It was only a matter of time before Sean Taylor's death became the media's obsession with race issues. Surely not the first to open the can of worms, FoxSports Jason Whitlock writes his views in surprising candor...
"Within hours of his death, there was a story circulating that members of the black press were complaining that news outlets were disrespecting Taylor's victimhood by reporting on his troubled past
No disrespect to Taylor, but he controlled the way he would be remembered by the way he lived. His immature, undisciplined behavior with his employer, his run-ins with law enforcement, which included allegedly threatening a man with a loaded gun, and the fact a vehicle he owned was once sprayed with bullets are all pertinent details when you've been murdered.
Let's cut through the bull(manure) and deal with reality. Black men are targets of black men. Period. Go check the coroner's office and talk with a police detective. These bullets aren't checking W-2s.
Rather than whine about white folks' insensitivity or reserve a special place of sorrow for rich athletes, we'd be better served mustering the kind of outrage and courage it took in the 1950s and 1960s to stop the white KKK from hanging black men from trees."
Whitlock just flamed the fire with those statements. Whether or not you agree with him is not the point, but it irritates me that it takes a famous athlete dying to promote outrage over a senseless murder. From all accounts I have read and seen, Taylor was not this thug he is being made out to be. The gun incident in 2005 was him brandishing his legal gun to the individual or individuals who were trying to steal his personal property which happened to be one of his all terrain vehicles. It was no different than if somebody tried to steal your car or broke into your house. Under our laws we have the right to bear arms to protect ourselves and our property. So please stop labeling Taylor a thug because of the misinformed gun incident of 2005.
And from all accounts since Taylor's daughter was born his life had changed for the better if you ask people who actually knew him. Redskin teammate Clinton Portis had this to say to the Washington Post:
“It’s hard to expect a man to grow up overnight. But ever since he had this child it was like a new Sean. And everybody around here knew it. He was always smiling, always happy, always talking about his child.”
I was hoping that some how, some way, the media would not make Taylor's death
a race issue. It isn't a race issue but more a social economical issue. People were jealous of Taylor's wealth and took it out on him. Whether or not you are black, white, or whatever melatonin your skin is shouldn't matter especially when it comes to somebody being murdered.
Taylor was a victim of a brutal crime plain and simple. For this reason we should all hope that whom ever is responsible be caught and given swift justice. This is the America I love.
Well said Matt - thank you for taking such a real life position on this. And I love Whitlock's writings specifically because he takes this stance all of the time and understands when it's time to cross the racial line and when it's time to look at things at what they really are... Well done!!!
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