What the Heck Just Happened?

There are times when I truly feel like I am having an out of body experience.  Sometimes I watch the news or I see something tragic happen and I think, "seriously?  Did this just happen?"  This week, was one of those weeks.  During the NFC Championship game post-game interviews Seattle Seahawks defensive back, Richard Sherman gave an overly emotional post-game interview to Erin Andrews.  Now, when I say over-emotional I mean he went "full hood."  Black people in America have learned that you never go "full hood."   Most people love the cool black man who gives them a high five and fist bump, they even love the funny black man who keeps them laughing and constantly entertained.  But we do do not like the dangerous black man, amped up on testosterone and yelling at the top of his lungs.  No.  That black man is scary and should not be tolerated under any circumstances.  Richard Sherman, and the rest of us found this out the hard way. 

I was sitting on my sofa when the incident occured.  After 10 seconds it was clear to me that his emotions were too raw for television.  I remember waving my hand at the screen and saying " move on, cut to something else, don't show this!"  But, my reaction was out of concern for the man, and not out of desire for "good television" so, the camera did not cut away, instead it lingered there and broadcast this man's meltdown for all of the world to see.

I knew when it happened  it would be all over Sports Center and I would have to see it over and over and over again.  I was irritated.  I am tired of sensationalism hi-jacking my sports channels and I knew this was going to be a "thing."   I was not prepared for just how big a "thing" this would become.  The next morning I heard the usual hue and cry about poor sportsmanship, and respecting the game, all of the things I could nod my head an agree with.  But as the day went on, and I started reading articles and blogs the conversation turned to something that I just could not believe.  Richard Sherman went from an emotional player who may have behaved inapropriately on television for 30 seconds to "thug" which in our society has become code for n****r.  People were berating him and referring to him as a "monkey" and piece of s***.   Really?  Yes, really.  The thing that I found most disturbing was that although Richard had been over the top, he hadn't used profanity or any threatening language, and yet people were treating him as if he had pulled out an AK 47 and dropped a million f-bombs.  He didn't.  He never swore and he never hit anyone or threatened anyone and yet he was being hailed as a thug and a gangsta piece of trash who didn't deserve to live.  What was said about Richard Sherman was far more problematic than anything Richard Sherman actually said.  Americans, from the safety and anonymity of their keyboards showered their racist hatred upon this man in quantities that, to me, were alarming.

It has become part of the narrative about black athletes.  There are 1,700 players in the NFL.  In 2012 39 of them had some sort of run-in with law enforcement.  39 is less than 1% of NFL players, and yet, we constantly hear ranting and raving about all of the gangsters and thugs in the NFL who can't stay out of prison.  The reality is that less than 1% of them have trouble with the law.  And yet, that's the narrative.  Black athletes ( people) are criminals.  It has always been this way, and until this incident I found it mildly irritating.  But this week, the tenor surrounding this story was so over the top, that it made me angry.  It was so prevalent that even white bloggers and columnists were crying foul.   http://www.huffingtonpost.com/isaac-saul/what-richard-sherman-taught-us_b_4631980.html

Inclusion365 mission# 11
I will not allow stereotypes, no matter how pervasive, to predetermine my assumptions about the character, nature, or abilities of another person.

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