I try very hard not to have knee jerk reactions to events that take place in our society. We should gather the facts about a matter before making a judgment.
Reputations and careers are ruined when false information is put out in the public domain. If we ran with every piece of hearsay and gossip that was out there, where would we be?
Reports surface almost daily about famous people from all walks of life being caught in compromising situations. There are publications that always will have a “hot headline” about someone of perceived importance.
I read both newspapers and review the Internet for current events and interesting stories. To that end, I’ve followed the story, which alleges that National Basketball Association team owner Donald Sterling made some comments about Black people that were based in bigotry.
Sterling, who owns the Los Angeles Clippers, was expressing his displeasure at his mixed-race girlfriend (African-American and Mexican) about her proclivity to be around Black people and to have her picture taken with Hall of Fame NBA player Earvin “Magic” Johnson.
My mind instantly started dribbling down the court in search of answers. One of my first questions was, how in the world did TMZ manage to obtain the recorded conversation? Did the girlfriend set him up? As fate would have it, I listened to ESPN radio as they had obtained a copy of the audio and I parked the car and listened.
It was unbelievable! The owner of an NBA franchise is purported to have made these comments. The owner who paid several million to settle two lawsuits within the last 10 years that involved racist and discriminatory practices aimed at minorities in regard to his rental properties. Elgin Baylor, a basketball icon who played in the NBA for many years and a former Sterling executive employee, had unsuccessfully sued this same owner for wrongful termination and discrimination. TNT basketball analyst Charles Barkley and many other prominent figures have said Sterling should be fined and suspended.
