"A Black man had no rights which the white man was bound to respect,"
Chief Justice Roger B. Taney
On Sunday afternoon, I spent a little time after preaching and meeting the congregation with a bit of tv time, mostly playing in the background. But since I do have a master's degree in Social Work from the University of Michigan and I am currently a doctoral student in the Joint Sociology and Social Work program at Michigan, I tend to lift up the old Go Blue banner. I'm not a sports fanatic by any means. I couldn't tell you who is good and who is terrible. I have no athletic records memorized and I really can't remember whose team won the last national championship. However, I enjoy sports. I played them as a youth and I enjoy playing sports even today, so much so that I wake up twice a week at 5:00 am to play pick-up basketball. If you played pick-up basketball with no referee, you already know the physicality and intensity that can come with that kind of game. However, when it's over, we slap hands and walk away in peace or anger.
I play pick-up basketball at a private club. The benefits of the private gym actually have less to do with the exclusivity that most would initially assume, but primarily the convenience–geographically it is between my work and home. In short, I love the place. I've referred friends and become a bit of a fixture over the last eight years. But like many places in the world, it's one of those places where I am a minority, and in this circumstance, I'm a super minority by way of race and class. Simply put, I’m Black and not financially well-off. 
Reverend Charles E. Williams II
