Bernard Hopkins lacks courage, integrity

I've been simmering for days over this.  Multi-time world boxing champion Bernard Hopkins allowed his mouth to write a check...well you know the rest.  Hopkins held a staged media workout last week in preparation for his upcoming bout against light-heavyweight champion Jean Pascal.  Hopkins, a Philadelphia native, was asked by a reporter what he thought of former Eagles and current Washington Redskins quarterback Donovan McNabb.  Rather than redirect the questioning toward boxing, Hopkins couldn't help but take verbal jabs at McNabb.  Forgive me for being somewhat snobbish here, but Hopkins' statements are simply too ignorant to quote.  I'll paraphrase by saying Hopkins made several references to McNabb's skin color.  While both men are African-American, Hopkins suggested that McNabb is not as "black" as athletes like Terrell Owens, Michael Vick, and himself.

It would be easy to take this forum to cut down Hopkins' background, upbringing, and intelligence - but I won't do that.  I will say this - because this is not the first time nor the last time that one African-American man will take cheap shots at another.  Hopkins' comments reflect one of the lasting effects of slavery on African-Americans.  Some slaves worked the fields while others worked in the house.  Those in the field were sometimes jealous of those in the house.  Those in the house had better meals and living quarters.  House workers also sometimes "snitched" on field workers for various infractions.  Field workers saw them as being treated better.  So, a bitter rivalry developed between the field workers and house workers.  That, my friends, is when you have a people truly enslaved.  They literally fought each other over who was the more favored slave.  Fast forward 150 years since the end of slavery and the rivalry is alive and well.

Now, the battle is largely intellectual.  The educated vs. the uneducated and normal vs. dysfunctional make up the controversies of today.  McNabb grew up in a two-parent household in suburban Chicago.  He played college football at Syracuse where he earned his degree.  McNabb has a wife and family and essentially lives a quiet life off the field.  Many people see McNabb as a great athlete and role model for kids.  To my knowledge, he has never made a negative comment about Hopkins.  It seems that if your father was actually married to your mother, you somehow gained an unfair advantage.  If your parents made sure you attended and graduated from college, you must be a sell-out.  Unfortunately, it's a battle that almost all African-Americans fight.  I still fight it.

In St. Louis, the big question everyone asks when they meet you is "Where did you go to high school?"  You see, it's how we prejudge a person in the Gateway City.  Your high school tells people how much money your family has, how smart you are, who you hung out with, etc.  I am a proud graduate of Ladue High School - Class of 1994.  For those not familiar with the area, Ladue is one of St. Louis' wealthiest suburbs.  Million-dollar homes literally surround the high school's campus.  So, when people meet me they think I'm a black man whose family was well-off and I have no idea about struggle.  Quite the opposite is true.  I attended Ladue through the desegregation program and spent most of my young life on welfare.  Yes, we received food stamps when they still came in paper form.  This doesn't make me better than anyone.  Poverty doesn't make Bernard Hopkins better than Donovan McNabb nor does a stable household make McNabb better.  It just makes us human.  We have shared experiences along different paths, but we all can be a positive influence on others if we choose to be.

The video below contains an interview with Hopkins (email subscribers click here).  If you want to go past the boxing stuff, he "clarifies" his comments about McNabb at the 5-minute mark.  I apologize to those of you who may be turned off by this topic, but I have a responsibility to address these issues from time to time.  I often tell my daughter that responsibility means doing what you have to do so you can do what you want to do.  Hopefully, athletes like Hopkins will be more responsible with their statements in the future.  Until next time...

Be a Good Sport!

-Sol



This video is also available at SportsmanshipTV.