OT: Tiger Woods Criticism

Didn't Jim brown go to bat for Maurice Clarett? Just saying...

This is one of my favorite subjects. Despite my pale skin, I participated in some civil rights marches in the 60's and whatever it segued into in the 70's, and have always been on this issue like, well, "white on rice." The sixties and seventies were a unique era; one cannot expect any athlete to be "another Jim Brown" or "another Muhammad Ali." Back then, segregation still openly existed in many places. Even in Ann Arbor, which was known as a bastion of liberal thought, I watched managers routinely throw the applications of those with dark skin into the wastebasket as soon as the person walked out the door. Jokes about "token n-words" were actually accepted as humor in many workplaces, and there was no semblance of equality in hiring practices. I can go on and on here, but I'm sure there is plenty of research available online. To give a condensed version from a sympathetic outsider, being African-American in that era was probably ten times as tough as it is now. In that era, black athletes were expected to "know their place," shut up, and be thankful for what they did have. And if you were the best QB on the team, like Marlin Briscoe, you were expected to play WR or DB. As for endorsements and movie roles, most of them went to white athletes. And, though this is about microcosm called sports, it is closely related to the macrocosm of racial tolerance in the US in general. I shudder to think where racial relations in this country would be even now if not for Tommie Smith, John Carlos, Ali, and Brown. In that era, activism was huge. Nowadays, it isn't. The era is different. And African-Americans have been "given" just enough so-called "equality" that it renders a lot of protest ineffective. So, basically, it would do no good for Tiger Woods to engage in most overt forms of protest. All clubs holding majors have already been forced, some kicking and screaming like Augusta, to admit African-American members. In some cases they are tokens, and as few as the clubs can get away with, but it does allow the clubs to tell the public that they are compliant with the rules, "bastions of equality," and other such crap. What Tiger is doing with First Tee and by example is doing more good than any symbolic protest could. If a person's favorite golfer, who happens to be extremely intelligent and articulate, has dark skin, that person will tend to be more tolerant and less of judgemental of others with dark skin. Also, Woods has brought a lot of African-Americans into golf who wouldn't otherwise have had the opportunity or the desire to play. And every time an African-American succeeds in a "gentleman's" sport, it makes it that much harder for a racist to argue their inferiority, and even harder for those arguments to be taken seriously by others. I love what Jim Brown did, but he can't seriously expect others to be like he was or is. Besides, Brown didn't become as much of an activist until he didn't have to worry about keeping up the skills that made him the best player in the NFL for a few years. If Brown is still alive when Tiger retires from competitive golf, then maybe he should talk to Tiger about taking on his role in the African-American community. Until then, though, I would rather see Tiger concentrate on becoming the player who won the most majors and the most tournaments. Having an African-American universally recognized as the greatest player who ever played, quantified by the most wins in both majors and tournaments, would do more than Tiger could ever do with speeches or symbolic gestures.

Jim Brown is Dubois to Woods' Washington. Not exactly but I guess that's my oversimplified interpretation of their approaches to activism.

is doing his part to support inner city kids who need some help. This is a different era than the late 60's and early 70's when Jim Brown retired and became an activist. Jim and Tiger need to get together to put all this acrimony to rest for the betterment of people they wnat to support. Jim could be targeting different athletes too. What about Barry Sanders? MIchael Irvin? Emmitt Smith? TO? Donovan McNabb?

Even though I never saw him play, I would also rate Jackie Robinson as the bravest of all the pioneers Marco mentioned. What he had to put up with is probably unfathomable to most of us in this era. I would put Smith and Carlos next, and Ali third (or is that fourth?) on the bravery scale. Thinking of Robinson, he was called names not only by opposing fans, but fans in his home stadium, and opposing players. At first, even some players on his own team didn't accept him. And I don't think he got to stay in the same hotels as the rest of the team a lot in the early days, either. Imagine the pressure of being THE only representitive of his race in what was then the American Pastime. Hitting a baseball is probably the most difficult task in sports; imagine having to do it while a circus is going on around you on a daily basis. I put Smith and Carlos second only to Robinson because the knew they were in for a fecal storm and did it anyway. They were universally reviled by most of mainstream America for their actions for years, ruining any chance they had of taking financial advantage of their Olympic fame. Ali was brave and even spent time in jail, but it was for refusing to go to Vietnam, which was a totally different issue. Also, Ali had the backing of the Musilm community, and being a controversial figure helped him make more money than he would have if he hadn't created such a larger-than-life persona. Ali gave up two years of his prime; Smith and Carlos pretty much gave up their entire post-Olympic careers. Back to Ali for a second: he wasn't given nearly as much respect early in his career as he is now. He was almost like a professional wrestling "heel" in a lot of places. He was reviled for his bragging, and refusing to go to 'Nam only made him more of a villian. A lot of people watched his fights hoping to see someone finally "shut him up." Thankfully, Ali not only had a great support group, but seems to have been utterly self-validating. And for those who love to hate Howard Cosell, his role in popularizing Ali was crucial. I only hope that I live to see the day when color doesn't matter anymore. I would even settle for living long enough to see fifty percent of college football coaches be African-American.

Or so I heard from a caterer/teaching assistant a couple of years ago. Bud Selig was allegedly also a bad tipper, while Michael Jordan was supposed to tip very well.

I feel like it's an unfair criticism of Woods. As others have mentioned, he risks so much financially if he accidentally says the wrong thing or gives the wrong impression at some point. Just look at other celebrities like Barbara Streisand, the Dixie Chicks, Mel Gibson, they've all alienated people and sponsors at one time or another because of their stance on different issues. It's easy to say "well so Tiger would only make $70 million a year instead of $100 million in sponsorships" but if I was in his position I know what I'd choose to do. Besides, from what I understand he's pretty involved with his own charitable work. We need talkers and we also need doers, it's like if some company is polluting a waterway, someone needs to bring the issue to the forefront, but that doesn't get the trash out of the river. Someone still needs to put on their waders and do the hands on work. Maybe this is a situation where Tiger is better at the hands on work and Brown is better at bringing the issues out, I really don't know the ins and outs of their charities and involvement.

i do realize that being black in america is different than it is for other minorities because of this nation's history, but tiger is chinese, thai, native american, dutch.... and african american. to put on him the responsibility of teaching young black kids how to act is really to judge him on the color of his skin. should he also be a role model for young chinese kids? for thai kids? i really wonder how tiger feels about his own blackness, given that he never really talks about it.