They Are Scumbags
Jesse J. Lewis, Sr.
This is the statement Charles Barkley made referring to some Black people in Ferguson. Charles Barkley has been severely criticized by several Black leaders for making this off-the-cuff statement.
Last week on TNT, Charles Barkley stated that if he had made the statement ‘all police officers were racists,’ he would have been praised by Black people.
He also said “I call it like I see it. Those people who don’t like it can kiss my____ where the sun don’t shine.”
Jason Johnson, a professor of Political Science, was interviewed on CNN. Here’s what he said:
There is nothing wrong with professional athletes expressing their opinions about social or political issues. Just because you slip on a helmet or swing a racquet doesn’t mean you don’t have the right to voice an opinion on politics, the economy, faith or any other issue in America.
However, Charles Barkley’s recent comments about the Ferguson grand jury decision and the subsequent unrest across the nation aren’t just off-the-cuff comments from an athlete waxing political during an interview.
For the least several years Barkley has fashioned himself as some type of hard-truth-telling cultural critic – especially on issues of race in America. What his Ferguson commentary makes obvious is that he’s just an uninformed rich guy who is given way more credibility than he deserves when discussing racial and political issues in America.
The problem with his statements isn’t just that they are misleading – 16 out of 29 witness statements said that Mike Brown had his hands up in surrender, in direct conflict with Darren Wilson’s story; and police used a banned chokehold on Eric Garner, a measure that was known to cause death – but that Charles Barkley is uniquely and astoundingly unqualified to discuss issues of race, law, and police violence.
If Black folks need to take more responsibility how would you describe a Black man who drives drunk, runs red lights and explains to police that he was rushing home to have sex with the woman in the passenger seat?
If those actions make you a scumbag, or show lack of responsibility, then Barkley should let it be known he’s talking about himself. Because he has been charged with crimes over the course of his career but somehow he never ended up shot, or dead, and has spent three days in jail. Charles Barkley’s personal failings don’t disqualify him from social commentary, but his hypocrisy does.
Charles Barkley gets a huge forum to talk about cases like Ferguson and the killing of Trayvon Martin because he’s Black and famous, not because he’s informed, or credible or even representative of any segment of the population. And while that might make for entertaining television, it certainly doesn’t amount to social criticism anyone should take seriously.
This is usually done by pointing out that said athlete is a Hall of Famer, or was great in some playoff series or donates to charity. Charles Barkley doesn’t deserve that soft landing anymore. If networks are going to lob him easy questions about larger social issues, he should have to defend what he says just like another guest. But if his comments over the last few years are any indicator, he probably can’t.
In other words, if Sir Charles wants to post up in the world of politics about Ferguson, then he needs to get more informed, more prepared and more connected to what he’s talking about. There’s no room for him in the court of public opinion when lives, property and the health of our democracy are at stake.
