Donald Sterling aftermath

It is playoff season and many NBA fans across the world are excited to see who is going to take the trophy home this year. One of the teams fighting to get to the NBA finals is the Los Angeles Clippers. Facing the Golden State Warriors proposed a challenge; however, events off of the court would distract Clipper players more than their opponents. Recently the former owner of the Los Angeles Clippers, Donald T. Sterling, was recorded making racist comments to a BLACK and HISPANIC girlfriend about her relationships and appearances with African Americans and other minorities. Sterling stated that it was discomforting to see his girlfriend in public with minorities, for "they are the enemy"and it is in her best interest to keep these relationships private. He also criticized his girlfriend for posting pictures with NBA legend Magic Johnson urging that she keep her admiration off of Instagram and away from Clippers games.  Considering the fact that many African Americans and minorities ae responsible for much of his wealth, including players, coaches, fans and many others involved with the NBA ,  it is shocking that he would express such racist beliefs. When the audio tape was sent to media outlets many wondered what the consequence for his behavior would be.While endorsers ended their relationship with the Clippers, many were still wondering what fans and players would do to combat the incident. As a response to Sterling's remarks Clippers players decided to reverse their pregame warm ups to conceal the team name on their shirts. Although this act of defiance at Sterling showed the lack of tolerance for racist behavior, many felt that this was not enough. Clippers players argued that his comments were the least of their concerns and wanted to focus on the playoffs. Today NBA commissioner, Adam Silver, announced the consequences which some felt were too harsh and some felt were appropriate. Sterling was fined 2.5 million dollars, the maximum fine possible in the NBA constitution, and banned from Clippers games and practices. Sterling was then urged to sell the team which he bought for $12 million back in 1981. With the team being worth $575 million dollars now, Sterling would be making a profit over $500 MILLION DOLLARS since his purchase according to Forbes magazine. Due to the fact that Sterling rightfully owns the team, he can not be immediately forced from resigning but Adam Silver promised he would do everything in his power to remove Sterling from his position. While many feel like this violates freedom of speech one must realize that Sterling represents the NBA. As any business, the NBA does not want someone with racist ideas representing their organization; therefore, they reacted appropriately to his actions.

As a fan of the NBA I would recommend that players focus on the bigger goal; however, we must not be so forgetful of these events. Many African Americans involved with the NBA have known for years that Sterling had these beliefs but until his beliefs became public many chose to do nothing about it. Some African Americans are notorious for making statements and then as time progresses forget and forgive. Doing this has not helped us in many cases including the ruling in the murder of Trayvon Martin in 2012. Blacks were outraged and showed this by marching and wearing hoodies in tribute to Trayvon Martin. Unfortunately, weeks after the ruling the event seemed like a distant memory. If we do nothing to really change what is going on and rely on others to solve our problems we cant be surprised when our people are slapped in the face again in the future. Being passive has not helped us when our enemy continues to spread hostile ideals and we can not progress until we find effective methods to battle ignorance and racism.
-Jeremiah the Messiah