Banana Toss Apology After Fan Comes Forward, Denies Racism
A San Francisco Giants fan’s banana toss apology comes after one of those moments that seems like the perfect storm of “this isn’t what it looks like” circumstances.
We’ve all been where Alexander Poulides is following the banana toss apology, and the shock apparent in his statements after the incident seem to indicate that the fan really didn’t consider the potential racial undertones in his moment of frustration.
It seems kind of like that scene at the end of Alice In Wonderland when the Queen’s ire is continually raised by the shenanigans of the court, as her eyes are covered. When the scene comes into view, Alice is left holding the jar of jam and a mallet, appearing to be the individual responsible for painting the roses red, sticky-fying the queen and whacking her with the croquet stick.
As Poulides tells it, he was just mad in general at a poor sporting result. And in a moment of annoyance, he grabbed the nearest projectile — a banana — and tossed it in frustration.
Poulides probably didn’t know that abroad, the banana toss gesture is a common racist objection at sporting matches. Dejected, he walked away — only to later hear about a “racist banana toss,” apology to follow, totally out of line with his intent.
WHAM1180 reports:
“Poulides, 42, said he grabbed a banana off a catering cart and hurled it toward the field in disgust at the Giants near the end of a 10-2 loss at AT&T Park on Sunday. The banana apparently sailed toward Jones, who tweeted about the incident after the game… Above all, Poulides stressed repeatedly that the incident was not a racially motivated, as some had speculated. He was upset at the Giants, not Jones.”
I want to thank whatever slapdick threw that banana towards my direction in CF in the last inning. Way to show ur class u jackass.
— Adam Jones (@SimplyAJ10) August 11, 2013
Before the banana toss apology, Poulides says he heard that Orioles outfielder Adam Jones had tweeted about the incident, and says “his heart sank.”
