Recently we observed the 50th anniversary of MLK’s “I Have a Dream” speech, a classic plea for racial equality in the US (with most commentators, of course, conveniently leaving out King’s lamenting of the growing legions of poor in this country and his growing disaffection with Vietnam, the latter of which probably got him killed.) Obama and most black leaders proclaimed that “we are not there yet.” Since most of what people know about ethnic groups is what they see on TV, many will call that assessment farfetched and divisive. Entertainment abounds with successful blacks and some pro players even call themselves entertainers, not athletes. Since Dr. King’s “Dream” rerun had to battle for ratings with football season and the U.S. Open, I want to look at what I call The Minstrel Mentality.

One way ex-slaves could earn money was to stage minstrel shows. They learned early that your status changes if you can entertain an audience. After the applause died out, though, it was back to the segregated bathrooms and water fountains. Later, white men like Al Jolson put on black face and co-opted their gigs. Even as a member of the famed Rat Pack, Sammy Davis, Jr. felt the contradicting signals in Hollywood. In 1967 Charley Pride became the first black entertainer to perform at the Grand Ole Opry. Backstage, one white performer allegedly asked “Who’s the n…er?” Another replied, “Why that ain’t no n…er, that’s Charley Pride.” Once a baseball pro in the Negro League, Charley had literally made the shift from athlete to entertainer.

The duration of an athlete’s career is miniscule compared to those faces on the screen. It is job security for athletes to parlay their sports successes into a career that can last a lifetime. And television brings us closer to these new stars but that isn’t always a good thing. The news has been full of the Patriot’s tight end who is accused of murder. With 47 arrests in the off-season, the NFL (Next Felon League?) commissioner is trying to suppress negative press, even from ESPN. I was in El Paso recently for a class reunion and the wonderful Cowboys were the center of discussion. Upon hearing that I was a long-suffering Raider fan, one of my wife’s ex-classmates sneered, “But they’re all criminals.” Given the demographics of pro football the appropriate syllogism would be; The NFL is full of thugs, most NFL players are black, therefore black men are all thugs.

As young girls the Williams sisters learned to play on the dangerous public tennis courts of Compton, Ca., That’s a long way from Nick Bollettierri’s famous east coast tennis factory but somehow they made it to the big show. During one early tournament a singles player named Spirlea blatantly put a hip into Venus Williams during the crossover. The cameras panned on Spirlea as she smiled. The message? “Don’t get too uppity, Venus.” But the Sisters did get uppity. A decade later Venus and Serena, multi-Grand Slam winners and Olympic heroes, are household names yet some people still call them “ghetto trash” and “arrogant” because of how they handled their success. Their crime? Flaunting their newfound celebrity, daring to be fashion designers, donning outrageous costumes on the tennis world’s conservative stage. It was fine when the girls were hoisting gold medals for representing us, their country, but they are still just entertainers. We, the fans, get to make the final judgment on them as people.

It isn’t a huge leap from “Hollywood” to the real news. I asked a guy once why the post office was closed. “Some dead n…er’s birthday,” he chuckled. Yet some locals swear that racism is a sham just like the Holocaust, the moon walk or global warming. When O.J. Simpson was acquitted the white community cried “Foul.” When Zimmerman walked after shooting a black teenager the same crowd pronounced that “justice has spoken.” Twenty states have Stand Your Ground laws allowing lethal force if someone simply “feels” threatened. Most cases involve whites shooting blacks. When the Supreme Court did its job and ruled on same-sex marriages, many screamed that democracy was being destroyed yet applauded states passing laws that make it harder for poor people to vote.

Marshal McLuan said that the media is the message. Perception is everything. Our news is owned by billionaires trying to control public opinion in just that fashion. How do we overcome such boldness and create a true democracy? By stop relying on sounds bytes and self-serving articles. By refusing to believe pundits who are just entertainers themselves. We need to view humans as people and not just new-age minstrels on our small and large screens.

Jerry Tuck is a retired San Andreas resident and an indie author. Contact him at olwhofan@aol.com or use the Contact Form.