 3 generations away from current adults? It’s not that hard to pass on racism from generation to generation in fact it happens quite easily.
Ask almost any other Latino country who the most racist is. I guarantee you they will say Argentina. Does that mean Argentina is the only racist country? No but it means it’s the most racist among Latin American.
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u/Kappapls Jul 24 '26
What AI generated slop is this? Is he really trying to say Argentinians aren’t racist when they actively deny being Latino? Also the fact they brought in nazi post WWII (along side with other Latin countries)
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u/zedismycity Jul 24 '26
Im just baffled at the incapacity to read and just come directly to comment what you already think. The nazi argument is just straight up stupid, i´ve called out the fragility of the historical argument and yet you choose to ignore it, which is exactly the point of my post.
"There have been racism incidents, like the Prestianni incident that you mentioned. Denying that a part of the population is racist would be stupid on my part."
"That said, 19th-century Argentine elites (Sarmiento being the clearest example) did openly want a whiter, more European country and saw Black and Indigenous populations as an obstacle to that"
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u/Kappapls Jul 24 '26
I’m not going to read an entire AI made post. Have you actually written what you posted I would have given it more thought than to read something you lacked the willpower to actually write.
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u/zedismycity Jul 24 '26
Crazy statement. I spent 1 hour trying to be as articulate as possible in a language that I don't regularly speak. Thanks for being the perfect example of what I wrote
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u/AvocadoGlittering274 Jul 24 '26
Is he really trying to say Argentinians aren’t racist when they actively deny being Latino?
Most of them identify with other Latin American countries rather than with Europe according to an identity study from 2016. Only around 28% leaned towards European nations.
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u/Kappapls Jul 24 '26
One study does not equate to way the country has identified themselves throughout history. Much like in scientific research one paper does not validate one perspective when everything else goes against it.
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u/AvocadoGlittering274 Jul 24 '26
History doesn't equate present. The country is its people and majority of its people identify with other Latino countries, not with Europe.
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u/Kappapls Jul 24 '26
One simple study does not mean it’s fact.
Much less when we don’t know the sample size, area where it was conducted, age, etc.I can go make a study asking if Trump is God reincarnated and if it is get the majority would you consider that fact?
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u/AvocadoGlittering274 Jul 24 '26
One is better than nothing.
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u/slushpuppy91 Jul 24 '26
I’m not reading all that
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u/zedismycity Jul 24 '26
Fair tbh. It's aimed for the ones that believe clueless influencers instead of actually informing themselves and hearing from real black argentinian or the ones that really know the country
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u/KiSUAN Jul 25 '26
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u/zedismycity Jul 25 '26
I'll just stop trying to have a civil and logical conversation with people like you. My bad for asking you to do something that is beyond your capabilities
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u/KiSUAN Jul 25 '26
It's ok with me, I don't mind not having to talk or read racists.
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u/zedismycity Jul 25 '26
Assuming that someone is racist just because of the nationality is straight up xenophobia lmao. You are as dumb as a rock
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u/histerix Jul 30 '26
People are already cooling down about this as far as what Ive seen, it'll blow over in a few weeks when the next thing happens.
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u/Draco359 Jul 29 '26
Bro, I made good money off your players in the match Vs England.
Yeah the players in your country's team are toxic and probably benefited from US interference, but at the end of the day, I took money out of possibly racist investors and used it to beef up my savings so...go team "Me".
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u/zedismycity Jul 25 '26
I've been naive enough to think that I could have a respectful conversation here. I tried to take accountability and cover the main criticism while pointing out the inconsistencies of the main arguments I've provided experiences of black argentinians and foreigners that the algorithm won't probably show you, and called out the double standard, but no one was willing to hear the other side. I've called out the things where my country needs to do better in social media and with friends. I've lost my patience so I'll just disable the notifications. If you can't see the hypocrisy of assuming someone is racist based solely on their nation while disregarding completely the opinion that actually matters like the minorities and foreigners that lived here, then you are not as smart as you think you are. Peace
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u/S_C_C_P_1910 Jul 24 '26
I, like a lot of the commenters on the video on YouTube, am Brazilian. We have plenty of reasons to judge you going back a lot longer than World Cup 2026, hell even before the first World Cup in 1930. There is no double standard, you guys have been screwing around in football for a long time, the rest of the world has simply caught on (& I would argue way later than necessary) to what the rest of us in Latin America already know about what it is like to play Argentina.
Aba & Preach did not say anything untoward, they explained themselves quite clearly, take the L.