Name-calling is a despicable act.
Kids can be the most innocent but also the meanest creatures, at the same time. They'll call a classmate, teammate or friend a name, not realizing the hurt and confusion it can cause. I remember my friends calling another friend "mouth" because the youngster showed a lot of confidence and verbalized that confidence. They thought he was a showoff, when in reality he was more mature then they were. Kids cut to the chase quickly when they feel threatened or are confused about something or someone they don't understand. Name calling with kids is a sling, but with adults it's an arrow.
Grownups are more insidious with their name-calling. The "name du jour" is calling someone a racist. At the U.S. Open, an off court, changeover collision between Venus Williams and Irina Spirlea motivated Venus' dad, Richard Williams, to call Spirlea a racist. Mr. Williams had every right to voice his opinion about the incident and if he felt necessary, to label Spirlea whatever he wanted. But calling her "a big white turkey" makes him a racist. What I find interesting, is while the meaning of the collision between the two is left to interpretation and debate, there's no doubt about the meaning and racist nature of Richard Williams' name-calling.
What bothers me is any person's first reaction to a situation being to call someone a name, especially a racist one, it's more than a name, it's a label. Whether the essence is true or not is secondary to the image it sends to those who hear it said of someone. It seems to me it's used publicly more in sports than elsewhere. The sad thing is that minorities, at times, use it as an indiscriminate weapon to get leverage. And, the truly sad thing is when minorities make a racist statement themselves, such as Richard Williams, in presenting their point or making an accusation.
Let me give you some examples. Agents and athletes will hint or come out and say that a team or G.M. is racist if they aren't being offered a contract to their liking. Today in professional sports, that's the stupidest of comments and charges. Pro sports are commodity businesses. We pay, you win. It has nothing to do with color, it has to do with productivity. So for an agent or athlete to name call or label a team or a front office person, a racist is illogical and ludicrous. Interesting how you never hear that said after the athlete gets an acceptable contract. It appears to me that both sides only have interest in one color - Green, the color of money.
In Richard Williams' labeling of the collision of his daughter with Irina Spirlea as racially motivated, her directly attacked her. But, by saying she was "a big white turkey", he name called and labeled her in the same racially motivated way he was condemning. White people are upset, frustrated and to a degree angry when they see minorities trying to have it both ways. They see minorities wanting their grievances addressed, but they see the way they demand it as bad as the grievance itself. Name-calling to get what you want doesn't solve the problem. Motivating someone to understand your grievance and to solve it, does.
Another example: The NFL is not against Chicago Bears linebacker Bryan Cox because he's black. There's not a racially motivated conspiracy to run him out of the league or fine him into poverty. He has been fined and punished because of the one thing he has the most control over - his actions. Rules govern conduct. If you break them, you're penalized, in yards and dollars. Shoot the fans the bird, even if some are stupid and crude, you'll be fined. Get crazy on the field and you'll cost your team 3 fifteen-yard penalties. Name-calling and labeling a whole league (which is primarily black) racist, is wrong.
I'm not so naïve to believe that there's not racism. My greater concern is that we've created a resistance to addressing the problem by name-calling. Now, minorities who are seriously addressing the problems have one more thing to deal with because of it. Instead of a receptiveness to investigate these problems, now one has to assure those investigating this isn't just a smear campaign or a cry of "wolf."
Sports are a reflection of society. Through successes on the playing field, there's an embracement. Player to player. Fans to player. Team to fans. For a brief moment we celebrate the collective effort and productivity of that effort. Win or lose, we stood together in a common cause. To compete. Not black, not white, just people. Now, let's carry that attitude into life.
I feel better now.
I'm Ron Barr.
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