“I am not perfect. I am only human with many of the same issues you go through. I have disappointed my family due to my transgressions, and I’m determined to be a better father and husband;” these were just some of the words delivered by Tiger Woods for what appears to be a misstep made by the otherwise uber athlete that has been adorned by fans around the world. And although he has gone to great lengths to remain private this latest PR nightmare may have cost him more than he expected.
Tiger has wealth beyond wealth and has reached the pinnacle of the golfing profession. He has the cars, the homes and all of the accruements that come with his level of stardom. But if you’re as famous as Tiger Woods the price can be too great. Which leads us to the question, should Tiger be forced to discuss this private matter in public?
From the beginning it appeared as if there were inconsistencies in the stories of both parties regarding Dr. Henry Gates situation. And although Mr. Gates accomplishments are well documented and the enormous respect we have for him is well deserved the question remains, did he wrongly play the race card?
Henry Louis Gates, Jr. was born on September 16, 1950, he is an American literary critic, educator, scholar; writer, editor, and public intellectual with many distinctions, but on July 16, 2009 he was arrested by the Cambridge Police Department on what he considered to be an act of Racial Profiling, though as more information came forward it appeared as if the Harvard Scholar may have misplayed the race card.
Police arrived at Gates’s Ware Street home near Harvard Square at 12:44 p.m. to question him after he had trouble unlocking his door after it became jammed. He was booked for disorderly conduct after exhibiting loud and tumultuous behavior,” according to a police report. Gates accused the investigating officer of being a racist and told him he had ‘no idea who he was messing with,’ the report said.
Gates told the officer he was being targeted because “I’m a black man in America.” But it appears that Gates is too old to fit the profile of a break-in suspect and more so his national popularity makes it seem unlikely that he would be racially profiled.
The hugely powerful National Football League was founded in 1920 and has since grown into arguably the most profitable sports franchise in the world, but yet in spite of its success it continues to embrace an outdated ideology that unconsciously alienates its contributors.
In a day-and-age when quality leadership transcends ethnicity we are still experiencing double standards in how African-American athletes are treated by a system that has consistently marginalized the contribution of the black athlete, where major sports are heavily played by people of color but overwhelmingly under-represented in the board room the concept of fair and impartial judgment is often missed and the cultural biases that the groups of power have toward other groups make up the decisions for many of these executives. This is an ongoing reality that has cruelly villanized the black athlete.
The double standard can be as simple as mainstream media justifying the cruelty of Deer Hunting and maximizing Dog Fighting where in many instances the dogs used in these fight clubs go on to live full and healthy lives, whereas the deer’s are terminated and much of their flesh goes to waste.
But Michael Vick was used as the scapegoat for a criminal act largely done by southern white men and although he’s repaid his debt yet the NFL has decided to exact their own justice and extend his punishment by conditionally reinstating him, forcing him to miss an additional four games.
This is a mockery of our justice system! As if serving a two year sentence wasn’t enough.
Where do we go from here and how do we defend against such injustices?
Multiracial relationships are becoming the norm yet it still seems as if sides are divided and many of the problems facing our country is race related. What can be done to change this pattern of distruction?
There has been a lot of talk about the world going green, but can our planet really be saved from itself?
With the collapse of Wall Street and everyone affraid to invest in the money market, how do we regain faith in our economy?
Reparations for slavery is a proposal by some in the United States that some type of compensation should be provided to the descendants of enslaved people, yet very few have supported the intitiative. Is reparations no longer needed?
Separation of chruch and state is a political and legal doctrine that government and religious institutions are to be kept separate and independent from each other. The term most often refers to the comination of two principles: secularity of government and freedom of religious exercise. Therefore, should church still be considered when deciding on policies regarding our country?
The numbers are still staggering, HIV cases are amongst the highest in the black community, but what isn’t being discussed is prevention-what can be done?
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Suddenly we’ve experienced a rash of police shootings, but the question remains is it race related?
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