The Bad Negro

If the charge is Black protectionism, I plead guilty. Fine. But I think it’s deeper than that. I fully understand that my sense of what Blacks must overcome in this country to become successful and my sensitivity towards the extra scrutiny Blacks in power and prominence endure causes me to err on the side of tolerance for most Black people. If Mike Vick wants to kill some dogs on the weekend, I don’t agree and I think he should stop but I wouldn’t send him to prison. If president Obama doesn’t seem as effective as promised, give him a break he’s dealing with a lot.

More so than a protectionist, I am a huge fan of the “bad negro”. I love to see when Black men refuse to defer and exist as a thorn in the side of the collective conscience that fears a slave loosed. In my opinion this is most obvious in the world of sports. The whole world believed that LBJ owed Cleveland his career or he would be less of a man is he left and didn’t pursue the “legacy outlined for him at New York or, to a lesser extent, Chicago. What did he do? He went to Miami to play alongside the men he wanted to play with and instantly became the most hated figure in professional sports. I researched it; he didn’t have his car reupholstered in nun leather. He became a bad Negro because he exercised his right to make an independent decision and he planned it with two other Blacks, seemingly without a single white paternalist’s help. The national anger wasn’t really about betrayal, it was about power.

Albert Haynesworth has made a tremendous amount of money and has been the subject of a tremendous amount of blame and animosity. The Redskins (I feel bad typing that name) are a terrible team. They have an, old, untalented offense and a defense that could use a tune-up as well Instead of blaming the general dysfunction of the organization This one player is to blame because the R-dskins can’t score touchdowns or can’t tackle running backs or can’t cover opposing receivers. Mike Shanahan has made obvious and frequent mistakes, including benching his effective Black quarterback in favor of a White quarterback who promptly lost the game. Conversely, in San Francisco, Mike Singletary has taken the brunt of the blame for his team not meeting expectations although his (White) Quarterback is one of the quietest first selection busts in the league.

Protectionism isn’t racism. I liken the tendency to rooting for the underdog, hoping a persona non grata can etch out a place to succeed by his own terms. If Mike Vick would have said, “eff you league. I’m not apologizing anymore. I did my time and you need me to play. I’m changing my life for me not because you have some sort of control or influence over me.” I may have moved to Philly. The bad Negro represents a threat to the power structure and I enjoy it especially the customary overreaction and the tension that lasts until the prepared apology.