I've always like listening to Kenny. Respect for that insight. 
Kenny Smith's open letter to Charles Barkley:
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The Jet is that dude
eastside313
Superstar
ESPN let mike and mike call matin Luther king a c00n on his birthdayThe real world ain't the coli.
http://ftw.usatoday.com/2014/12/kenny-smith-charles-barkley-ferguson-open-letter-exclusive
(Photo by Issac Baldizon/NBAE via Getty Images)
Editor’s Note: NBA Hall of Famer Charles Barkley’s comments about recent events in Ferguson, Mo. received varied reactions in the past two days. One of the people with a reaction to Barkley’s remarks is Kenny Smith, his friend and fellow analyst on TNT’s “Inside the NBA.”
Smith addressed Barkley’s recent comments in an open letter exclusively submitted to For The Win Wednesday afternoon. That letter is featured below in its entirety.
Dear Chuck,
I hope this finds you in the way I always see you, in great spirits, with great joy and full of life. There are some things I want to openly say to you that sometimes in conversation get lost.
Firstly I lied! You ARE the greatest Power Forward of all time. It’s not (Tim) Duncan or (Karl) Malone, they had size and height that you weren’t blessed with and you never had near the talent around you that they were blessed to have. Contrarily you took your teams to similar heights. Secondly, you are a champion in my book. Effort and determination is what makes a champion, not a ring.
Lastly, you are the most entertaining person in sports television (partly because I throw you so many assists lol).
However, what I consistently find interesting is how writers and media members view your insights in politics, and now race relations, with the same reverence as your insights in sports.
They did it in the Trayvon Martin trial and now with Mike Brown and the decision in Ferguson. It’s not that you shouldn’t ever have an opinion, but you are often quoted alongside the likes of Al Sharpton and even President Obama. I would hope that Sharpton or President Obama would never be referenced with you when picking the next NBA Champs!
The body of work that our Black Civil Rights leaders put in by planning, executing and activating does not justify you being in the conversation. While your body of work on the court very few compare to nor should be mentioned when you are giving your expert analysis. Again, I respect that you have an opinion on Ferguson. And here’s mine.
The question must be asked: Why is there so much distrust in the police and the legal system from the African American community? Without manifesting what the effects of slavery still have today, Dec 1ststill marks only 59 years since Rosa Parks sat on that memorable bus. Many of our parents and grandparents have lived through those times and have passed those stories on to all of us. Those civil rights changes were at one time the law! They were not illegal.
So did the protection of the law by the courts and police make it right? Obviously not, so as African Americans we still know and feel that there are laws and jurisdictions that severely penalize the poor and, most importantly, African Americans greater than any other group. Some laws were initially made without us as equals in mind; that’s just the facts. So the thought process that it’s not for us or by us will unfortunately lead to distrust.
When someone is in “the struggle”, which many of our black communities are in, they are living with a lack of educational facilities, high unemployment and poor recreational facilities. The masses involved in “the struggle” will react in several ways. They can overcome it, challenge it, live in it, or fall victim to it … For those of us who are decades removed from “the struggle” because of our life through sports or business, we now have to acknowledge that every option listed exists. If not, then we are the ignorant ones.
That leads me to the looters and civilians burning buildings which you referred to as “scumbags”. Here’s an analogy: If you put 100 people on an island with no food, no water, no hope of a ship coming, then some will overcome it and be resourceful, some will live in it, others will panic and others will show horrific character, which is wrong. But not to understand that all alternatives are possible is wrong as well.
I was also disheartened to see the reaction of burning buildings and looters by some. However, when you are in “The Struggle” to not expect that that potential reaction is foolish on our part.
The real issue is learning to positively manage your anger so you can be heard. It’s not that they are “scumbags”, their emotions won’t allow them to rationally think through their anger. I applaud that you have done a great job in your anger management in recent times … but not always.
Mike Brown wasn’t about race relations, nor Trayvon Martin or even Hurricane Katrina for that matter. It’s about trust. Do I trust you to help me off the island? If so, do you have my best interests at heart? Do I trust that you will you send a ship or allow me access to build my own ship?
And you were right Chuck, let’s not discredit that there are great police officers in all neighborhoods, but let’s not credit that we shouldn’t have doubt.
See you Thursday night !
Kenny Smith
One of the many positives to come out of these mass tragedies is the building I'm seeing all types of black folk do.
dora_da_destroyer
Master Baker
But think about your beef with issues like racism, cop brutality, etc, I doubt they are diplomatic, mine sure aren't. There is honestly no way I can express my true opinion of whites in general, the white male power structure in particular, african American oppression, and so on without offending a large group of people and isolating myself. It's a hard conversation to have intimately, let alone as a public figure amongst millions.
Like I said, I applaud those who do find ways to speak openly but i won't front like i don't understand why someone would toe the line with topics like this. For some of us, speaking the truth isn't going to be a pleasant debate, there is either our true harsh feelings or a facade of a smile, finding some halfway point just isn't happening so why even open the door.
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ElectroMan
Superstar
Thats that liberal propaganda that we support
It pisses me off so much that we, as black ppl act like we don't know our ppl... Especially the ones that are living in poverty.
Kenny talkin about ppl looting and burning shyt down because they are reacting off of emotion or whatever. That may be true for the minority of the looters, but I know nikkas and know damn well that the majority of the looters are doing the shyt because they can more than likely get away with it right now. Same thing with the burning shyt... Yes there are ppl in Ferguson that are truly upset and are reacting violently as a result, but again, I know nikkas and know damn well that a lot of them are just taking advantage to cause mayhem while they can blend in with a crowd and possibly get away with it.
I wish everybody would quit letting this pride that came out of nowhere obscure their vision of reality. To hell with the pigs, but we gotta do better ourselves, also. I salute those that are really out there protesting or wherever they feel they need to do to get their point across, but there's a lot of ppl out there that barely even comprehend what's going on, but with all the social networking and media attention they just want to be seen or heard spewing what they heard others say or do what others are doing, with no real sense of "why"
Kenny talkin about ppl looting and burning shyt down because they are reacting off of emotion or whatever. That may be true for the minority of the looters, but I know nikkas and know damn well that the majority of the looters are doing the shyt because they can more than likely get away with it right now. Same thing with the burning shyt... Yes there are ppl in Ferguson that are truly upset and are reacting violently as a result, but again, I know nikkas and know damn well that a lot of them are just taking advantage to cause mayhem while they can blend in with a crowd and possibly get away with it.
I wish everybody would quit letting this pride that came out of nowhere obscure their vision of reality. To hell with the pigs, but we gotta do better ourselves, also. I salute those that are really out there protesting or wherever they feel they need to do to get their point across, but there's a lot of ppl out there that barely even comprehend what's going on, but with all the social networking and media attention they just want to be seen or heard spewing what they heard others say or do what others are doing, with no real sense of "why"
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Chuck only repeating what he hears in his wife's family reunions and neighbors gatherings
I respect both Kenny and Charles but Kenny basically agreed with most of what Charles said without realizing it. As for his comments about Charles being used by the media, he blatantly contradicts his own view on that by choosing to air this out through the media. People on here keep insisting that Charles is an Alabama ´c00n´ with bowing down to white people ingrained in his mind. These people mistake what the detrimental nature of ´c00ning´ is. c00ning is not a matter of 'betraying one's race', or black people tapdancing for white people. It´s mindlessly co-signing what someone else says or thinks simply because you lack the intelligence or courage to act otherwise. Barkley may not be a scholar or even the smartest guy on the TNT panel but he does not in any way set back
'the struggle' through his comments.
If anything, Kenny does more to set black people back through this letter and his approach to the situation than Charles. Charles, in his comments at least, is true to the idea of emancipation of all races. Kenny falls back into playing the emotion-card without really offering any credible analysis of what happened in all of the incidents that he speaks on. Kenny's attitude only perpetuates stereotypes of a generic group of white people and a generic group of black people. The Coli doesn't wanna hear it but any person identifying in the first place with his race is himself part of the problem. Indeed, Charles IS years removed from being subject to the struggle exactly because the struggle is not defined by race but by a dynamic interplay between more subtle factors, socio-economic status and race each only being one part of it.
Charles at least is true to this insight and doesn't jump on the bandwagon of people who love to rally behind a shared sense of injustice just because you share one particular background component with some person. Kenny talks all this shyt about FOX using Charles without him being aware of this as if Charles is obligated to speak out against injustice from a perspective of 'his own people'. At the same time he wants to emphasize that these incidents were not about race. So what did Charles get wrong then? The only thing he really corrected was his use of the word 'scumbags', saying he should consider why the looters act the way they do. But what is more likely to bring about a change in the perception of black people among white people, looting every time a black man suffers injustice or pointing out that injustice is wrong whenever it occurs and we should judge each case separately based on the facts and not assume that every time a white person kills a black man it's because all generic white people secretly hate all generic black people? And the idea that Charles is 'manipulated' by the media and the white people in his environment is really just something in people's heads, with no credible evidence. If Charles was so easily manipulated, why does he not give in to the peer pressure from the black community who exert a massive amount of pressure on him to identify with them? Oh..I get it..white people are more tricky with their brainwashing methods right? Another solid analysis that allows you to see what you want each and every time.
Of course you're allowed to argue that race played a role in these incidents but what does it help to further the misconception of a shallow picture of generic people always acting only based on race in every situation? Of course, Kenny rejects this view also but that's exactly why he agrees way more with Barkley than he realizes. Only Charles is strong enough to not give a fukk about the backlash of 'his own people' whereas Kenny gives in to the peer pressure and wants to offer yet another generic account of what caused these incidents and why black people should be upset about it. Who really is the c00n here? I know y'all gonna say me now because I reject personal identity based on race. But y'all readily give into peer pressure all the time on here, happily exclaiming superficial stereotypes while at the same time saying they caused these incidents. That's basically inverse c00ning for your own race. Charles does neither. I don't ever see y'all really giving an analysis that takes into account all of the subtle variables that need to be taken into account when even beginning to compare the incidents, let alone judging that they are all caused by white racism.
Have your own opinion be easily influenced by other people's because you're scared to go against the grain brehs..
'the struggle' through his comments.
If anything, Kenny does more to set black people back through this letter and his approach to the situation than Charles. Charles, in his comments at least, is true to the idea of emancipation of all races. Kenny falls back into playing the emotion-card without really offering any credible analysis of what happened in all of the incidents that he speaks on. Kenny's attitude only perpetuates stereotypes of a generic group of white people and a generic group of black people. The Coli doesn't wanna hear it but any person identifying in the first place with his race is himself part of the problem. Indeed, Charles IS years removed from being subject to the struggle exactly because the struggle is not defined by race but by a dynamic interplay between more subtle factors, socio-economic status and race each only being one part of it.
Charles at least is true to this insight and doesn't jump on the bandwagon of people who love to rally behind a shared sense of injustice just because you share one particular background component with some person. Kenny talks all this shyt about FOX using Charles without him being aware of this as if Charles is obligated to speak out against injustice from a perspective of 'his own people'. At the same time he wants to emphasize that these incidents were not about race. So what did Charles get wrong then? The only thing he really corrected was his use of the word 'scumbags', saying he should consider why the looters act the way they do. But what is more likely to bring about a change in the perception of black people among white people, looting every time a black man suffers injustice or pointing out that injustice is wrong whenever it occurs and we should judge each case separately based on the facts and not assume that every time a white person kills a black man it's because all generic white people secretly hate all generic black people? And the idea that Charles is 'manipulated' by the media and the white people in his environment is really just something in people's heads, with no credible evidence. If Charles was so easily manipulated, why does he not give in to the peer pressure from the black community who exert a massive amount of pressure on him to identify with them? Oh..I get it..white people are more tricky with their brainwashing methods right? Another solid analysis that allows you to see what you want each and every time.
Of course you're allowed to argue that race played a role in these incidents but what does it help to further the misconception of a shallow picture of generic people always acting only based on race in every situation? Of course, Kenny rejects this view also but that's exactly why he agrees way more with Barkley than he realizes. Only Charles is strong enough to not give a fukk about the backlash of 'his own people' whereas Kenny gives in to the peer pressure and wants to offer yet another generic account of what caused these incidents and why black people should be upset about it. Who really is the c00n here? I know y'all gonna say me now because I reject personal identity based on race. But y'all readily give into peer pressure all the time on here, happily exclaiming superficial stereotypes while at the same time saying they caused these incidents. That's basically inverse c00ning for your own race. Charles does neither. I don't ever see y'all really giving an analysis that takes into account all of the subtle variables that need to be taken into account when even beginning to compare the incidents, let alone judging that they are all caused by white racism.
Have your own opinion be easily influenced by other people's because you're scared to go against the grain brehs..
I need that avi bigger in all its glory
