Yes let us agree that lynching do not happen as often anymore. Great progress. <a href='http://www.smileycentral.com/?partner=ZSzeb008_ZSzeb008' target='_blank'><img src='http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/23/23_5_126.gif' alt='' border=0></a>

MLK Jr. B-Day will be this weekend. Tell those that will speak how much progress has been made. You might be surprised what you hear.

Oh well, I guess we have overcome. :rolleyes:

Peace

That is a perception I'm sure you reached after seeing this several times. Let me just say, NO IT IS NOT ALRIGHT! Wow, this statement is unbelievable. BushRef, are you black? If you are NOT then your free use of the word, although typed, and your question would make me wonder about you. I don't know exactly what I would conclude at this point but it says something when a 15 year old understands the sensitivity this word can cause and does not spell it out but you do. I would think a moderator would at least edit your post to get rid of it. I am a black man and I can speak on this. No, I will not go around blaming white people for everything that I don't have and I don't think JRut will either. I grew up with white friends because that was the neighborhood I was in and all I knew was the kids I liked to ride my bike with :D I did/do not keep white friends as collectors items, I like and dislike :) people equally! That being said I think I'm 100% qualified to say that things haven't changed on the inside. Racial issues are still on people's hearts. What has changed is how they effect us on the outside. The stakes have been raised and instead of passing by and sayin a racial slur minorities are being denied opportunities based on the color of their skin. IMHO we should all be ashamed of Black History Month, affirmative action and other such things. It is just a reminder that we needed and still need to have those things in place just to move in the direction of having an even playing field. I'm just thankful to my mother, the Air Force and others for never having all of that racial stuff eating away at me inside. However, it still exists. It has just been updated like cars, houses, computers and other things.
Kristal, you did a fine job. Please keep us posted if you hear anything else about this situation. IMO the kid should be suspended for several games and apologize or just be suspended for the rest of the season. IMHO this is far worse than anything Artest or O'Neal did in Detroit.

[Edited by mick on Jan 12th, 2005 at 07:07 AM]

Failed edit

Rut,
I didn't say we'd overcome racism. I said significant progress has been made, and I'm not just talking about lynchings. I don't think I need to spell out the ways in which things are better now than they were 50 years ago; but I suppose we could get into that. :(
Mainly, as this instance illustrates, this kind of attitude is not acceptable by most people. Most of the refs I know recognize how this kind of language is damaging, and would have done exactly as Kristal did.

Unfortunately, racism can\'t be overcome overnight. It will happen, sadly, as the old racists die off and fewer and fewer of them are able to pass their filth on to their offspring. I wish it could move faster, and many great men and women have sacrificed immensely to speed the progress up. Maybe we could move faster, I don\'t know.

My only point in my response to you was that things have changed a lot; but I also recognize things need to change more.

I\'ll be honest with you, I don\'t know of a single racist person in my circle of friends and colleagues. I\'m sure there are some, but they keep their mouths shut about it. That in itself is progress, IMO.

Peace to you, too.

Adam

I don\'t know whether you\'re tongue got stuck in your cheek here or not, but I\'d say it doesn\'t matter for two reasons. First of all, that\'s probably the most automatic single-word in my book; regardless of the ethnic background of the speaker. Secondly, preceding the word with, "It doesn\'t matter, he\'s just a...." makes it a flagrant T because of the attitude inherent in the context.

Perceived Racism...
 

Anyone who thinks that progress has not been made in this area simply chooses to ignore what is going on today. I live and work in a predominately African American community, and it is my observation that many individuals hold themselves back because of "perceived racism". They rationalize that everything that does not go their way happens because they are black. In fact, I had an assistant coach accuse me of calling a technical foul on him because he was black. He then proceeded to call me a "redneck" to my African American partner. Racism can go both ways, and I have experienced situations like this many times. If something doesn\'t go someone\'s way, it must be because they are black and the white person is tearing them down. These are just my observations.

Re: Perceived Racism...
 

Buckle up boys and girls, here it comes...INCOMING :D

Kristal, you did exactly the right thing. I would\'ve done the exact same thing. Don\'t lose a second\'s sleep over it.