For me, the most interesting events are when the world of sports and issues of social justice collide. For this reason, Dave Zirin is by far my favorite sports journalist. So when Arizona signed SB1070 into law during the NBA playoffs, I knew Dave would not disappoint me.
I've hated the Phoenix Suns for so long that when I heard they were going to wear their "Los Suns" jerseys in protest of SB1070 I thought it was just a PR gimmick since they had already planned to wear the same jerseys because of Cinco de Mayo. But after reading Dave's article A New Era: Here Come The Suns, I gained much more respect for the whole organization, from management to the players.
"I think the law is very misguided. I think it is unfortunately to the detriment to our society and our civil liberties and I think it is very important for us to stand up for things we believe in. I think the law obviously can target opportunities for racial profiling. Things we don't want to see and don't need to see in 2010." - Los Suns' Steve Nash
In his follow-up article Los Suns Also Rise, Dave explains the significance of Phoenix's win over San Antonio and the larger meaning it had for the sports world. Now as a Laker fan, I compare Nash's quote above to what Phil had to say on the racist bill...
"If I heard it right the American people are really for stronger immigration laws.... I don't think teams should get involved in the political stuff." - Laker Coach Phil Jackson
The Lakers are still my team, but that doesn't mean I can't criticize them. Phil's conservative statements on SB1070 was the deal breaker for me. I'm not turning my back on my team forever, but in support of Phoenix's actions and in disappointment for Phil's blatant criticism of that action, for the 2010 Western Conference Finals only, I will be rooting for Los Sun!
5 comments:
We are a zirin-following household. I'm not a big sports person, but being that my partner is a big one, we engage in a lot of discussion around sports and social commentary. This topic has been a big one. I acknowledge how much meaning one's home team carries for a person. It's tied to home, loyalty, family and sometimes the soul. It's incredible, this statement you're making. I know how much the lakers mean to you (if I ever denounced the lakers publicly my lola would roll over in her grave!) Which makes it that much more powerful.
Thanks Kimmy! Yup, Zirin is the truth! I've only finished like 8 books from front to back in my life and two of them were his. Another one was "Redemption Song: Muhammad Ali and the spirit of the sixties", which focuses on Ali's legacy of political dissent in sports.
Gyeahhh Tadillac the wise...
Hadn't heard Phil's quote, but shouldn't expect anything different. BUT I'll say this, it reminds of when there were riots in Miami over a police killing in the early 90s while the Bulls were in town. Jordan was asked to speak out against the rioting but he refused, and spoke out about how fucked up the police murder & treatment of people was...
Aidgerrrr! Did you see that 30 for 30 sports doc on the Miami Hurricanes called "The U"? The films start off with those riots and they explain how that was actually lead to the rise of the Canes dynasty.
The homie Cam informed me about some of Phil's past quotes:
PJ's always had racist undertones to his shit:
"I don't mean to say [that] as a snide remark toward a certain population in our society, but they have a limitation of their attention span, a lot of it probably due to too much rap music going in their ears and coming out their being" (October 1999)
"I think it's important that the players take ... See Moretheir end of it, get out of the prison garb and the thuggery aspect of basketball that has come along with hip-hop music in the last seven or eight years" (October 2005)
PJ is interesting. Def rootin for Los Suns now. But ultimately....its gotta be magic. Gonna be tough, but there's only hope.
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