- Jan 1, 2009
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I know this is kinda late but I only discovered this recently:
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/...son-and-david-sterns-african-american-problemhttp://bleacherreport.com...-african-american-problem
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/...son-and-david-sterns-african-american-problemhttp://bleacherreport.com...-african-american-problem
Last Sunday, Major League Baseball celebrated Jackie Robinson Day by allowing players to wear Robinson's number 42 when they took the field.
A hundred or so players made the switch, including Ken Griffey Jr., Torii Hunter, and every member of the Los Angeles Dodgers. It was a fitting tribute for one of the most hallowed figures in professional sports, and Major League Baseball did a great job of making it possible.
It's just too bad the NBA couldn't take a hint.
Jerry Stackhouse of the Dallas Mavericks already wears number 42 in honor of Robinson. In an interview with Calvin Watkins of the Dallas Morning news, Stackhouse made clear the depth of his reverence for Robinson's legacy.
"I think what he was able to bear and go through is the reason why black athletes and minority athletes are in the position we're in today," Stackhouse said. "And it was in baseball, but it transcended all sports and we should pay homage to a guy like that."
Given those words, it's no surprise that Stackhouse wanted to pay special tribute to Robinson on Sunday. His idea? He asked NBA league officials if he could wear "Robinson" on the back of his jersey...and was promptly denied.
Why this isn't a bigger news story is beyond me
After getting shot down by the league, Stackhouse was forced to write "Jackie Robinson" on his sneakers. The result looked like something out of a junior high game, where players write messages on their shoes because schools can't afford to change jersey numbers, or sew on commemorative patches.
And yet...where's the outrage?
If nothing else, the Stackhouse saga should at least get half the treatment of the Don Imus story-because both incidents speak to the same issue.
There's an angle on the Imus story that civic leaders like Al Sharpton have mostly missed: the problem of "separate but equal." In the early 1900s, so-called "liberals" in the United States were committed to helping African Americans-so long as those African Americans knew their place as second-class citizens.
Don Imus, despite his foul mouth, gives a lot of money to charities that benefit minorities. Of course, that doesn't mean he isn't a bigot, or that he has any genuine respect for the African American community.
The same goes for David Stern.
The NBA Commissioner sits on his perch-which he believes to be higher then God's-and cares very little for the players who make basketball "the greatest game in the world." Stern, like Imus, is all for supporting African Americans-so long as they know their place.
Why would they let Jordan wear #12 one game without any notice and for no good apparent reason but refuse Stackhouse of wearing an Icon's name on ahistoric date?
personally I feel the NBA league officials were on a power trip... but that's just me...
discuss
Edit: changed title from "SMH @ David Stern (I know this is kinda late)" -holdenmichael
