Satchel Paige – American Legend

NPR recently did a wonderful piece on Satchel Paige. I am not a huge baseball fan. In fact, I quit the sport as a young boy, choosing futbol (soccer) instead – despite the fact my brothers were extraordinary baseball players. However, I do love to attend ball games games, there is a certain American ambiance and sense of history that isn’t present at American Football or Basketball games.

Though I wouldn’t call myself a fan of baseball, the significance of Satchel Paige has long been with me.  I remember hearing stories from my grandfather and other older African-American men. None of them knew Satchel, but they knew what Satchel meant to baseball and they knew the inspirational and entertaining impact Satchel Paige had on the African American community.

Here is an excerpt from Larry Tye’s new book Satchel

Satchel would get his first shot at seeing the world beyond Alabama and playing in a real baseball league. Alex Herman would get a tale to recite for the rest of his life. Driving his children by a weed-infested sandlot on the South Side of Mobile he would say, “That’s where Satchel Paige used to pitch. That’s where I discovered him.” There was a fire in Satchel’s belly even then, to hear Herman tell it, and the manager vowed to stoke it. So he swept the boyish ballplayer away from the city of his birth and brought him to Tennessee. Herman would say that, then stop, knowing his listeners knew that was where Satchel’s story takes off. Read More

Many argue – I tend to agree – that despite his short MLB career, which was due to segregation, Paige was the best pitcher in baseball’s history. Scores of his contemporaries both in the Negro Leagues and MLB marveled at how incredible he was. An interesting element of Paige’s story is the fact he was passed up for the major league in favor of Jackie Robinson – who was radiatively new to professional baseball. Jackie got the call because took less money and was not as strong a personality a Paige. The MLB feared that integrating the MLB with an already self-established star would cause too much dissension.

But what perhaps most impresses me about Paige is not his incredible record or the John Henry-like tales told of his expertise and showmanship, but his insistence to be treated as a human. Paige did not play for white folks if his team could not stay in town or be treated as men – though of course overt racism did occur. Paige refused to live by Jim Crow laws and he was good enough and entertaining enough that he could pull it off.  Although we give great credit to Jackie for “breaking the color barrier”, a difficult task regardless of whom it is, it is really Paige – and Josh Gibson -  who should be thanked for transforming the game. Paige’s skills and interaction with MLB players opened the game up and revealed the secret mastery of the Negro Leagues, thus enabling integration to occur.

Here is a video of Larry Tye speaking about Paige. The story at the end really celebrates how amazing this man was.

Slumdog Injustice

This situation with Slumdog Millionaire simply makes me sick. This is the essence of exploitation. Not only on the studio’s part, but on movie watchers as well. It is oxymoronic that the world celebrates this beautiful rags to riches fairytale and the endurance of a “slumdog”, but then sits back and does not allow the story to really change their lives. We have glorified this story and it all makes us feel “good” and makes us assume that we have participated in some act of justice because we have watched a film. We have been lulled to complacency by endearing stories that we watch from the comfort of a padded chair.

The creators Slumdog Millionaire owe Mumbai and the families of the child actors, but so do we as viewers.

Otherwise we are simply benefiting from Mumbai’s poverty and exploiting the poor for our own entertainment.

Amos 2:6-7a

⁶Thus says the LORD,
“For three transgressions of ^(A)Israel and for four
I will not revoke its punishment,
Because they ^(B)sell the righteous for money
And the needy for a pair of sandals.
⁷“These who pant after the very dust of the earth on the head of the ^(C)helpless
Also ^(D)turn aside the way of the humble;

Isaiah 10: 1-2

¹Woe to those who ^(A)enact evil statutes
And to those who constantly record unjust decisions,
²So as ^(B)to deprive the needy of justice
And rob the poor of My people of their rights,
So ^(C)that widows may be their spoil
And that they may plunder the orphans.

If we do not see ourselves as the oppressors we are missing something essential.

Oppression is not always  heavy handedness, it is also apathy and complacency with an oppressive system and unjust actions.

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Telegraph recently spoke with Danny Boyle,  the director of Slumdog Millionaire , he asked the media to leave the families alone and allow them to work out their issues. I understand his statements and agree for the most part  media infiltration can be exploitation too -, but such an brazen injustice must be addressed. It is bad enough that the children – and anyone – lives in such conditions, but it is inexcusable, that a multi-million dollar grossing studio cannot be a little sacrificial and decide to give money earned from Slumdog Millionaire to the families and the development of their community – not just in a trust fund for the children, who says they will make it without help right now?

But again, it isn’t just the studio and it isn’t just this incident. Though not as public and glamorized as this Slumdog issue, we benefit from other’s material poverty all the time. Many of the products we use are made by slumdogs (maybe not in India, but somewhere). We use the argument, “well at least they have jobs” and suggest that we are providing individuals with income. NO!. We are strangling their economy by trapping them in low paying jobs from which they will never be able to move up. All in the name of lots cheap, fashionable clothing and goods for ourselves.

Our relationship with these countries and their people groups is not equitable. We as a people stand as the domineering over the dominated.

We are called to live just lives, not ones of material gluttony.

Worrying Statistics

From the  Economic Policy Institute .

Fifteen months into a deep recession, college-educated white workers still had a relatively low unemployment rate of 3.8% in March of this year. The same could not be said for African Americans with four-year degrees. The March 2009 unemployment rate for college-educated blacks was 7.2%—almost twice as high as the white rate—and up 4.5 percentage points from March 2007, before the start of the current recession (see chart). Hispanics and Asian Americans with college degrees were in between, both with March 2009 unemployment rates of 5%.

There is something more going on here.

This issue is not solely about individuals getting an education, it is about race and prejudice. It is easy to assume that when the playing field is level then everyone has a fair shot, but the reality is the playing field is never level (at least not in this day and age). Individuals have preferences and “likeness” helps seekers secure jobs. Often it is hard to see the same core values if they are displayed in a way different than you display them (i.e. respect containing a verbal affirmation – a Euro-American/Western European value -  compared to respect meaning quiet dedication – an east Asian value). When that happens candidates who are more than qualified don’t make the cut simply because many are not versed enough to see a skill presented in a way different that what is “normal”

I don’t think that this racial discrepancy is because anyone is overtly racist – though some people still are – but more because many white people tend to think of themselves as “color-blind” and thus ignore the bias that naturally comes with their culture and relationships. Racial prejudice often happens when we personally and socially shirk the responsibility of multiculturalism.

Chuck D, Hip-Hop, Music and Civil Rights

Chuck D. speaks personally about the intersection of music and civil rights. Check D. will be apart of a  PBS special called Freedom Songs. The show will include several other famous African-American personalities including; Louis Gossett Jr. Gladys Knight; Pete Seeger; Ruby Dee; Jerry Butler; and the Blind Boys of Alabama. They will all be exploring the role of music in the civil-rights movement – both personally and socially. Here in Huntington the program is airing on PBS, this Sunday night at 6:30, but I would check your local listings to make sure you know when it is going to be on in your area.

Christians & Homosexuality

I wanted to point you all over to my friend Shawn Harrison’s blog.

 He comments about the recent Newseek article about Christianity and Homosexuality and offers links to an editorial response from Christianity Today and additional conversation on Newsweek’s Reedback Blog.

As your read Shawn’s perspective – he is going to post more this week-, you should really consider Shawn’s story. He comes from a place where many of us both Christian and non-Christian do not. His position is both humbling and challenging to all of those conversing about homosexuality.