Greek Freak, Giannis Antetokounmpo, became the target of the racist rant by an official at the Greek Education Ministry who is also said to be coordinator of refugees’ education and intercultural instructor at the Council of Europe. The unprecedented vulgar omments of the xenophobic ‘educator’ triggered an outrage in Greece.
In a documentary produced by TNT about his childhood years of the NBA star, Antetokounmpo spoke on the racism he and his family experienced while he was growing up in Greece and the permanent fear of deportation the family had. “Greece is country of white,” Antetokoumpo said among others.
“Greece is a country of whites, someone’s life can become difficult with the color of my own skin. Or of another nationality. You go to a lot of neighborhoods and you face a lot of negativity, racism. My parents did a great job, they fought for us on a daily basis. They provided us with everything we needed as a family even if they had to sell things on the streets. Poverty can push you to your limits. It’s not fun, but at the end of the day you have to accept it and we did it as a family. We had each other, we did what we had to do “, he said characteristically.
Short after the news made it to the Greek media, an teacher at the Athens Kapodistrian University and Coordinator for Refugee Education at the Greek Education Ministry, lashed out against Antetokounmpo and thus in an unbelievable racist rant.
Θαυμάστε καθηγητή του Καποδιστριακού και συντονιστή εκπαίδευσης προσφύγων του υπουργείου Παιδείας! pic.twitter.com/qSBgRmNWFj
— Ιερώνυμος boss (@JeronymoBoss) July 24, 2020
In comments Konstantinos Kalemis posted under the report by Proto Thema, the “educator for refugees” called Antetokounmpo a “monkey,” ‘negro,”mal*k*s” and “sucker.”
“What does this monkey do exactly? Right, he is playing basketball. Indifferent and irrelevant,” “educator” Kostas Kalemis wrote on a tweet.
“And he is not even human, he is a jerk negro of a sucker,” he wrote on another tweet.
Kalemis’comments that were also approved by a portion of internet users, proved that – if nothing else – Antetokounmpos’ statement about racism in Greece were right.
However, Kalemis is a public person who holds several public positions. They triggered a storm of outrage on Greek social media.
“Shame!” wrote former Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias.
Ντροπή
— Nikos Kotzias (@NikosKotzias) July 24, 2020
Dozens of internet users calling on Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis to fire him from all the institutions and expel him from New Democracy.
Racism & xenophobia are alive and well everywhere. Greece is not an exception. Imagine this man working as a refugee education coordinator!
Δεν ντρεπόσαστε @kkalemis; Ελπίζω ο @kmitsotakis δεν θα αγνοήσει τη ρατσιστική αντίδραση σας και θα σας απολύσει από αυτήν τη θέση. Αίσχος! https://t.co/vRkaKZ6qtX— Toula Drimonis (@ToulasTake) July 24, 2020
There are also voices calling on the Council of Europe to take the appropriate actions as the man says in his CV that he is also “intercultural instructor at the Council of Europe.
The guy calling @Giannis_An34 "a monkey" is a member of the fauculty of the oldest greek university, a member of @EUCouncil and the coordinator of the @MinEduGR for the education of refugees. @nkerameus do you feel that #Greece might qualify as a civilized country any longer? pic.twitter.com/HJh4A1Xrvp
— Κορονοϊός της Μήτσαινας (@gdmn1949) July 24, 2020
Following the outrage the man suspended his Twitter account but in modern times scripta mannet, or else: screen shots survive deletes.
Άρθρο του @protothema για τον @Giannis_An34 και από κάτω να ξερνάει ρατσισμό γνωστό ακροδεξιό κομματικό στέλεχος της @neademokratia και καθηγητής του #ΕΚΠΑ.
Ο @kkalemis σβήνοντας το προφίλ του θεωρεί ότι όλα οκ.
Μια ζωή κοτάρες τα φασισταριά.@kmitsotakis όλα καλά? pic.twitter.com/iZsDcvdoce— Σκόιλ_Ελικίκου (@metzitouneoukti) July 24, 2020
Before suspending his account, thought, Kalemis wrote to a user saying the EU institutions should be informed and fire him that he – the user – works in a brothel.
Racism & xenophobia are alive and well everywhere. Greece is not an exception. Imagine this man working as a refugee education coordinator!
Δεν ντρεπόσαστε @kkalemis; Ελπίζω ο @kmitsotakis δεν θα αγνοήσει τη ρατσιστική αντίδραση σας και θα σας απολύσει από αυτήν τη θέση. Αίσχος! https://t.co/vRkaKZ6qtX— Toula Drimonis (@ToulasTake) July 24, 2020
The Dean of Athens Kapodistrian University tweeted that Kalemis was never member of the University staff and never held any classes there.
Ως πρόεδρος του ΕΚΔΔΑ κάνω σαφές ότι ο κ. Κωνσταντίνος Καλέμης @kkalemis ουδέποτε δίδαξε στο Εθνικό Κέντρο Δημόσιας Διοίκησης και Αυτοδιοίκησης και δεν είναι μέλος του παρόντος Μητρώου. #ΕΚΔΔΑ
— Διονύσης Κυριακόπουλος (@DKyriakopoulo) July 24, 2020
However….
Ή η μηχανογράφησή σας δεν ασχολείται με λάθη του μητρώου σας, ή κάτι πρέπει να επανελέγξετε. pic.twitter.com/f52E6NMs6o
— Tʜᴇ Iᴄᴋ Fᴀᴄᴛᴏʀ (@The_Ick_Factor) July 24, 2020
Some asked the Education Minister to confirm that this racist indeed works for the ministry.
Κυρία @nkerameus, ισχύει ότι ο ρατσιστής @kkalemis είναι διορισμένος στο υπουργείο Παιδείας, όπως αναφέρει ο ίδιος;
Αν ναι, ποια η θέση σας μετά την άθλια και ρατσιστική του επίθεση, στον αθλητή της εθνικής ομάδας μπάσκετ, @Giannis_An34; pic.twitter.com/xwMNitfRQr— Niko Ago (@NikoAgo_) July 24, 2020
According to Skai TV, Education Minister Niki Kerameos is investigating the issue.
Late Friday afternoon, the Education Ministry posted on Twitter that K. Kalemis is being removed from the position of the Coordinator for Refugees’ Education at Malakasa refugee camp where he was assigned since 2017. It looks as if he is a public servant.
Απομακρύνεται άμεσα ο κ. Κ. Καλέμης από τη θέση του Συντονιστή Εκπαίδευσης Προσφύγων του Κέντρου Φιλοξενίας Προσφύγων Μαλακάσας, όπου είχε αποσπαστεί ήδη από το 2017.https://t.co/CaS8gVhdJd pic.twitter.com/ibb5g52AJ3
— Υπουργείο Παιδείας και Θρησκευμάτων (@MinEduGR) July 24, 2020
It is not the first time Antetokounmpo becomes the xenophobic target of a racist Greek “educator.” That educator was working at the University College of London. it is not known, whether the UCL took some measures against him.
PS I wonder what kind of education such people offered to refugees…
Put him in the stocks in a very public Athens square with a very large notice indicating his crimes and telling the on-lookers to feel free to throw tomatoes,eggs,all that which is soft at his head,not to kill him as pleasure must be taken when dismissing him from his very well paid jobs.