Sports commentator Jason Whitlock hates black people. Wait, let me rephrase.
Sports commentator Jason Whitlock has a history of hating on black people, making me think that when he walks past a mirror, he probably clutches his wallet (or purse; I don’t know his life) a bit tighter at his own reflection.
Also known as “a self-hating Negro.” Also known as “the Mayor of the Sunken Place.” Also known as “the Slave Who Rats Out the Other Slaves When They Try to Flee the Plantation and/or Burn It Down.”
He’s an apologist mouthpiece for the racist side of whiteness, and has built his entire career on it, earning a space in the writing pantheon as the biggest black voice willing to publicly and continually bash black people under the guise of “helping” black people.
Once, Whitlock, a man shaped like a football that swallowed a Buick, had the audacity to publicly blast tennis great Serena Williams’ weight. To add insult to injury, he would also claim that arguably the greatest and most dominant sports star in American history was an underachiever.
And here’s what Whitlock had to say about quarterback Colin Kaepernick’s protest against the killing of unarmed black men, women and children by police during his Fox Sports show Speak for Yourself:
“This kid was about Instagram models, tattoos, his abs and building up the Colin Kaepernick brand—until the very moment he loses his starting quarterback job,” Whitlock said, according to Sporting News. “And now he’s out here and he’s ‘Martin Luther Cornrow.’ And he’s got cornrows, he’s Allen Iverson, he’s Angela Davis. I don’t buy it.”
So it’s with this that I lead you into the latest Whitlock-ism: that racism isn’t a rich disease.
On Wednesday, news emerged that LeBron James’ Los Angeles home was vandalized with racist graffiti. Someone spray-painted the word “nigger” on the front gate of his home. James would address the incident a day later with a thoughtful response on race in America.
“[H]ate in America, especially for African Americans, is living every day,” said James, Sporting News reports. “And even though that it’s concealed most of the time, even though people hide their faces and will say things about you and when they see you they smile in your face, it’s a life every single day.”
He continued:
And I think back to Emmett Till’s mom, actually. It’s kind of one of the first things I thought of, and the reason that she had an open casket is because she wanted to show the world what her son went through as far as a hate crime and being black in America. So it’s like it doesn’t—no matter how much money you have, no matter how famous you are, no matter how many people admire you, being black in America is—it’s tough. And we got a long way to go for us as a society and for us as African Americans, until we feel equal in America. But my family is safe, and that’s what’s—that’s what’s important.
Keep in mind that prior to the incident, James was in California preparing for Game 1 of the NBA Finals against the Golden State Warriors. He didn’t ask to be a spokesperson on race relations in the country; he was merely answering questions after someone spray-painted “nigger” on a home that he owns. That should have been the end of the story, except that Whitlock had to do what he does, which is degrade James’ feelings on racism that he’d just experienced.
“I think it is a disrespectful inconvenience for LeBron James,” said Whitlock of the incident. “He allegedly had the n-word spray-painted on his $20 million Brentwood home. He wasn’t there. His family wasn’t there. He heard about it.
“Racism is an issue in America but is primarily an issue for the poor. It’s not LeBron James’ issue,” Whitlock continued. “He has removed himself from the damages and the ravages of real racism. He may have an occasional disrespectful interaction with someone, a disrespectful inconvenience.”
I guess that to Whitlock, having the word “nigger” spray-painted across your front gate is a “disrespectful inconvenience.”
On James’ mention of Emmett Till’s death, Whitlock added:
The people that murdered Emmett Till got off, an all-white jury let them off, there was no real investigation, the whole town was against him. LeBron’s $20 million Brentwood home gets vandalized, and I see two or three police cars trying to get to the bottom of it. LeBron’s staff, I’m sure, cleaned up the spray paint within hours. This ain’t Emmett Till.
Whitlock is a creature of American design. America has a history of propping up black people who will speak badly about African Americans. It’s definitely why Charles Barkley has a show on race despite the fact that he is 1) a moron and 2) a doubly inarticulate moron when it comes to race. I would call Whitlock a house Negro, but that might be an insult to actual house Negroes who, at times, despite being occasionally treated better and getting to work indoors, still wanted to burn the muthafucker down and get the hell out.
But Whitlock is some kind of Super Saiyan slave-mentality-having, Stephen-from-Django-level dude, which is probably why his race-baiting antics have largely been rewarded with continued employment, even if it means he gets dropped from a spot or two every couple of years.
Black-bashing pays the bills, and even though this latest rant feels low even for Whitlock, history says he could always go lower.