According to Reuters, a Brazilian court has recently declared that Nelson Piquet, a three-time Formula One champion from Brazil, is obligated to pay 5 million Brazilian Reals ($953,050) for making discriminatory remarks regarding Lewis Hamilton.
During a November 2021 interview, Piquet used a derogatory term in reference to seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton while discussing a collision between the British driver and Max Verstappen at the British Grand Prix.
In June of last year, following the emergence of an interview on social media, Hamilton urged for a proactive approach to altering outdated ways of thinking.
Meanwhile, Piquet, who is currently 70 years old, offered an apology to the British racer, insisting that his remarks had been inaccurately translated.
A subsequent video revealed Piquet making use of discriminatory language targeting Hamilton’s race and sexual orientation during a podcast interview. Piquet was recounting how Hamilton lost the 2016 championship to Nico Rosberg.
Last June, Hamilton received honorary Brazilian citizenship, and he is currently the sole Black driver in the sport. Recently, four human rights organizations, among them Brazil’s National LGBT+ Alliance, pressed charges against Piquet, demanding payment of 10 million Brazilian Reals on the grounds of supposed moral harm.
In the ruling made by Judge Pedro Matos de Arrudo, he stated that the awarded compensation aimed not only to repair the harm caused but also to serve as a means of punishment. He emphasized that society must strive to eliminate racism and homophobia, which are pernicious acts, by recognizing the punitive function of civil liability.
The judge expressed this idea when he stated, “one should not only appreciate the reparative function of civil liability but also (and perhaps mainly) the punitive function so that, as a society, we can someday be free from the pernicious acts that are racism and homophobia.”
