I am both disheartened and uplifted at the same time. Uplifted by the actions of the Milwaukee Bucks and Milwaukee Brewers, the WNBA and the other baseball teams that refused to play on Wednesday. Uplifted by the support of their employers and the many people who are on board with their stand against the systemic racism that continues to rear its ugly head against a portion of the population. Uplifted by the knowledge that athletes of the past have used their pulpit to help enact change in this country and maybe it can happen again. I am also disheartened by the expected backlash by so many people who feel that athletes are somehow not human beings with feelings and ideas…but simply automatons that should shut up and dribble…or pitch…or run…for our amusement and nothing else. These folks, and there were many spewing their poison yesterday, sound very much like the folks in the 1960’s who thought that those uppity ‘bleeps” should know their place and be grateful for whatever crumbs fell from the table for them. These folks don’ believe that racism exists anymore in this country. They are so cocooned in their own “white privilege” that it is almost inconceivable to them that American citizens could be afraid of their own government and the instruments of law enforcement that see them as less than human. These naysayers will tell you that none of this stuff would happen if people would just “follow orders” or “do as their told”. Let me ask you this..,. Eric Garner was killed for selling loose cigarettes,,,Tamir Rice was killed sitting on his porch….George Floyd was killed while restrained for allegedly passing a phony $20 bill….Breonna Taylor was killed in her own bed (and her murderers are still walking free) ….and Jacob Blake was shot seven times in the back trying to get to his children….do any of these ‘crimes’ justify the death penalty? And this is just the tip of the iceberg. But what really is the kicker is the law enforcement response to other situations. Just this week a group of armed, white men kicked in the door of the Idaho State House…they were peaceably arrested. The Kenosha shooter, a 17 year old armed with an AR-15 type rifle, shot two people, walked toward police with his hand on his gun, and they walked right by him and let him go. It’s not a stretch of the imagination to believe that if Kyle Rittenhouse was black, he would be on a slab in the morgue. Almost every white mass shooter in the last 20 years (that hasnt taken his own life) has been arrested without violence. That is what the Milwaukee Bucks, the Milwaukee Brewers and the others calling for change are pissed about. The double standard is glaring. Too many law enforcement agencies are infiltrated with white supremacists and it seems to be getting worse. And the good cops out there are hamstrung by what’s going on. I know there are many that don’t believe any of this is right. But they are living in a system that would ostracize them (or worse) if they speak up. And too many police union heads and police and fire commission members choose to look the other way. Or worse, support the rogue cops and try to cover up their malfeasance. So how does change come? Does it come peacefully like Martin Luther King preached…or does it come from the violence of burning down buildings and throwing the tear gas back at the riot squad? Well, the same “white privileged” folks (and our president) who called Colin Kaepernick and the others bastards for peacefully taking a knee four years ago also don’t want violent protests in the streets either. Protesting injustice can get messy and stuff can get broken. Is any building worth more than a human life? Even if you believe that the life in question has no value? To quote something that was written on a wall in Kenosha…”are you listening yet?”
“The games can wait. Wisconsin is my home state. I could not be more impressed and proud of the @bucks first then the @nba, then the @brewers for standing up for a greater cause. This is an historic moment.”-Brian Anderson
“Bucks player Sterling Brown had a knee to his neck and was punched by Milwaukee PD for parking incorrectly. Former Buck John Henson had the cops called on him while shopping for jewelry, just for being black. This is personal to them.”-Andy Larsen
“What did you think No Justice, No Peace meant?”-Rae
“It’s a wildcat strike, a work stoppage. It’s unusual in the U.S. because they are usually against the boss. This is against social injustice. Seems to me it’s what the Memphis sanitation workers strike led to, which was a demand for national economic and social justice.”-Tom Silverstein
“Some things are bigger than basketball. The stand taken today by the players and org shows that we’re fed up. Enough is enough. Change needs to happen. I’m incredibly proud of our guys and we stand 100% behind our players ready to assist and bring about real change”-Alex Lasry (Milwaukee Bucks owner)
“I keep coming back to this Bill Russell quote about boycotting. What he realized is that playing was the problem. It allowed white people to believe that the Black athlete was ok with the situation. Russell and his Black teammates, finally said f**k that.”-
“All you hear is Donald Trump & all of them talking about fear. We’re the ones getting killed. We’re the ones getting shot…It’s amazing, we keep loving this country, and this country does not love us back.”-Doc Rivers
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