Charles Barkley Supports Ferguson Decision, Calls Protestors Scumbags

George's Dilemma

George's Dilemma

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Bolzmark said:
I don't have a problem with him calling looters "scumbags". These are people taking advantage of the a young mans death to cop a tv or whatever. They are not "protesters", they are thieves and he is spot on.

The rest of what he said? :wtf:

I'm gonna chalk it up to that his lifestyle has TOTALLY shielded him from the concerns and frustrations that plague the black community. Charles has been a millionaire for what, almost 30 years now? He's also a famous celebrity. Cops pull Charles over, they not beatin his azz. They askin for autographs and pictures.
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Haven't gone through the whole thread, but I tend to agree with some of what he said myself.

http://www.cnn.com/2014/12/02/us/charles-barkley-on-race/

"We as black people, we have a lot of crooks. We can't just wait until something like (the Brown shooting) happens. We have to look at ourselves in the mirror," he said of people in black communities. "There is a reason that they racially profile us in the way they do. Sometimes it is wrong, and sometimes it is right."

I don't entirely disagree with that although I wouldn't generalize it as "We as black people, we have a lot of crooks", as it's more related to economics than race. I entirely agree with him about not waiting until something like this happens to then all of a sudden raise a stink about it. I look at Mike Brown, and Eric Garner, and can't help but wonder if they'd still be alive today had they not been so wreckless. That's not to say they got what they had coming to them, and that's especially so in the Eric Garner case. Still, both decided to argue with police, one decided to get into an actual altercation with the police, and both resisted arrest. I want to ask both of them like, "brehs what are you doing? Are you even thinking this through?"

The other thing is, these neighborhoods have way too much bull sh!t going on and demand a police presence and the police aren't always going to get it right. That said, they need to be called out on it when it happens. However, even before that happens, I'd like to think that there can be heavier responses internally within the Black community to address these problems. When I go OT on business and wind down in the hotel, the local news is always the same. Somebody shot, and some woman leading supporters with tee shirts honoring the deceased and making comments about how, "we're tired of the violence. We're tired of these shootings." It's the same ol, same ol, and after a while one has to ask well what're you going to do about it? It's your sons, nephews, brothers, etc., who are doing these shootings, selling drugs, having illegitimate children (who will ultimately perpetuate the cycle) with your daughters, sisters, and nieces. I look at some organized religions that don't tolerate behavior that goes against the moral codes of the church, and those churches will shun and remove those individuals from the church so that they don't impact the rest of the congregation. At times I'd like to see that happen in the Black community. A police presence won't be as necessary if the activity and behavior in these communities didn't warrent it and as a result incidents like we're seeing in the news wouldn't be as common as it seems.

I guess though, its more complex than that, and that's why any Black person who can moves out of those communities and goes for self and I can't much blame them.
 
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Endiphrint said:
Haven't gone through the whole thread, but I tend to agree with some of what he said myself.

http://www.cnn.com/2014/12/02/us/charles-barkley-on-race/

"We as black people, we have a lot of crooks. We can't just wait until something like (the Brown shooting) happens. We have to look at ourselves in the mirror," he said of people in black communities. "There is a reason that they racially profile us in the way they do. Sometimes it is wrong, and sometimes it is right."

I don't entirely disagree with that although I wouldn't generalize it as "We as black people, we have a lot of crooks", as it's more related to economics than race. I entirely agree with him about not waiting until something like this happens to then all of a sudden raise a stink about it. I look at Mike Brown, and Eric Garner, and can't help but wonder if they'd still be alive today had they not been so wreckless. That's not to say they got what they had coming to them, and that's especially so in the Eric Garner case. Still, both decided to argue with police, one decided to get into an actual altercation with the police, and both resisted arrest. I want to ask both of them like, "brehs what are you doing? Are you even thinking this through?"

The other thing is, these neighborhoods have way too much bull sh!t going on and demand a police presence and the police aren't always going to get it right. That said, they need to be called out on it when it happens. However, even before that happens, I'd like to think that there can be heavier responses internally within the Black community to address these problems. When I go OT on business and wind down in the hotel, the local news is always the same. Somebody shot, and some woman leading supporters with tee shirts honoring the deceased and making comments about how, "we're tired of the violence. We're tired of these shootings." It's the same ol, same ol, and after a while one has to ask well what're you going to do about it? It's your sons, nephews, brothers, etc., who are doing these shootings, selling drugs, having illegitimate children (who will ultimately perpetuate the cycle) with your daughters, sisters, and nieces. I look at some organized religions that don't tolerate behavior that goes against the moral codes of the church, and those churches will shun and remove those individuals from the church so that they don't impact the rest of the congregation. At times I'd like to see that happen in the Black community. A police presence won't be as necessary if the activity and behavior in these communities didn't warrent it and as a result incidents like we're seeing in the news wouldn't be as common as it seems.

I guess though, its more complex than that, and that's why any Black person who can moves out of those communities and goes for self and I can't much blame them.
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See what that c00n forgot to mention and what PISSES me off more than anything else when black people say shyt like this is, just about most issues that stem from the black community come from decades, CENTURIES of institutional racism. Black people have tried several times to build better communities and several times the spiteful, hateful white man has torn down those strides to the point where a lot of our people have ingrained in them a defeatist attitude. I'm not letting black people off for being crooks, because it isn't right, but his idiotic ass would rather point to a problem blaming black people without offering a viable solution.

When you co-sign BS like that you're almost saying that there is something mentally wrong with black people that cause them to want to be crooks. Most sane people aren't voluntarily going to be crooks if there is a better viable option. But institutional racism put us in this hole and as a people we're just supposed to pick ourselves up from our "bootstraps" :troll:

Yeah some people come from the hood, and they get it, that's not the norm and you shouldn't expect that being the norm by just telling them to do better. It's like me telling you to put your pants on backwards and telling you how much better your life is going to be if you do so without explaining why. Now would you honestly start putting your pants on backwards especially if everyone you know and are associated with is still putting them on the correct way? Probably not. The ghetto mentality works almost the exact same way. Not just the ghetto, human nature and all communities work the exact same way.

Charles Barkley spouts nonsense like this and then you have white people actually believe it, "well if this black male says that black people need to get there act together, why don't they just get their act together?"

You can miss me with that BS.
 
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He shytted on Trayvon too. This is Barkley's MO. No one should be surprised. What will it take to get him fired?
 
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GzUpHoEzDwN said:
I bet if u stripped Charles of all his money and fame and u stuck him back in Alabama he would change his tune real quik.
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He sure would. Which is why I always say integration was a bad idea. Once Black men are able to live comfortably in the white world all of a sudden the Black community is as important to them as the gum on the sole of their shoes and this explains why we are in the situation we are in. If Black men had to stay in their communities and build them up without a safety net from the white man, we would be a first rate nation within a nation.
 
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Shaq is a cop his damn self and even he has the sense to stay quiet
 
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Etan Thomas responds to chuck.

http://atlantablackstar.com/2014/12...n-thomas-calls-charles-barkley-ferguson-case/
Etan Thomas played nine seasons in the NBA, but he always was more than a basketball player. He was an advocate for kids, a poet, a thinker. A smart, conscious man, Thomas authored the 2013 book, “Fatherhood: Rising to the Ultimate Challenge.”

When he read about Charles Barkley’s support of the Ferguson grand jury’s decision to not indict officer Darren Wilson in the death of Michael Brown, he was disturbed enough to write this open letter to the Hall of Famer in thenation.com.

Dear Charles,
Let me say first that you are among the basketball greats. I remember rooting for you in the ’93 Championship Series against the Bulls along with one of my hometown heroes Richard Dumas. You have achieved a level of success on the court that will be cemented in the basketball history books permanently. Eleven NBA All-Star Game appearances, 2x All-Star MVP, once voted NBA MVP, one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History. Dream Team, two-time inductee into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. You are basketball royalty.

Your book “Who’s Afraid of a Large Black Man?” is sitting on my bookshelf right now. It’s a powerful book that takes on the issue of race and racism in a way that many would’ve shied away from.

“Racism,” you said, “is the biggest cancer of my lifetime. And I know I can’t cure the cancer, but doesn’t somebody have to attack it?”

In “Who’s Afraid of a Large Black Man” you compiled a very impressive list of fascinating opinions and personal stories from then-Senator Obama, Michael Wilbon, Tiger Woods, Morgan Freeman and many other famous personalities on their ideas about race and other issues in America. Your words were to the point, with little of your trademark humor. It’s clear that the audience you most hoped to reach with this book were young black men and women, and I commend you for using your celebrity status and influence to positively effect black youth.

You have never been afraid to speak your mind and I commend you for that. But with that comes great responsibility.

During an interview on 97.5 The Fanatic in Philadelphia, the day after the Ferguson decision was announced, host Mike Missanelli asked you to express your thoughts about it and why “Black America” didn’t trust the ruling. Your response was quite surprising to me. You said: “The true story came out from the grand jury testimony.” You explained that you were made aware of “key forensic evidence, and several black witnesses that supported Officer Darren Wilson’s story…”

You went on to say:

[W]e have to be really careful with the cops, because if it wasn’t for the cops we would be living in the Wild, Wild West in our neighborhoods…we can’t pick out certain incidentals that don’t go our way and act like the cops are all bad…. Do you know how bad some of these neighborhoods would be if it wasn’t for the cops?

You continued to refer to the Ferguson looters as “scumbags,” and further praised police officers who work in black neighborhoods, and reiterated that you support the decision made by the grand jury not to indict officer Darren Wilson in the Michael Brown shooting.

Mainstream America was falling over themselves with joy at your statements. They couldn’t be happier.

The headline from Young Conservatives read, “Charles Barkley Speaks The Truth about Ferguson, Calls Out Media, And It’s Epic.”

The Tea Party Network wrote “Former NBA star Charles Barkley slams Ferguson rioters, left stream media and Obama.”

When the wolf begins to praise the sheep, it would be wise for the sheep to undergo some serious self evaluation.

The fact that they were praising you should have made you take a long look in the mirror. I’m not going to disrespect you by calling you an Uncle Tom or putting up a big picture of Samuel L Jackson from Django Unchained, nor am I writing this to “slam” you, although I am sure many writers will attempt to frame it this way. I respectfully disagree with a position that you have every right to take.

The reason why your latest comments were so surprising for many in the black community is because they appeared to echo Bill O’Reilly, Sean Hannity and the rest of Fox News. That’s not what we expect from Sir Charles.

It’s like in Animal Farm where the other animals looked in the window and the pigs were walking upright like the evil humans.

Sir Charles should never appear to be taking on the characteristics of Rush Limbaugh.

This wasn’t the first time either. I did a double take after your statements after the Trayvon Martin verdict. I actually thought I was reading one of those satire articles when you told host Maria Bartiromo on CNBC’s Closing Bell: “That’s probably not a popular opinion among most people. But just looking at the evidence, I agreed with the verdict.”

You went on to say, “I don’t think that guy (George Zimmerman) should have gone to jail for the rest of his life. Because something happened bad that night.”

As a result you will be praised by many who search for a black face to reference who is in agreement with their regularly pushed agendas. It’s the “Rudolph Guliani and cops are always right and the black community is always deserving to be treated as criminals” doctrine.

They’re going to invite you to speak on all of their shows and attend their events. You’ll be awarded admission into their extra “exclusive” golf club memberships. They may even ask you to publicly endorse Ben Carson. You’ll be the “Voice Of Black America” on their shows. It’s like the Don Lemon fast-track to stardom playbook.

You’ll get more commercials, movie roles, hell, we may see you running through the airport jumping over suitcases or starring in the modernized Naked Gun movie with Tucker Carlson as Leslie Neilson. (Just be careful because all that love and admiration could dissipate in a flash.)

How much confidence can you have in a decision to not indict Darren Wilson when the leading prosecuting attorney was Robert McCulloch, who has never in his entire 23-year career indicted a police officer for killing someone in the line of duty? This was the fifth grand jury McCulloch presented evidence to in a police shooting, and still not a single indictment. And there are other reasons to question this outcome.

As far as the police are concerned, we all (black, white, Hispanic, Asian, all communities) want the same thing: we want good, honest, committed police officers who are actually serving and protecting everyone. We’re not indicting all police officers, but we do want criminal police officers removed. To view the police completely as “good” is just as dangerous as viewing them completely as “evil.” Both are very far from accurate.

But there is a reason why people are hostile. There have been fourteen black teens killed by police since Mike Brown. Twelve-year-old Tamir Rice killed in Cleveland, 14-year-old Cameron Tillman in Louisiana, VonDerrit Myers Jr. not far from where Mike Brown was killed, 18-year-old Jeffrey Holden in Kansas City.

In addition, a never-ending reel of police brutality and beatings is constantly shown on social media. And, in most cases, fails to result in any type of punishment for the cop. They typically are put on paid administrative leave (as was Darren Wilson for over 100 days) which is in essence a paid vacation, and yet you have the nerve to praise the police as a whole for their work in the black community ?

And while we don’t condone breaking the law, burning or looting, let me remind you of a quote from Dr King, who said, “A riot is the voice of the unheard.”

You have to take into account the everyday living and existing in a state of inequality that has led to the riots. The outrage and disgust of feeling helpless. A community who sees no justice. You’re focused on the reaction and not the cause of the reaction.

Dr King also said, “Our greatest stumbling block toward freedom is not the Ku Klux Klan, it’s the white moderate who are more devoted to ‘order’ than to justice.”

Why do you think President Obama asked for $263 million to provide police departments with body cameras? Because sometimes the “scumbags” are in fact the ones with the badge and the ones deserving praise are the ones in the Black communities who survive them.

So, as a federal investigation by the Justice Department into the shooting death of Michael Brown continues, in addition to an investigation into allegations of unconstitutional policing patterns and practices by the Ferguson Police Department; and with the inconsistent officer testimony to the grand jury and the continuing mistrust between the black community and the police in mind, you can understand why your statements disappointed, angered, sickened and disgusted many in the black community. Because it felt like betrayal.

You weren’t afraid to ask that all-important question, a question that confronts people who look like Michael Brown, Eric Garner and myself: “Who’s afraid of a large black man?” Tragically, it now seems like the answer might be you.

Sincerely,

Etan Thomas


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