The average human being is affectionate towards genuine helplessness, and this is why we swoon over children and pets. We all possess a small manifestation of the messiah complex in our genes. We all want something to save, a cause to defend, anything to prove that we have overcome the inherent selfishness that makes us human. This desire has fueled many excellent resistances and revolutions, but sometimes it can be misplaced or used as a cover for something else.
Watching the recently released video of Kurt Zouma- a professional French football player- mercilessly assaulting a defenceless feline will most certainly stir up in the average individual some protective instinct as well as rage. The fact that he was doing this in the presence of his children while his brother giggled behind the camera causes one to ponder on the state of Kurt Zouma’s mind.
There is no denying that anyone who can be that violent to a cat for no reason is not too far from meting out the same treatment on humans they perceive to be weaker than them. Research has shown that men who are abusive to animals are five times more likely to be arrested for crimes of violence against their fellow humans. All these give ample meaning to the outrage that Zouma has been exposed to since the video’s release.
The question is, do the backlash and consequences that Kurt Zouma has since faced match the severity of his offence, or are they an indication of a deeper issue? Zouma’s club, West Ham, has since lost one of its sponsors while the player’s partnership with Adidas was cancelled. Kurt Zouma was also fined $340,000, donated to animal charities.
All the social media outlets have been awash with opinions and Think-pieces. One verified Twitter user boldly stated that animal abuse is a bigger problem than racism because mean words were worse than violence. It is not surprising to see another privileged, white person reduce a deeply ingrained generational problem that has claimed the lives of thousands of black people all over the world to nothing more than “mean words.” It is not surprising, but it is indeed very disheartening to witness.
There are very few infuriating things than a person deliberately and dishonestly downplaying severe issues like this to produce harmful rhetorics that only show that all the activism and education carried out over the years concerning racism have done very little to change people’s minds.
We see many examples of white athletes committing grievous acts against their fellow human beings and getting a slap on the wrist for it throughout recent history. From Suarez biting his teammates to Chelsea’s Eden Hazard brutally kicking the opposing team’s ball boy right on the pitch. It might not be too far-fetched to conclude that the message is clear and thus: You might be killed solely for the colour of your skin, but God forbid somebody kicks a cat.