![]() When black athletes deviate from the status quo, they are dismissed as prima donnas - greedy and spoiled. ![]() They are expected to be perpetually humble and not revel in their own excellence. Their talent is often dismissed as natural ( “beast” and "freak" are preferred terms bestowed on black players) as opposed to the result of hard work and dedication. Black athletes are often expected to be seen and not heard. But as far as some fans and sportswriters are concerned, with that power comes great responsibility. Professional sports is one of the few avenues in American life where black men are provided the opportunity to dominate. WATCH: Will Cam Newton make history in Super Bowl? But really his gravest act was exercising his own power. And more recently we’ve seen it LeBron James, when he had the audacity to choose to play for another team, not for more money, but because he felt they presented him with better chance to win. James became a lightning rod, even after his "decision" bore fruit in two championships, because he was viewed as ungrateful and disloyal. We saw it with John Carlos and Tommie Smith, two Olympians who raised their fists in protest during the 1968 games. We saw it with Muhammad Ali, who was vilified for declaring himself "the greatest" before taking a stand against serving in the Vietnam War. Newton is clearly being held to a different standard, and this dichotomy is nothing new. The golden boy of the NFL, Tom Brady, did the same thing in 2007, but no bother. ![]() He has even been upbraided in a hectoring letter to the editor of his local Charlotte Observer for having a child out of wedlock. But that is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to all the records he’s broken or is close to breaking since his Rookie of the Year winning season in 2010.Īnd yet Newton is routinely ridiculed as unintelligent, obnoxious and a bad role model for children. And this season he set a new record for most combined yards through a quarterback’s first five seasons. He tied the record for most rushing TDs by a quarterback, after just five years in the NFL. He became the first quarterback in NFL history to throw for 30 touchdowns and rush for 10 more in one season. He led his team, which was expected to have a down year due to significant injuries on their roster, to a 15-1 record. This year, Newton will be just the sixth quarterback of color to start a Super Bowl in its 50-year existence, and technically this will be the fourth time a black QB will be at the helm of a championship contender this decade (the Seahawks’ more milquetoast Russell Wilson appeared in the last two).īy all accounts, Newton had a historical season on the football field. Playing in the NFL is arguably a privilege and therefore intense scrutiny comes with the territory, but there is a sneaking suspicion in many quarters, and with Newton himself, that race may be playing an insidious role in the backlash against him.Īs someone related to a genius political cartoonist (hi Annie Zirin) and it being the only art form I feel qualified to judge, props to Rob Tornoe for *the* cartoon of Super Bowl 50.Posted by Dave Zirin on Thursday, February 4, 2016įor several decades, white players dominated the quarterback position, and it was little more than an open secret that talent and skill had nothing to do with that phenomenon. It seems that hating Cam Newton has become something of a cottage industry (he’s even been compared unfavorably to GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump and Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler) and the more he succeeds, the larger the chorus of critics has become. And unlike many others, he went back to school last year to earn a sociology degree, several years into his NFL career, to fulfill a commitment he’d previously made to his mother. Some will even bring up alleged indiscretions from his college playing career, although a stolen laptop and the possible acceptance of illegal payouts from schools to retain his services pale in comparison to some of the activities other recent student athletes have been accused of. WATCH: Cam Newton criticized for victory dances They will say he is selfish, even though he gives almost every touchdown ball away to an adoring fan and recently hosted an elaborate Halloween party for a young boy dying of a rare form of cancer. They will say his touchdown celebrations are unbecoming of a quarterback, perhaps ignoring the fact that he is playing a game that is supposed to be fun, and nearly all his peers engage in similar antics. And Newton enjoys the vocal support of his teammates, whom he always praises profusely in public. Although one could argue that virtually all NFL quarterbacks must possess a degree of ego to lead a football team to success on a national stage. Many people will actively root against Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton in the Super Bowl on Sunday, and not simply because they are Denver Broncos fans.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |