Agree with you. There are elements that have just learnt to keep quiet but have an ingrained racist attitude. Sadly, I think those people won't ever see things differently no matter what evidence or penalties you put in front of them. The saddest thing is that many of them will have families and behind close doors these attitudes will be passed onto their kids.
I think these kind of people have been emboldened recently by the likes of Trump etc being pretty much openly racist, and Brexit as well has seen some look on it as a green light to hate foreigners.
But I honestly believe things have improved from a few decades ago and will continue to do so as long as people of all different races/beliefs etc are brought together in society. It's not something that will ever be eradicated completely sadly but it can definitely continue to be marginalised and reduced. The increase in far right parties in recent years is worrying, though there are issues with the far left as well.
I experienced that language (of what I remember and am old enough to recognise) at football games several times at Highfield Road, early 00s and it was coming frequently from the same culprits each week. Uriah Rennie and Stern John stick out a lot because they used to cop a lot of it and I was of age to know what fans were saying: lazy black b*stard, d*rky, co*n, w*g, n*g n*g etc.
We were in an area with mostly season ticket holders and it was only an issue to stewards or the club when non-season ticket holders would take up the ticket for cup/non purchase and complained about it. An old woman was responsible for a chunk of it and after 2/3 seasons got a letter from the club saying they’d had complaints and take this as a warning.
In the modern day, there’s no way someone would get away with shouting abuse like that at a game, without being challenged/ reprimanded/banned for life...and well....good. When the above did happen on a regular basis, nobody sat around challenged them, it was like it was accepted.
Ironically, when I was 9, I was reported to a steward by the old man in front of me, for alledgedly knocking his chair throughout the game. So to this old man, a 9 year old, alledgedly tapping against his chair through the game was more of a crime than shouting black b*stard throughout a match?
I can honestly say that I haven’t seen or heard anything like that in the last 13/14 years of following CCFC. I hope the Chelsea fan gets what he deserves.