South Carolina coach Dawn Staley encourages all colleges to 'get out of their comfort zone'

[Carnac]

Mechelle Voepel ESPN.com

Dawn Staley recalls the difficulty of adjusting from where she grew up in Philadelphia to Virginia's campus as a player in 1988-92. Now the women's basketball coach at South Carolina and for the U.S. national team, Staley spoke Wednesday of the need for everyone in college athletics to "get out of their comfort zone" and have conversations about race.

South Carolina's Staley hoping to 'set example'

South Carolina's Dawn Staley, in a Wednesday panel called "A Time for Action," urged all of college athletics to "get out of their comfort zone" and have conversations about race.

www.espn.com

 

[GoDawgs4]

Diversity is the biggest bunch of bull I have ever heard. It is totally counter to what MLK JR. stood for.

He said the content of one’s character should be what counts not the color of their skin. Simple as that.

My circle of friends include people from just about every walk of life and I could careless about their ethnicity. We love and care about each other. I have a great amount of respect for peoples culture and traditions and while I may not agree with some things it is just a difference of opinion that has nothing to do with race.

With respect to black coaches, time has and is taking care of that. As more black individuals go into the coaching field regardless of the sport the more HC’s there are. That will continue to grow and yes it will be ebb and flow over time. Wins and losses typically decide the success of HC’s and there have been plenty of successful black HC’s as well as those who have come up short.

I don’t see the need to have any conversation about this. It is not a problem anymore.

 

[Deuce]

Diversity is the biggest bunch of bull I have ever heard. It is totally counter to what MLK JR. stood for.

He said the content of one’s character should be what counts not the color of their skin. Simple as that.

My circle of friends include people from just about every walk of life and I could careless about their ethnicity. We love and care about each other. I have a great amount of respect for peoples culture and traditions and while I may not agree with some things it is just a difference of opinion that has nothing to do with race.

With respect to black coaches, time has and is taking care of that. As more black individuals go into the coaching field regardless of the sport the more HC’s there are. That will continue to grow and yes it will be ebb and flow over time. Wins and losses typically decide the success of HC’s and there have been plenty of successful black HC’s as well as those who have come up short.

I don’t see the need to have any conversation about this. It is not a problem anymore.

Yikes

 

[jumpstart]

Diversity is the biggest bunch of bull I have ever heard. It is totally counter to what MLK JR. stood for.

He said the content of one’s character should be what counts not the color of their skin. Simple as that.

My circle of friends include people from just about every walk of life and I could careless about their ethnicity. We love and care about each other. I have a great amount of respect for peoples culture and traditions and while I may not agree with some things it is just a difference of opinion that has nothing to do with race.

With respect to black coaches, time has and is taking care of that. As more black individuals go into the coaching field regardless of the sport the more HC’s there are. That will continue to grow and yes it will be ebb and flow over time. Wins and losses typically decide the success of HC’s and there have been plenty of successful black HC’s as well as those who have come up short.

I don’t see the need to have any conversation about this. It is not a problem anymore.

Well...you are comfortable....therefore there are no problems...wow...you really need an education. It's not your circle of friends. It's how you generally see people of other races 'who are not your friends', that is what defines you. I have had people tell me "I have many black friends" but...the ones who are not their friends they see as a threat when there may not be one.....People like you really do not....or will not..admit there are real problems with diversity for many reasons...and they don't get solved by appealing to you and your friends....

 

[shiverz45]

Diversity is the biggest bunch of bull I have ever heard. It is totally counter to what MLK JR. stood for.

He said the content of one’s character should be what counts not the color of their skin. Simple as that.

My circle of friends include people from just about every walk of life and I could careless about their ethnicity. We love and care about each other. I have a great amount of respect for peoples culture and traditions and while I may not agree with some things it is just a difference of opinion that has nothing to do with race.

With respect to black coaches, time has and is taking care of that. As more black individuals go into the coaching field regardless of the sport the more HC’s there are. That will continue to grow and yes it will be ebb and flow over time. Wins and losses typically decide the success of HC’s and there have been plenty of successful black HC’s as well as those who have come up short.

I don’t see the need to have any conversation about this. It is not a problem anymore.

It was all good until your last and first sentence. What fairy tale world you live in? If all things are equal diversity is very important.

 

[Adios]

Diversity is the biggest bunch of bull I have ever heard. It is totally counter to what MLK JR. stood for.

He said the content of one’s character should be what counts not the color of their skin. Simple as that.

My circle of friends include people from just about every walk of life and I could careless about their ethnicity. We love and care about each other. I have a great amount of respect for peoples culture and traditions and while I may not agree with some things it is just a difference of opinion that has nothing to do with race.

With respect to black coaches, time has and is taking care of that. As more black individuals go into the coaching field regardless of the sport the more HC’s there are. That will continue to grow and yes it will be ebb and flow over time. Wins and losses typically decide the success of HC’s and there have been plenty of successful black HC’s as well as those who have come up short.

I don’t see the need to have any conversation about this. It is not a problem anymore.

You should check out comments for Yahoo's articles.

 

[eebmg]

It was all good until your last and first sentence. What fairy tale world you live in? If all things are equal diversity is very important.

The one Vic Fangio got kicked out of.

 

[SCGamecock]

Diversity is the biggest bunch of bull I have ever heard. It is totally counter to what MLK JR. stood for.

He said the content of one’s character should be what counts not the color of their skin. Simple as that.

My circle of friends include people from just about every walk of life and I could careless about their ethnicity. We love and care about each other. I have a great amount of respect for peoples culture and traditions and while I may not agree with some things it is just a difference of opinion that has nothing to do with race.

With respect to black coaches, time has and is taking care of that. As more black individuals go into the coaching field regardless of the sport the more HC’s there are. That will continue to grow and yes it will be ebb and flow over time. Wins and losses typically decide the success of HC’s and there have been plenty of successful black HC’s as well as those who have come up short.

I don’t see the need to have any conversation about this. It is not a problem anymore.

Your privilege is showing. You don't get to decide when racism or any other kind of discrimination is over.. especially if you're not a part of the group dealing with the issue. Take a backseat on this one.

 

[noirwestern]

Diversity is the biggest bunch of bull I have ever heard. It is totally counter to what MLK JR. stood for.

He said the content of one’s character should be what counts not the color of their skin. Simple as that.

My circle of friends include people from just about every walk of life and I could careless about their ethnicity. We love and care about each other. I have a great amount of respect for peoples culture and traditions and while I may not agree with some things it is just a difference of opinion that has nothing to do with race.

With respect to black coaches, time has and is taking care of that. As more black individuals go into the coaching field regardless of the sport the more HC’s there are. That will continue to grow and yes it will be ebb and flow over time. Wins and losses typically decide the success of HC’s and there have been plenty of successful black HC’s as well as those who have come up short.

I don’t see the need to have any conversation about this. It is not a problem anymore.

For a moment there I thought we were about to be introduced to a new and skilled wielder of finely honed sarcasm. Not quite at the Onion level yet but still pretty goo, oh, hey, never mind.

 

[GoDawgs4]

No privilege here. I am just stating facts. At the core of it all any of us can do is base our opinion on our personal life. Not what is perceived but our own personal reality.
Nobody countered my opinion with anything of substance. I don’t live in a fairytale world. I am educated. I did not decide anything I just stated my opinion.
As far as diversityI don’t see the need for it. Time has and will continue to take care of this.
One example, when I was young , there were no black QB’s in football. There was a stigma attached to it. But then came along one or two black QB’s who succeeded and gradually over time there hundreds and hundreds of black QB’s and guess what, nobody blinks an eye now about it.
Same way with black coaches , as more move into coaching including HC’s the less it is seen as anything special. A great coach is a great coach.
That rolls over into the business world, medical, engineering, IT etc. As more black people earn their way in these careers the more black people you will see in those fields of study and ultimately in the work force.
Which I am glad to see.
MLK JR. would be very pleased to see that today black youth have opportunities to do anything they want to pursue. It takes hard work and determination but it can be done.
It is the content of a person’s character that counts.

 

[clbabson]

No privilege here. I am just stating facts. At the core of it all any of us can do is base our opinion on our personal life. Not what is perceived but our own personal reality.
Nobody countered my opinion with anything of substance. I don’t live in a fairytale world. I am educated. I did not decide anything I just stated my opinion.
As far as diversityI don’t see the need for it. Time has and will continue to take care of this.
One example, when I was young , there were no black QB’s in football. There was a stigma attached to it. But then came along one or two black QB’s who succeeded and gradually over time there hundreds and hundreds of black QB’s and guess what, nobody blinks an eye now about it.
Same way with black coaches , as more move into coaching including HC’s the less it is seen as anything special. A great coach is a great coach.
That rolls over into the business world, medical, engineering, IT etc. As more black people earn their way in these careers the more black people you will see in those fields of study and ultimately in the work force.
Which I am glad to see.
MLK JR. would be very pleased to see that today black youth have opportunities to do anything they want to pursue. It takes hard work and determination but it can be done.
It is the content of a person’s character that counts.

All white people have privilege - whether you choose to acknowledge it or not. If you want data, it's out there.

The Color of Justice: Racial and Ethnic Disparity in State Prisons | The Sentencing Project - there is information on the significant disproportionate number of POC in our prison system.

Demographic Differences in Sentencing - there is information on the differences in sentencing based on race

Infographic: Black Americans 2.5X More Likely Than Whites to Be Killed By Police - there is information that black people are 2.5X more likely to be killed by police

I could go on and there are TONS of examples related to the recent protests and other incidents that exemplify the police brutality that is pervasive in this country. If you choose not to try to empathize or understand, that's on you, but don't say you're posting 'facts' when it's just your perspective/opinion. I encourage you to follow folks leading the movement and do some research on WHY people feel the way they do.

 

[j66kicker]

No privilege here. I am just stating facts. At the core of it all any of us can do is base our opinion on our personal life. Not what is perceived but our own personal reality.
Nobody countered my opinion with anything of substance. I don’t live in a fairytale world. I am educated. I did not decide anything I just stated my opinion.
As far as diversityI don’t see the need for it. Time has and will continue to take care of this.
One example, when I was young , there were no black QB’s in football. There was a stigma attached to it. But then came along one or two black QB’s who succeeded and gradually over time there hundreds and hundreds of black QB’s and guess what, nobody blinks an eye now about it.
Same way with black coaches , as more move into coaching including HC’s the less it is seen as anything special. A great coach is a great coach.
That rolls over into the business world, medical, engineering, IT etc. As more black people earn their way in these careers the more black people you will see in those fields of study and ultimately in the work force.
Which I am glad to see.
MLK JR. would be very pleased to see that today black youth have opportunities to do anything they want to pursue. It takes hard work and determination but it can be done.
It is the content of a person’s character that counts.

Umm.. Dude, you might wanna quit while you’re behind. Just sayin’

 

[GoDawgs4]

Umm.. Dude, you might wanna quit while you’re behind. Just sayin’

Why do you say I am behind? What I stated has validity but it is also just my opinion.

But to just say I am behind is fine but you have not offered anything that says I am wrong.

I understand that my opinion is not a popular point of view these days but that is okay.

 

[GoDawgs4]

Actually I would like to see some focus on the criminal gangs, the drug gangs that have destroyed many more young black men than the police have.

In my own city, we have a great high school with loads of AP classes, honors classes, Art, music, sports etc. and one of the best Vo-tech centers in the country. Students can learn anything from auto mechanics to culinary to electrical to engineering to health tech to medical fields to Welding and many others. Often times these students are job ready out of HS or are very close to being so.

Oh by the way this HS is a majority minority school.

The problem is that many black kids that should be in school learning are instead in gangs learning to be criminals. Why?
Why are they not in school learning to be productive adults?
If these kids would stay in school and become productive adults then the perception of young black men would improve tremendously.

Look I get it that there is some perceived bias against blacks in general but many of those problems have been addressed and improvements have been made. Is there work to be done there? Certainly it is but failure to take advantage of opportunities afforded them needs to be addressed as well.

People have the right to protest and I support them fully to do so. But while they are at, why not protest against the gangs who have destroyed way more lives than the police.

 

[kibblesnbits]

No privilege here. I am just stating facts. At the core of it all any of us can do is base our opinion on our personal life. Not what is perceived but our own personal reality.
Nobody countered my opinion with anything of substance. I don’t live in a fairytale world. I am educated. I did not decide anything I just stated my opinion.
As far as diversityI don’t see the need for it. Time has and will continue to take care of this.
One example, when I was young , there were no black QB’s in football. There was a stigma attached to it. But then came along one or two black QB’s who succeeded and gradually over time there hundreds and hundreds of black QB’s and guess what, nobody blinks an eye now about it.
Same way with black coaches , as more move into coaching including HC’s the less it is seen as anything special. A great coach is a great coach.
That rolls over into the business world, medical, engineering, IT etc. As more black people earn their way in these careers the more black people you will see in those fields of study and ultimately in the work force.
Which I am glad to see.
MLK JR. would be very pleased to see that today black youth have opportunities to do anything they want to pursue. It takes hard work and determination but it can be done.
It is the content of a person’s character that counts.

Let me make sure I've got this. You believe that two equally bright, motivated and high character kids - one white and one black - can proceed through our educational, social and business systems with equal opportunity? Neither will have obstacles to overcome that the other doesn't? They will both be judged by everyone based on the content of their character and no other possibly observable factors? Everyone is on board with this and you can certify it to be true? The reason that there aren't more blacks in "the business world, medical, engineering, IT, etc." relative to whites is solely that they just didn't earn it?

If you know anything about the physical world you know about inertia. An object (race) that is in motion tends to stay in motion. It benefits from all the pushes (accumulated wealth, education, perceived opportunity) that came before it. By contrast, the object (race) that's been held motionless and didn't receive those benefits, requires force to move it because it didn't benefit from earlier pushes. In many parts of the country blacks weren't even allowed to get an education until my generation. I know that because my wife and her brother were the first black children to attend "the white school" in a small town in your state more than 10 years after Brown v. the Board of Education. Not so coincidentally, an all-white school known as Rebul (sic) Academy was founded nearby that same year (undoubtedly the admissions criteria was the content of their character). It still exists.

A few years earlier my father had the good fortune (misfortune?) of being a white Yankee giving a lecture at Mississippi State on one of the summer days when your university was integrated. As I understand it was relatively quiet and peaceful compared to the riots and chaos during the integration of other major universities in MS. However, there were still police set up on the roads into Starkville and he drew a lot of attention as a potential troublemaker. They had to call ahead and confirm that his "I'm giving a lecture story" was real. While MSU's integration was fairly non-confrontational, the small number of minority students at all univerities in that era still had to deal with race challenges. When my wife got to school she still had to deal with students and faculty that did not want them there (imagine a professor declaring that class participation was 30% of your grade but he wouldn't call on students with your skin color - and that was at a major northern public university). She had to find a faculty mentor that could advise her which professors to avoid because they would not treat black students fairly.

Those things happened during my lifetime. They were the first pushes required to overcome the motionless state in which we kept black Americans. They were not enough to instantly overcome the hundreds of years of pushes behind white America. So, it is not just a failure to have earned one's way into more lucrative professions, but a cumulative lack of opportunity that is not instantly overcome in a generation or two, particularly when many of those that were opposed to change (or raised by them) continued (continue?) to be in charge of many social, governmental and economic institutions. They may not all hold rabid racist stances but it would be naive to think there's no residual impact. It's incremental change not instantaneous change but that doesn't mean those that are deprived of equal opportunity should stand for it. Incremental change tends to grind to a halt if it's not occasionally given a little kick.

 

[kibblesnbits]

The problem is that many black kids that should be in school learning are instead in gangs learning to be criminals. Why?
Why are they not in school learning to be productive adults?
If these kids would stay in school and become productive adults then the perception of young black men would improve tremendously.
......

People have the right to protest and I support them fully to do so. But while they are at, why not protest against the gangs who have destroyed way more lives than the police.

This is a valid issue and needs to be discussed, but it should also be recognized that gangs are not purely a black problem. We tend to hear about black and latino gangs because they are concentrated in larger metropolitan areas, but in many places white gangs (including many that advocate white supremacy) are as prevalent as black ones. See the article below:

Dangerous, growing, yet unnoticed: the rise of America's white gangs

White gangs are less covered by the media and less punished – even though 53% of gang members in Mississippi are white

www.theguardian.com

Gangs arise where people don't see opportunity. They feed off the resulting anger and offer what appears to be immediate security and chances to "get even" with what, to them, appears to be an unfairly stacked society (seeing people that look like you mistreated by people in authority positions certainly feeds into this). Late in his career my father led the education program in a large juvenile detention facility north of NYC. It was the kind of place where you didn't go because you had a weapon when you committed the crime, you were sentenced there because you used it. He said they tended to get two kinds of kids, many weren't very smart but could find a role in life as a gang follower, and some that were brilliant and channeled that brilliance into being gang leaders. From their social and economic perspective they thought that offered more opportunity. We have to get to those kids early with consistent, reliable support for being in school and showing them role models in positions they see as accessible. As an example, he had one gang leader that was ready for calculus (a subject only he was qualified to teach) but he didn't have the time the kid deserved so, to complement class time, he brought in a student from a nearby, very expensive boarding school as a tutor. Within 3 months the inmate was tutoring the prep school kid. The potential is there, but we need to make sure young people see that it can lead to a bright future.

 

[GoDawgs4]

Look I am not dismissing that problems still exist. I get it that for young black men it can be difficult to get ahead (and it does not help that perception works against them as well).

And yes I know gangs are a problem across the board (white, Black , Latino etc).
I also know that gangs flourish in areas where they can provide a sense of belonging to kids. That goes back to the breakdown of the family. Sadly that has been spiraling down for about 50+ years.

Lots of problems and solutions are difficult and none of them happen overnight.


Parents or there lack of is another huge problem. When our children were in HS some years back, my wife and I would go to the Teacher/Parent day each semester. Sometimes we would be late in the afternoon getting there because of work.

To give one example of what we would see:

There would be 22 students in a given class (the school then was about 70/30 - B/W).
There would be about 6-8 signatures on the sign in sheet representing about 4-5 students.
So about 18 students had parents that did not even show up for their conference. Not even one parent. Where were they? That happened every time in just about every classroom for four years. Occasionally I would comment to a teacher on the lack of signatures. They would invariably respond that the parents they needed to see never showed up and ones that had exemplary students almost always came.

So IMHO, some of the focus of these protests are on the wrong issues. Not dismissing them by any means (everyone should be treated respectfully by law enforcement) but that police brutality is not the major problem it is made out to be. Fix these other issues and the crime rate drops, gangs disappear and perception of young black men improves immeasurably.

That is my hope and prayer for now and the future.

 

[jumpstart]

No privilege here. I am just stating facts. At the core of it all any of us can do is base our opinion on our personal life. Not what is perceived but our own personal reality.
Nobody countered my opinion with anything of substance. I don’t live in a fairytale world. I am educated. I did not decide anything I just stated my opinion.
As far as diversityI don’t see the need for it. Time has and will continue to take care of this.
One example, when I was young , there were no black QB’s in football. There was a stigma attached to it. But then came along one or two black QB’s who succeeded and gradually over time there hundreds and hundreds of black QB’s and guess what, nobody blinks an eye now about it.
Same way with black coaches , as more move into coaching including HC’s the less it is seen as anything special. A great coach is a great coach.
That rolls over into the business world, medical, engineering, IT etc. As more black people earn their way in these careers the more black people you will see in those fields of study and ultimately in the work force.
Which I am glad to see.
MLK JR. would be very pleased to see that today black youth have opportunities to do anything they want to pursue. It takes hard work and determination but it can be done.
It is the content of a person’s character that counts.

I absolutely countered your argument. You live in a small world where you are comfortable with your friends of other races therefore, everyone is just like you and your friends...so no problem. That is simplistic in every sense of the word. You are as clueless as the day is long about what diversity is really all about. To even say you see no problems is in itself a problem. I feel sorry for you because reality seems to have escaped from your tight little world. You have a very warped opinion of life and the struggles of others....

 

[GoDawgs4]

I absolutely countered your argument. You live in a small world where you are comfortable with your friends of other races therefore, everyone is just like you and your friends...so no problem. That is simplistic in every sense of the word. You are as clueless as the day is long about what diversity is really all about. To even say you see no problems is in itself a problem. I feel sorry for you because reality seems to have escaped from your tight little world. You have a very warped opinion of life and the struggles of others....

I know exactly what diversity is all about .
In my previous career my career, my boss, my manager was a black man who I worked under for 20 years. We got along just fine (how many of you can say that?). We each respected the other. We did not always agree but it had nothing to do with skin color. Sometimes we just looked at things differently.


In my current career I work under a man from India and a woman from Spain and we serve white, Black, Hispanics, Filipinos, Vietnamese people etc. Guess what? They are all people to me.

This was/is in MS where supposedly we are the worst racists the country. That may have been true 60-70+ years ago.

I have black friends that go back two-three generation’s. They are family. Many of them have succeeded in life. Why? Because their parents/grandparents did not let them use being discriminated against as an excuse for not succeeding. Yes they had to overcome obstacles that were not fair at the time.

Nowadays, I have an old classmate (she calls me her brother and she is like my sister) whose Mom is still living (she is in her mid-eighties). Her Mom bemoans the fact that today these kids are not taking advantage of the vast opportunities that they have today that she was denied back in the 1940’s, 1950’s etc.

So yes life is not perfect but as for diversity it not the core issue here. Forced diversity is not going to help in anyway.

I don’t pretend to live in some comfortable world where all is perfect. Also I have traveled around this country extensively so I don’t just live in a bubble.

Today most businesses, medical organizations, industries, schools etc are looking for competent people who can perform, do the job, are honest and responsible etc. regardless of skin color.
Are their exceptions to this? Absolutely but it is more the exception today and less the rule.

No need to feel sorry for me. I don’t have a warped opinion. Just different from yours but that is okay.

 

[sivad40]

It would be easy if we lived in a "colorblind" society but unfortunately we don't and that's "forced diversity" happens. The same people who want nothing to be done, are always the main ones complaining when something happens.

 

[FridaFriend]

Recent comments by Senator Lindsey Graham and Senator Tim Scott shed some light on the difference between black and white experience of police. I think that the issues of diversity in schools and in the workplace as well as affirmative action are attempts to remedy a situation that has proven problematic for so many. Everyone would like and deserves the right to justice and the opportunity to have a good life. We need to have a national discussion of how to make that possible.

 

[clbabson]

Why do you say I am behind? What I stated has validity but it is also just my opinion.

But to just say I am behind is fine but you have not offered anything that says I am wrong.

I understand that my opinion is not a popular point of view these days but that is okay.

No, he didn't, but I did and you chose to ignore it because it doesn't fit your narrative.

 

[jumpstart]

I know exactly what diversity is all about .
In my previous career my career, my boss, my manager was a black man who I worked under for 20 years. We got along just fine (how many of you can say that?). We each respected the other. We did not always agree but it had nothing to do with skin color. Sometimes we just looked at things differently.


In my current career I work under a man from India and a woman from Spain and we serve white, Black, Hispanics, Filipinos, Vietnamese people etc. Guess what? They are all people to me.

This was/is in MS where supposedly we are the worst racists the country. That may have been true 60-70+ years ago.

I have black friends that go back two-three generation’s. They are family. Many of them have succeeded in life. Why? Because their parents/grandparents did not let them use being discriminated against as an excuse for not succeeding. Yes they had to overcome obstacles that were not fair at the time.

Nowadays, I have an old classmate (she calls me her brother and she is like my sister) whose Mom is still living (she is in her mid-eighties). Her Mom bemoans the fact that today these kids are not taking advantage of the vast opportunities that they have today that she was denied back in the 1940’s, 1950’s etc.

So yes life is not perfect but as for diversity it not the core issue here. Forced diversity is not going to help in anyway.

I don’t pretend to live in some comfortable world where all is perfect. Also I have traveled around this country extensively so I don’t just live in a bubble.

Today most businesses, medical organizations, industries, schools etc are looking for competent people who can perform, do the job, are honest and responsible etc. regardless of skin color.
Are their exceptions to this? Absolutely but it is more the exception today and less the rule.

No need to feel sorry for me. I don’t have a warped opinion. Just different from yours but that is okay.

Your boss was a black man...are you serious ? I mean, that's your rebuttal ? You need to look at this because you have a severe case. Dunning-Kruger Effect | Psychology Today

 

[ScottCT]

I know exactly what diversity is all about .
In my previous career my career, my boss, my manager was a black man who I worked under for 20 years. We got along just fine (how many of you can say that?). We each respected the other. We did not always agree but it had nothing to do with skin color. Sometimes we just looked at things differently.


In my current career I work under a man from India and a woman from Spain and we serve white, Black, Hispanics, Filipinos, Vietnamese people etc. Guess what? They are all people to me.

This was/is in MS where supposedly we are the worst racists the country. That may have been true 60-70+ years ago.

I have black friends that go back two-three generation’s. They are family. Many of them have succeeded in life. Why? Because their parents/grandparents did not let them use being discriminated against as an excuse for not succeeding. Yes they had to overcome obstacles that were not fair at the time.

Nowadays, I have an old classmate (she calls me her brother and she is like my sister) whose Mom is still living (she is in her mid-eighties). Her Mom bemoans the fact that today these kids are not taking advantage of the vast opportunities that they have today that she was denied back in the 1940’s, 1950’s etc.

So yes life is not perfect but as for diversity it not the core issue here. Forced diversity is not going to help in anyway.

I don’t pretend to live in some comfortable world where all is perfect. Also I have traveled around this country extensively so I don’t just live in a bubble.

Today most businesses, medical organizations, industries, schools etc are looking for competent people who can perform, do the job, are honest and responsible etc. regardless of skin color.
Are their exceptions to this? Absolutely but it is more the exception today and less the rule.

No need to feel sorry for me. I don’t have a warped opinion. Just different from yours but that is okay.

It's seems like you make judgments based solely on just your own experiences. It's impossible to have any progress with a mindset like yours.

 

[GoDawgs4]

Your boss was a black man...are you serious ? I mean, that's your rebuttal ? You need to look at this because you have a severe case. Dunning-Kruger Effect | Psychology Today

At the core of this all anybody can do is go by their own personal experience. I see things very clearly. I look back on what I have directly experienced. Anything else I say is speculation or based on third party (viewing, listening or reading about something). All three of those experiences have to be discerned carefully.

Forcing anything on people never has a very good outcome. When things evolve and we see change happen over a period of time, it is more sustainable.

Look I wish things were further along for black people. A lot of progress has been made but these issues never get better overnight.

You can’t really refute what I said other than saying something to demean me. I have not criticized or demeaned anyone over this. I am just sharing my opinion.

Back to the original article,I predict we will see more black head coaches in all sports in the years to come but it will be because they have earned it by performance and results, not by some forced diversity. I welcome that and look forward to seeing it evolve. At Mississippi State, I was a big Coach Croom fan and supporter. He did a great job with our football program while he was there. But guess what, he earned the job by his coaching expertise and experience. That was what gave him the opportunity to be the HC. Not some flimsy diversity program.