It took me some time to figure out exactly what I wanted to say regarding the Donald Sterling issue that broke last week. A lot has developed since then. Clippers players along with players from around the league actually considered boycotting and not playing their respective playoff basketball games in protest. The woman in the center of this scandal, V. Stiviano, claimed that it was never her intent to hurt Sterling and that it was not her that released the audio tapes containing his comments. Adam Silver, the new NBA commissioner, placed a lifetime ban on Sterling from any association with the team and fined him a reported $2.5 million in an effort to force him to sell the basketball franchise. The NBA recently appointed a league representative to serve as CEO in the interim, much like they did during the time when the New Orleans franchise was up for sale. During that time span, I've talked to a number of people regarding this topic and have heard many different persepectives. The common thread in all the conversations that I had was that everyone pretty much agreed that Donald Sterling no longer has a place in owning an NBA team and that this was a long time coming.
But the interesting thing is a lot of people feel like the issue was blown up in such a way that it was somehow unfair to Sterling. His statements were made in the privacy of his property, were illegally recorded (in the state of California it is illegal to record someone without their knowledge) and V. Stiviano is currently involved in a lawsuit in which Donald Sterling's wife, Rochelle, claims that Stiviano embezzled over $1 million from her husband. It was just recently reported that Sterling has been battling prostate cancer. Mark Cuban, the owner of the Dallas Mavericks, though critical of Sterling's remarks, said that trying to force the embattled owner to sell over what was his own personal views was a 'slippery slope'. Others relegated the recorded comments as the ramblings of an old man who was expressing his frustrations with his 20 something 'alleged' girlfriend. Jason Whitlock, a Black writer for ESPN.com, criticized the media response and the response of the NBA and the Black community, characterizing the reaction as 'agenda fueled'. Whitlock went on to say that 'the culture of white supremacy created Donald Sterling' and that the comments he made regarding that concept, (saying "I don't want to change the culture because I can't, it's too big") was his lone moment of clarity. He went on to say this:
"Much of what Sterling said on the tape is a rambling mess that can be interpreted many ways by sophisticated, mature and objective ears. To my ears, he doesn't care that his mistress has black friends. He doesn't care if she has sexual relationships with black men. He's married. They're not in a monogamous relationship. He simply does not want her extracurricular activities, particularly when they might involve black men, flaunted at his basketball games or all over Instagram."
Mr. Whitlock is entitled to his opinion and his "sophisticated, mature and objective ears" as he put it, as is every other person in the world. While I appreciate his viewpoint on the matter, I think it is terribly misguided. According to the transcripts of the recorded conversation, it is very obvious that he did care that Stiviano was associating with Black men. He said, when Stiviano asked whether or not it was right to treat Black as less than white, that "we don't evaluate what's right and wrong. We live in a society. We live in a culture. We live within that culture." He also stated that Stiviano could "sleep with them. You can bring them in, you can do whatever you want. The little I ask you is ... not to bring them to my games." He also expressed his displeasure with her posting pics of herself and other Black players (most notably, Magic Johnson) on social media, such as she did on Instagram. If he didn't care that these people were Black, he wouldn't have made it a point to single them out when expressing his frustrations with her.
Anyone who has heard of Donald Sterling before the news of this incident broke aren't suprised by his views. When David Stern was commissioner, he dealt with a number of incidents with Sterling that usally involved race in some shape, form or fashion. Stern opted not to bring any type of disciplinary action down on the owner, for whatever reason. But in today's NBA, billions of potential dollars from fans and sponsors are at stake. Players like Chris Paul and Blake Griffin have a lot more control over where they can choose to play. The league is made up of roughly 85% Black players, with more Black coaches and team executives than the previous generation. And its superstar athletes, like LeBron James, are more vocal when it comes to social issues than former players like, say, Michael Jordan, was. We saw that when the Trayvon Martin incident happened and we saw it again in reaction to Sterling's comments.
I'll agree with Jason Whitlock on the point that, yes, the media got a hold of this and ran with it. That's what the media does with hot button topics such as this one. Yes, Donald Sterling was set up by Ms. Stiviano and whoever else was involved. But should those facts mitigate a neccessary response from the public and the players and coaches who play, not just for the Clippers, but for every other team in the NBA, NFL, MLB and other professional sports? Certainly not! I feel the reaction was exactly what it should have been. The Clippers' players felt it necessary to stage a silent protest before their road playoff game against the Golden State Warriors by shedding their warm up tops that displayed the Clippers logo. They had discussed boycotting the next game, along with players from the other playoff teams, if the league wasn't swift in their decision to discipline Sterling. Was this action necessary? Was it right? Yes, and yes! Was it an overreaction? Misplaced? No and no! The actions of the league and the players put all the other owners on notice that the players have a lot more control in the NBA than some may admit and that they can shut the league down at any moment. The owners have this ability and we have seen it done many times in the form of lockouts over labor negotiations. Donald Sterling isn't the only owner in the league who feels the way he does about the players who are millionaires due to the amount of money the team owners pay them. Remember Cleveland Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert's and Cleveland fans response to LeBron James' departure to Miami? It reminded me of a slave master calling out a runaway slave and the fans burning James' jersey in effigy was brought back images of obvious historical reference. These players still work for a living and they have a union to represent them. They have a right to voice their displeasure when they feel like something is wrong and this issue is very wrong. An owner who despises Black people has no business running a business, company or team that is made up primarily of the people he hates. Is hate the right word? Absolutely! If Donald Sterling didn't hate Black people, he wouldn't have made the comments that ended up on tape. He admitted to Adam Silver that is was him on the tape. He told an interviewer that his only regret was that he didn't "pay her off", referring to Stiviano. Sterling has not apologized for his comments because he stands by them. And while he is entitled to his views, privately stated or otherwise, he should be held accountable for them when those comments and views are made public, mainly because if the position he holds, regardless of how hose comments were found out. Kareem Adul Jabbar has said that he hopes those who illegally recorded Sterling goes to jail, while remaing critical of the comments that were made. If those idividuals are held responsible for that, then so be it. But just like any other owner of a franchise, whether it be an NBA team or a McDonalds, there are standards that franchise owners and other inidividuals in similar positions are held to because they are in the public eye. The bottom line is the bottom line; money, billions of dollars worth of it. The NBA has to protect it's brand, if not it's players alone. So Adam Silver not only did the right thing, he did the only thing he could to do. He came down hard on an owner with a history of racial intolerance. It was time
The public reaction was appropriate as well. Imagine if when Rosa Parks made her statement on the bus that day in Montgomery, Alabama, that the following morning no one boycotted, because they didn't want to be viewed as 'agenda driven'? Imagine if the abolitionists like Fredrick Douglas chose not to speak on slavery because he didn't want those who supported his ideals to be viewed as mob ruled. Imagine if slaves felt, as Jason Whitlock wrote of Sterling, that their masters were "victims of white supremacy" and that if they fought against their oppressors that the slave masters would go from villains to martyrs? Imagine that and then imagine us still picking cotton because this is the culture that is to big to be changed. Black Americans have to react right away when faced with these types of issues because if not, we are accepting the actions of those who view us as beneath them. We are accepting those white people in positions of power still having the "slave master" mentality and accepting the slave mentality that some Blacks still have. If it were not for the reaction of Black people when faced with incidents such as this, or with the Trayvon Martin and Jordan Davis' trails, or with the outright disrespect and racist feelings our Black president faces as he tries to bring our country back from the economic disaster that George W. Bush left behind, we wouldn't even be having the conversations we've had over the past week regarding Donald Sterling. It wouldn't be news. It would be the norm and we'd only have ourselves to blame for it. Yes, I agree that other topics such as economic equality, voters rights, unemployment, the violence that our Black inner cities are subject to, family values, etc. should be met with the same furor as the topics that the media views as sexy or ratings grabbers. But that doesn't mean that the reaction to issues that involve millionare Black athletes versus billionaire white owners deserve any less attention. In fact, these type of situations reminds us that no matter where a Black person is in society, whether they be rich or poor, President or constituent, millionaire athlete or working class fan, we are still viewed one way and one way only by a large portion of white America. I don't need to spell it out, do I?
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