I thought that might get your attention, just as it got mine when watching a re-run of Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel. I want to make my position clear from the start, I am not a fan of Bryant Gumbel and thinks he, like many other prominent African American sports reporters are frauds. But on Tuesday night when the show aired he stooped to an all time low by referring to David Stern’s recent public activity towards the NBA players as that of a plantation with his boys and hired hands.
I may not like the man personally, but I respect his work. I’ve always greeted athletes and celebrities through various work events with a request to “Use your Influence, to Influence” Someone as respected as Bryant Gumbel should be careful of his words especially when it comes to professional sports that have a high concentration of African American Men in them.
Professional Athletes are in no way shape or form anything like slaves. Professional Athletes don’t suffer anywhere near the hardships that a slave would have faced. Even college athletes on scholarship don’t suffer because of sports. So why evoke slavery when things aren’t going as one would like?
I’m sure a lot of people are upset at the possibility of missing significant basketball games. That being said, there is plenty of blame to be placed on the Owners’ and the NBA Players’ side, but relating any portion of this process to slavery is asinine.
Maybe I’m in the minority on this, so I ask you, what is your opinion on professional athletes being referred to as slaves? I understand Bryant Gumbel’s remarks were related to the sport of basketball but I want to open it up to all sports. Is there any professional sport whose athletes could be referred to as slaves?
Also while we’re on this topic lets relate it to hip-hop and ask why did many people think it was cool to simulate “Planking” this summer?
This young rapper Dee-1 says it best, “Our Ancestors are screaming from the grave, cause physically we free, but we still some mental slaves”
words by: @Philly_Ron
