Charles Barkley on NBA: 'We are a black league. We are a black league"

So is THIS a racist statement? Charles Barkley stated 'We are a black league. We are a black league' during a TV interview when asked about the LA Clippers situation. If some people think that the Clippers owner should be punished for making racial remarks in a private conversation ... then what about this very public statement that ignores the 22% of non-black NBA players as well as the non-black owners and workers in the NBA? Is it racist to make the statement 'We are a black league' ... and then double down and say it again? If not ... why not?

Charles Barkley - 'We Are A Black League

Barkley called on NBA Commissioner Adam Silver to “suspend him and fine him immediately,” and made the obvious point that you can’t have a racist owner in a sport where the overwhelming majority of players are black. He said, “We cannot have an owner discriminating against a league that––we’re a black league, Ernie. We are a black league.”

- Barkley said the owner was discriminating against the league. However, there is no evidence of that in this situation. The owner was taped in a private conversation with his ex-girlfriend (who is accused of stealing 2 million $$ from the family).

- 78% of NBA players are black.

There are 28 black NHL players .. but no one goes around on tv saying 'We are a white league. We are a white league'. If they did, they'd be nailed to the floor and stomped on. (and rightfully so).

And why is (Nets owner) Jay Z allowed to be racist against whites and to basically make anti-white statements in public with his bling ... (see the thread here - Jay Z Racism - Does it Matter? but the LA Clippers owner isn't allowed to make racist statements in private conversations?

Double standard? Racism by Charles Barkley and Jay Z?
Or is the Barkley 'we are a black league' statement and the Jay Z anti-white bling just fine?

Side Note - Just the fact that this stuff is in the news when there are real issues to deal with around the world ... I wonder if THAT is the real story here - people getting distracted by alleged racism on the part of a white guy (while ignoring the racism from the black guys) ... distraction from what Russia is doing and what Obama is doing and from the serious issues ... I"m wondering about the distraction aspect of all this nonsense.

originally posted by: FlyersFan
So is THIS a racist statement? Charles Barkley stated 'We are a black league. We are a black league' during a TV interview when asked about the LA Clippers situation. If some people think that the Clippers owner should be punished for making racial remarks in a private conversation ... then what about this very public statement that ignores the 22% of non-black NBA players as well as the non-black owners and workers in the NBA? Is it racist to make the statement 'We are a black league' ... and then double down and say it again? If not ... why not?

Charles Barkley - 'We Are A Black League

Barkley called on NBA Commissioner Adam Silver to “suspend him and fine him immediately,” and made the obvious point that you can’t have a racist owner in a sport where the overwhelming majority of players are black. He said, “We cannot have an owner discriminating against a league that––we’re a black league, Ernie. We are a black league.”

Why wont my posts show up unless I edit something in. 2-3 sentences were written here that aren't showing.

Racism only matters if it's violent or against non white. Otherwise we are told to suck it up because someone in our family might have owned slaves a few hundred years ago.

- Barkley said the owner was discriminating against the league. However, there is no evidence of that in this situation. The owner was taped in a private conversation with his ex-girlfriend (who is accused of stealing 2 million $$ from the family).

- 78% of NBA players are black.

There are 28 black NHL players .. but no one goes around on tv saying 'We are a white league. We are a white league'. If they did, they'd be nailed to the floor and stomped on. (and rightfully so).

And why is (Nets owner) Jay Z allowed to be racist against whites and to basically make anti-white statements in public with his bling ... (see the thread here - Jay Z Racism - Does it Matter? but the LA Clippers owner isn't allowed to make racist statements in private conversations?

Double standard? Racism by Charles Barkley and Jay Z?
Or is the Barkley 'we are a black league' statement and the Jay Z anti-white bling just fine?

Side Note -

Just the fact that this stuff is in the news when there are real issues to deal with around the world ... I wonder if THAT is the real story here - people getting distracted by alleged racism on the part of a white guy (while ignoring the racism from the black guys) ... distraction from what Russia is doing and what Obama is doing and from the serious issues ... I"m wondering about the distraction aspect of all this nonsense.

a reply to: FlyersFan

Of course it is a double standard, if Barkley can make remarks like this with impunity...while Donald Stirling is taken to task.

In the same way that Stirling should be punished by the NBA for his remarks, TNT should sanction Barkley for his statement. At the very least, he should be made to apologize for his "black league" remark...maybe he clumsily meant to say that it is "a league where the majority of players are African American".

a reply to: FlyersFan

Awww...is no one paying attention to "Sir" Charles again? He's such a media whore. Whatever happened to him wanting to be governor of Arizona?

I quit watching the NBA after that Bulls/Jazz championship series in the late '90's where the Chicago put up the most points ever in a playoff game and then lost the next one with the fewest in order to stretch the series out to all seven games. It was like watching pro wrestling only in basketball form.

That being said...for it being a "black league" there have been quite a few white MVP s.

Barkley needs a mute button because he obviously doesn't have the mechanism in his brain that allows you to think before you speak.

a reply to: FlyersFan

It is only racism if your white.

Only whites can be racist.

There I covered all the liberal talking points on the subject before they get here.

I thought the rules was made the by the majority.

Like it has always been.

1. I've heard MANY people say things like "Hockey is a white sport", even though there are black players. No one ever cried about it.

2. Barkley said that the overwhelming majority of the players are black. It's true. 78% is an overwhelming majority. It's not like he said something BAD about the white players.

3. It's not like he's saying, "Don't let any white players into the game", which shows a preference based on race, which is what the Clipper's owner said.

hmm weird...this is the same guy that agreed with the zimmerman verdict and said that black people can be racist too

NBA legend Charles Barkley appeared on CNBC’s Closing Bell with Maria Bartiromo Thursday afternoon and shared his incredibly diplomatic views on George Zimmerman‘s acquittal. “I agree with the verdict,” Barkley told Bartiromo. “I’m sorry that young kid got killed, but they didn’t have enough evidence to charge him.”

Barkley admitted that he did see some “racial profiling” in the case, but said “something happened that changed the dynamic that night.” He recognized what he was saying was “probably not a popular opinion among most people,” but “looking at the evidence” he said he agreed with the jury’s decision.

He also called out the media for not having a “pure heart” when it comes to race. “Racism is wrong in any, shape or form,” Barkley said. “A lot of black people are racist too. I think sometimes when people talk about racism, they say only white people are racist, but I think black people are too. I don’t think the media has clean hands.”

Despite Zimmerman’s “racial profiling,” in Barkley’s assessment, “Trayvon Martin, God rest his soul, he did flip the switch and start beating the hell out of Mr. Zimmerman.” He added that he “feels bad” that the trial gave “every white person and black person who is racist the platform to vent their ignorance. That’s the thing that bothered me the most. I watched this trial closely. I watched these people on television talking about it. A lot of these people have a hidden agenda. They want to have their racist views, whether they are white or black… They’re biases come out.”
www.mediaite.com...

a reply to: oblvion

Nice, i can use you post rating as negative control to see how many logical posters going to be rating the OP.

Its always nice when i see a post like this.

My take would be that Charles Barkley and Cliven Bundy are kind of the same.

-Not racists.
and
-Not well-spoken.

originally posted by: Benevolent Heretic
1. I've heard MANY people say things like "Hockey is a white sport", even though there are black players. No one ever cried about it.

People have said that it's got a majority white players ... but they don't call it a 'white league ... a white league'.

2. Barkley said that the overwhelming majority of the players are black.

No. His exact words were ... 'it's a black league ... it's a black league'. His words and intent are WAY different from saying 'the majority of players are black'.

3. It's not like he's saying, "Don't let any white players into the game", which shows a preference based on race, which is what the Clipper's owner said.

Wrong again. The Clippers owner didn't say that. He said to his exgirlfriend not to bring any of the black men she was with to the games. And he made reference to her sleeping with them. That's not 'don't let any black players play the game'. Totally different.

a reply to: butcherguy

That would be equivalent to Charles Barkley saying..

"I've often wondered, are they better off as Hockey Players, shooting pucks and having a great time and doing things, or are they better off under basketball "token" status?"

lol i just had to do it!

a reply to: mobiusmale

Because in America a racist comment is only "racist" when a white person makes them.

Get it!

originally posted by: luciddream
a reply to: butcherguy

That would be equivalent to Charles Barkley saying..

"I've often wondered, are they better off as Hockey Players, shooting pucks and having a great time and doing things, or are they better off under basketball "token" status?"

lol i just had to do it!

That is a good one.
But seriously, I think they both have issues with getting their points across in the English language. The part that is shameful is that it their native language in both cases.

a reply to: FlyersFan

I have no problem with this. He is not discriminating against anyone, he is just saying the facts.

Larry Bird (whom is white) agrees with him.

Well, I think so," said Bird, the Indiana Pacers' president of basketball operations. "You know, when I played, you had me and Kevin [McHale] and some others throughout the league. I think it's good for a fan base because, as we all know, the majority of the fans are white America. And if you just had a couple of white guys in there, you might get them a little excited. But it is a black man's game, and it will be forever. I mean, the greatest athletes in the world are African-American."

sports.espn.go.com...

A white nba owner allegedly made disparaging remarks about black men, why is it unfair for someone to point out the hypocrisy of that given that the majority of players are black? We shouldn't allow the pc police to make us avoid saying factual things because it might hurt someones feelings.

a reply to: butcherguy

Sadly i dont see this exploding to that of Bundy, not because Black Celebrities(Kanye, Sam L jackson) racist rant are ignored due to minority status, but because the federal government has nothing to gain from this.

In the end, this guy is still gonna be rich, still gonna be in the basketball environment and old news by tomorrow.

a reply to: FlyersFan

This thread can't be serious?

The context of that statement is being misinterpreted. All he was saying was that the NBA is a predominately black league (which is true) and as a result, Mr. Sterling's comments would have offended a large majority of players. Nothing more, nothing less. That statement doesn't hold a candle to the thoughts expressed by Sterling.

originally posted by: FlyersFan
People have said that it's got a majority white players ... but they don't call it a 'white league ... a white league'.

I think you're grasping at straws. I've heard people say that Hockey is a white man's sport.

No. His exact words were ... 'it's a black league ... it's a black league'. His words and intent are WAY different from saying 'the majority of players are black'.

He ALSO said the majority is black. Read your own quote.

Wrong again. The Clippers owner didn't say that. He said to his exgirlfriend not to bring any of the black men she was with to the games. And he made reference to her sleeping with them. That's not 'don't let any black players play the game'. Totally different.

Again, the details are irrelevant. What Donald Sterlingsaid was a SLAM against black people. What Barkley said was NOT a SLAM against white people. Barkley was showing the hypocrisy of having a majority of black players and then saying stuff like:

"It bothers me a lot that you want to broadcast that you’re associating with black people. Do you have to?"

and "I’m just saying, in your lousy *^&*$( Instagrams, you don’t have to have yourself with, walking with black people."

Read more: www.tmz.com...

If you don't see the difference in the statements... I think you're looking for something to be pissed about.

a reply to: Grambler
There is a difference between saying ... 'the majority of players are black' (which is true, 78% are) ... and saying 'this is a black league, this is a black league' ... doubling down like that. The two have different meanings. One is a factual statistic (the majority of players are black) ... the other reeks of exclusivity based on race. Remember the separate 'negro leagues' ??... The NBA being a 'black league' would be a modern day exclusivity reversal of that ...

Maybe he just has poor command of the English language. But considering he's an announcer on TV ... you'd think he'd be speaking exactly what he means ... ya' know??

a reply to: FlyersFan

Hmmmm. If Barkley considers the NBA a "black league" just based off the population numbers then the U.S.A. is a white country. (77.9%) Try saying that and not be accused of being a racist.