Nothing New: My Thoughts on Donald Sterling
I’ve been working in corporate America for 20 years. I got my first job at a law firm when I was 18 years old. With that being said, I’m no stranger to people pretending they’re not racist as hell while acting as though they’re ready to get in a circle and sing “We Shall Overcome” with us black folk. When Donald Sterling’s Black/Mexican girlfriend recorded his racist rant and it got publicized, let’s just call this the side chick revenge, I was in no way surprise. There is no way an 80 year old white man can be racist in 2014!!!! Is there? African Americans in corporate America deal with people like Donald Sterling every day.
There are times when I come across people of other races who are friendly enough and somewhat polite, but they get major side eye shade from me because it’s phony. We see right through it! We know it! We can sense it! We can feel it! There are other times when people make questionable comments but I just shake it off and charged it to their ignorance. And lastly, there have been people who just make me feel downright uncomfortable and I automatically know they don’t care for me because of the color of my skin. I would imagine that anyone of color who crossed his path probably had one or more of the feelings mentioned.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, he has a Black/Mexican girlfriend! But just as he oh so elegantly told her, she’s supposed to be “a delicate white girl” who just happens to be Black/Mexican. Unfortunately, there are some people who feel the same way he does who share his feelings on colorism. The lighter you are the closer to white you are. There are also white men like Sterling who date black or mixed women who feel that as long as they provide some form of financial support or either they employ African Americans then they’re doing the right thing. However, showing respect and treating someone as an equal is something totally different.
I love how social media is exposing these racist! And how people now have a platform to speak out! Especially in this case because it appears that the NBA has ignored this man’s racist antics for years.
Donald Sterling is now banned from the NBA for life, fined $2.5 Million, and possibly will be forced to sell the Clippers; currently valued at $525 Million. Is he really losing anything?
To hear his crazy rant click here
