I’m sure by now you may have heard about what ESPN First Take’s Rob Parker said about Washington Redskins rookie QB Robert Griffin III’s “blackness”.
It all started when RG3 stated that he did not want to be defined by his race. Here’s more from USA Today:
“For me, you don’t ever want to be defined by the color of your skin,” Griffin said at the end of Wednesday’s post-practice news conference in reference to a question about Martin Luther King, Jr, via USA Today. “You want to be defined by your work ethic, the person that you are, your character, your personality. That’s what I’ve tried to go out and do.
“I am an African-American in America. That will never change. But I don’t have to be defined by that.”
So a young brother who is doing positive things – albeit in sports – basically paraphrased Dr. King’s “I Have a Dream” speech when he said he dreamed of an America that did not judge people by their character instead of the color of their skin.
So instead of praising the young man for having a bit of insight, and self-awareness if you will, Parker apparently did not like hearing RG3 saying he does not have to defined by his race alone. Thus in his infinite wisdom, Parker chose to question RG3’s “blackness”. See for yourselves:
I have a few thoughts here. First of all, I unfortunately have had experiences where I had MY “blackness” questioned. Just because I got good grades in elementary and middle school, used proper grammar, and didn’t conduct myself as a thug in public, I was not considered “black enough”.
I was called all sorts of hurtful things such as “oreo”, “white boy”, and a gay slur. I was also challenged to a fight because of that. And the most hurtful part about that was that some of it came from RELATIVES. You read that right: the people who supposed to love me the most were among the ones who called me those things.
Unfortunately, I am not the first – and definitely not the last – black person to have his “blackness” called into question.
If Parker had any sense, he would apologize to RG3 for making such a stupid statement like that. Chances are he will not, and will stubbornly defend the stupid shit he said until the cows come home.
And white folks wonder why we cannot get ahead (yeah, I said it).
Bottom line: I’ve said it before, and I will keep saying it when I see black people do what Parker did. We black people flat out hate each other.
Categories: sports story
Agreed. Totally idiotic things were coming out of Parker’s mouth. If he were white, he’d have been suspended or perhaps fired for such foolish remarks. Who nominated Parker to be the judge and jury regarding how “black” black people are supposed to act? It’s insulting. He would never go on the air and say a Jewish person wasn’t acting Jewish enough. If he did, it would be his farewell show.
Even Steven A., who has had to extract his foot from his mouth several times, had the good sense to run full speed away from those comments.
Of course, the main “problem” is RGIII’s white fiance. That’s what really troubles some folks. I doubt Parker would have been as judgmental of the young man if he were dating a black woman.
If you’re lucky enough to make a living talking about other people’s accomplishments, stick to what you know. All we need to hear from Parker is his opinion concerning how the young man is doing on the football field. No one asked him to help separate the real brothers from the cornball brothers, whatever that means. You get in trouble diving headfirst into complicated subjects that are beyond your area of expertise.
Ok he doesnt want to be defined by race huh.He is black and that will not change,It is still a struggle for black men and women in this country.I feel personally feel blacks need to accept and love who they are.
Ok this QB is awesome and the color of his skin should not matter. He has great parents who are so proud of him. His accomplishments are because he strives to do the best he can do for his team. Kudos to RG3. Good luck and hope he continues to kick butt.
I try to follow your work pretty closely. I don’t know how I missed this. Parker’s comments really upset me, but as a white female, I feel like I am prohibited from weighing in on racial topics. Thank you for your insight and comments.
No worries sis! Parker’s comments were so egregious, ANYONE could have made an intelligent comment on them lol…