NFL
By: Greg Rector
If you’ve listened to any of my Greg’s Gripes podcasts you know I am not shy about voicing my displeasure with things that bother me in the world of sports. I was tempted to turn this into a podcast then decided that the written word might be the better platform for this. As you all know February is Black History Month. If you have read some of my other featured writers articles I have written about Willie O’Ree, the man that broke the NHL’s color barrier in 1958, and if you follow me on Twitter you know I celebrate many other black athletes as often as possible, just as I did earlier today,
https://t.co/QeimUhl2ur
The pride of Tennessee State, Ed "Too Tall," Jones turns 71 today. #CowboysNation #HBCU#DallasCowboys@Jeffbarnes29 @elevenbravo138 @SDQFlightCrew @jtuck151— CowboysFanGreg (@GregCowboys) February 23, 2022
For the life of me I simply never have nor ever will get being a racist. I’ve never met a smart person who was a racist, I’ve never met a happy person that was a racist either. Today there was another tweet that I won’t post in this article because I long ago blocked the account, but it was from a fairly well-known account and it was from someone who has a history of this type of racism. “John Stockton is a better player than LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, and Steph Curry — it’s not close either.” Those are his words folks, and it’s not the first time, he veils his racism just enough so he doesn’t get banned from Twitter. No matter the sport be it basketball, football, or any other sport, this guy always puts down black athletes. He is not alone in that Lebron James is definitely a favorite target for this guy. I use to engage these idiots on social media but it’s a waste of time. Here however I can say my peace without the back and forth of seeing an idiot in action. John Stockton doesn’t belong in a conversation involving James, Wade, or Curry in terms of basketball discussions of who is better than whom. I have respect for his career and he was a good player but nowhere in the realm of the other three. It’s ridiculous not because of race to have Stockton mentioned as better than any of the three other players, it’s because purely as athletes all three are better than Stockton could ever hope to be. It brings back bad memories from the late 70s early 80s when it was Bird vs Magic. While the two were the reason the NBA survived their rivalry brought out the worst in so many people, and sadly it was because one was white and the other black. Long before there was a shoe culture thanks to Air Jordan’s there was a war over Converse shoes. If you were a Bird fan you wore the green and white Converse if like me you were a Magic Johnson fan you wore the purple and gold Converse. Go back and watch the documentary about the two and you’ll be reminded of the ugly racism part of the rivalry.
Even up here in Canada, there were issues, I got into a fight at school over wearing purple and gold folks, it didn’t end well for the guy who called me a “N***** lover.” I have been lucky my whole life to be around persons of color be they black, Indigenous, Latino, it hasn’t mattered to me in the least. Many of those black people were athletes in the Canadian Football League. My dad was a chef and one of his jobs would be to cook for the Edmonton football team (Like Washington in the NFL they have changed their team name over its racist overtones towards people in Canada’s far north) he would cook for the team’s weekly quarterback luncheons where fans and players got to meet, as well as the post-game meals. The players I mostly hung out with just happened to be the black players. Dad also grew up there in the 50s and he also was influenced by the black men he met. So many of them settled in Canada because it was a place they weren’t called “boy,” or the N-word. Men like Rollie Miles who became a teacher, and later a principal, and who now has a high school named for him. For me, it was men like Larry Highbaugh and the great Warren Moon. My dad was in the Canadian military and when he was away it was Larry Highbaugh who would drive out of his way to pick me up so I could still go to games. A memory I shall never forget. When I got to Dallas to visit my aunt and the reason I am a Cowboys fan, I got to meet Drew Pearson, and the man mentioned above Ed “Too Tall,” Jones along with Hollywood Henderson, and others. My point is simple their race was NEVER an issue for me and it’s sad that to this day race still is an issue for so many. I can appreciate an athlete’s accomplishments without ever saying “That’s a black athlete,” or “Pretty good for a white guy.” Far too many are still hung up on it though. I’ve never understood it. I’ve never tolerated it and no one else should either.
As most of you also know I served for 15 years in the United States Marine Corps. I mention this because as a veteran I immediately sided with Colin Kaepernick when he and Eric Davis took the knee. I was attacked by hundreds and hundreds of folks on Twitter. I sided immediately with their cause because the oath I swore to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States from all enemies both foreign and domestic, means standing for the Constitutional rights of all citizens to protest the government (the police are a part of government) peacefully, just as I have always defended the actions of Muhammad Ali and his refusal to accept being drafted in the military during the Vietnam War. Just as the actions of Tommie Smith and John Carlos at the 1968 Olympics were just when they raised their fists on the medal podium. Heaven forbid you mention the Cleveland Summit on social media when Ali along with Jim Brown, Lew Alcindor (Kareem Abdul Jabbar), and Bill Russell, raised more awareness over Ali’s refusal to serve in the Vietnam War. I mention these cases because of the twisted segment of people out there that will attack you first for supporting them, and secondly for their skin color. To those folks, I simply reply with “It’s truly sad you have opted to be a willfully ignorant fool, instead of a decent caring human being.” They then get blocked of course. I mention Kaepernick because it was back in 2016 when I blocked the Twitter account I referred to earlier.
I am writing this because it truly sickens me that instead of celebrating black great athletes not just during Black History Month but at any time and leaving it at that, these ignorant folks still have to attack, belittle, and basically hate because of their own fears and biases. There are still far too many Donald Sterling’s and the idiots on Twitter in the world of sports. I for one will never be afraid to celebrate, show my admiration and respect for any athlete, be they white, black, Latino, or Asian, it doesn’t matter to me. I for one will never stop celebrating Black History Month. I will continue to honor any athlete of my choosing.
I am proud of my affiliation with Nuts and Bolts Sports, this site was started and is operated by a black man. So many of our contributors here are black as well. Just as I learned from my contacts with the men I mentioned earlier, I learn from all my colleagues here as well. Look at the tweet from earlier again folks. Do you see the #HBCU ? Historically Black College and Universities. Sadly as my colleague, Zachary Draves wrote about earlier this month https://nutsandboltssports.com/the-bomb-threats-on-hbcus-can-be-seen-as-an-attack-on-black-athletes/ the ugliness of racism isn’t going away. This world has enough problems without being consumed by hate. Our history is marred by racism and to any politician who might read this, myself and everyone here will never hide the truth from society. If it makes you uncomfortable, good. Because the truth is hard, the truth is often ugly, the truth however also leads to understanding, it leads to not repeating mistakes of the past. I am not going to change minds that are firmly set, I can only hope that someone younger reads this and gains something from it. It is a useless endeavor to judge athletes based on the color of their skin. Judge them by their athletic prowess, judge them by the people they are both on and off the field of play. Every single athlete that I have mentioned, every last one of them not only excelled as athlete’s but all of them have contributed to their communities, enriched the lives of others, and are examples that should be celebrated not attacked.
We have a saying in the Marine Corps “No better friend, no worse enemy.” For me if you are my friend, you also celebrate, you also admire, and you amplify all the greatness of athletes no matter their color. If you are my enemy, you behave like the Twitter account holder I mentioned, and I have no time for you, the hatred you show, the lack of humanity, and the ignorance, which consumes you, folks. You are the enemy and I will treat you as such. Thanks for reading my “TED Talk.”
You can find me on Twitter @GregCowboys
