Richard Williams is saying that the booes and hisses Venus Williams received after withdrawing from the Indian Wells Tennis Tournament shortly before her scheduled match with her sister Serena were the result of racism.
"When Venus and I were walking down the stairs to our seats, people kept calling me nigger," Williams said. "One guy said, 'I wish it was '75; we'd skin you alive."
He also said the press is guilty of fueling suspicions that Venus threw the match on purpose. "The media is trying to nullify what Venus and Serena have done, cast a shadow on the family. No, I have never asked Venus or Serena to lose a match."
