If you want to read about racism in our sports culture read Second Wind by Bill Russell or The Last Pass by Gary Pomerantz.
The incident in Bill Russell’s career in Boston which he and some other black players left the team in Louisville when they weren’t served in a restaurant is basically the theme in Pomerantz’s book.
Russell and some other black players walked out and went home when they weren’t served in a Louisville restaurant. Which of course made me fondly remember of my father’s similar incident with Joe Carter Sr. in a downtown Oklahoma City cafe. My father would have gone back to Boston with Bill Russell and the black players.
The Boston team as a whole didn’t walk out and played the exhibition in Louisville as a white Celtics’ team with Red Auerbach as head coach.
It forever left a rift in the relationship between Bill Russell and Bob Cousy.
The Last Pass was in essence Bob Cousy late in his life trying to make amends to Bill Russell for not supporting Bill Russell at the time.
But have we really come anywhere since the 60’s? One black president is elected and the response by the GOP is to nominate a person like Donald Trump who basically became the party’s nominee by embracing the doctrine of Birtherism and using southern senators like Jeff Sessions to give his candidacy some legs with rural whites.
If Clay Bennett came out publicly in Oklahoma and said honest things in relation to Trump what would that do to his ticket sales?
We really haven’t come all that far. But to Mitt Romney’s credit late in his life he is the one white Republican senator so far who has said a few things.
Rand Paul…sigh. How Rand Paul didn’t end up in Oklahoma or Alabama is beyond me.
James Lankford could say a few things given that he’s part of a senatorial clique along with Tim Scott who eat lunch together in D.C. But nary a word in public from James Lankford on the racist Trump. He can’t say those words in public because it would be political suicide in Oklahoma much like it was for Mick Cornett.
So if as a public figure in Oklahoma you can’t speak honestly about race then I’d say nothing has really changed.
Nothing has changed in Oklahoma except when you need a touchdown or a basket in a clutch situation. You don’t go to the white guys except when John Stockton doubles down on Michael Jordan.