Mauricia Grant and the Disdainful Sound of One Hand Clapping
June 16, 2008
( Folks, my family and I are moving and I have a long drive ahead. So, this might be my last piece until July 6. Goodness knows I want to write about the upcoming Wimbledon and anything else that piques my interest, but I - and the fam - also might need the time to chill and acclimate to new surroundings, though we will be thankfully surrounded by more family. Hopefully, my guests MODI, MCBias, and SML, will have time in their busy schedules to keep everyone duly occupied with commentaries and articles; enough “meat” for many dinners, enough “treats” to keep minds sated.
Anyway, I’ll see y’all by the 6th and if I put some words down real quick before then, I will.
peace)
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Mauricia Grant.
I’ll type her name again so you do remember it.
Mauricia Grant.
She is why race and sports and racism in sports are the hot-button topics that almost always get pushed to the fore by white-owned mainstream media and its white-owned sports blogosphere mirror image.
The operative word here is ——- almost.
Because of its Internet “reach” when it comes to any “important” sports or sports-related topic, a blog site like AOL Fanhouse is positioned as one of the top five Google search results. Same goes for ESPN.com. Same goes for Deadspin and The Big Lead. Same goes for Yahoo! Sports when they latch onto a subject.
But in this case Google Mauricia Grant and scroll down the page. Oops. You won’t find these sites among the top five. AOL “Black Voices?” That spot where you can find videos of the latest dance? Sure, she’s there - and that’s where she lives in the AOL kingdom.
The Fanhouse? Here’s what a search on their site brings forth. And this is what these folks who love to align themselves with the mainstream have to say about Mauricia Grant:
As I’m sure you’ve seen everywhere — heck, this made front page on nearly every news web site — NASCAR is being sued by a former official claiming discrimination, sexual harassment, and other things. The official, who is black, worked for NASCAR in the Nationwide Series side of things for a couple of years before being terminated in 2007.
In the lawsuit, she claims many things with direct accusations of actions or words said by named series officials while heading to race tracks and while working in the garage and pit area. Nationwide Series director Joe Balash was even named in the documents….
I’d say at this point NASCAR’s reputation has taken a nice blow in the past few days. Of course, that’s the way the American legal system works: the plaintiff makes the first sensational arguments in the media and then the defense is left to defend itself via a public relations statement.
The above is three of the five paragraphs dedicated to Mauricia Grant at AOL Fnahouse. The “writer” had the nerve not to even mention her name until the blurb’s fourth paragraph. And that final sentence, “Of course, that’s the way the American legal system works: the plaintiff makes the first sensational arguments in the media and then the defense is left to defend itself via a public relations statement.” is a doozy.
Who is Mauricia Grant?
Grant, a black woman, became the first black, female inspection official in October 2005 and was fired by NASCAR in October 2007. However, she alleges that the firing was retaliation for her complaining about the way she was treated on the job. Now, she has filed a $225 million lawsuit against NASCAR. The suit details racist and sexist comments, obscene e-mails, and text messages, directed explicitly at her. And this on top of the two men who allegedly exposed themselves to Grant. Tim Knox and Bud Moore, the two men in question, have been placed on indefinite administrative paid leave by France, though he says their suspension should not read as an indictment of the men:
The lawsuit contends that at an April 2007 race in Texas, Knox exposed himself in the hospitality suite of their hotel at an officials gathering hosted by Nationwide Series director Joe Balash.
Moore is accused of coming out of his hotel room in Memphis in October 2006 clad only in a towel. The suit says he asked Grant if she wanted to see what was under the towel, opened it, then ducked behind a trash can.
In another incident, Grant claims Moore asked her how it felt to be black. Her suit claims Grant described being black as “a privilege,” and Moore feigned confusion and wondered aloud “how can she be proud of being black?”
Moore also is accused of making lewd sexual advances toward Grant.
For two years, according to Grant, she was harassed endlessly by other officials and by the crews in garages.
Brian France, NASCAR CEO says Grant never filed any complaints, never went through the proper NASCAR channels to report the treatment:
“We would have investigated this two years ago if she had said anything,” he said. “But it just defies the imagination that she would have sat in multiple training sessions, in diversity training, would have gone through performance reviews … It just defies logic that she had all these opportunities and never made a formal complaint.
“She had HR on the phone. She was in direct contact and never mentioned a word. It simply defies any logic. This amount of charges and the severity of them, for her to just casually say ‘I mentioned it to Joe (Balash) and he didn’t do anything about it, so I let it go and never said another word.’ It doesn’t make any sense.”
“I would have sure liked to speak to her two years ago. And she could have spoken to me at any time. I get e-mails from employees all the time. I’m an easy person in our company to get in touch with.”
And, of course, in an effort to shift sentiments about Grant’s lawsuit France adds what he obviously hopes is a publicly damning statement:
“She chose to make this about money and about a lawsuit, and we’ll deal with that.”
Grant’s story, though, is very human, infinitely less corporate, and frankly much more believable than France’s hyper-protective spiel:
Grant has said she followed the chain of command all the way to Balash, but stopped short of telling human resources because she was reprimanded by that department for a separate incident two weeks after lodging her complaint. She said she viewed the reprimand, which included a threat of termination, as retaliation for complaining to Balash.
When France’s quotes are juxtaposed with more words from Grant and those from her immediate supervisors he sounds more like a desperate man attempting to save his corporation from squandering all its efforts to delicately court the black community’s money:
“When I started working at Irwindale Speedway, it was because of my own interest,” Grant said. “I volunteered to work for free at the Dodge Weekly Racing (Series). It was something that I wanted to do. I was a L.A. girl and there was a short track close by — 30 miles from L.A. It had nothing to do with me wanting to help NASCAR diversify its sport.
“Once I was working at Irwindale and I got real great reviews from my bosses, Magic Johnson heard about me because Shav Glick wrote a story about me that appeared in the L.A. Times. Magic read it and invited me to speak on behalf of NASCAR at an event to celebrate John Mack, the former president of the L.A. Urban League.”
When the late Shav Glick of the Times interviewed Irwindale Speedway principals, the reviews of Grant could not have been more admirable.
“Mauricia is a great asset to our officiating crew and to the track in general,” track VP Bob DeFazio told the Times. “Her enthusiasm seems perfectly matched by her ability to learn. We’ve asked the people at the Automotive Training Center to please send us more like her.”
“The best word to describe Mo is sharp,” Director of Racing, Lester Boyer told the Times. “She’s not only one of the hardest-working track officials, she’s the most friendly. Tech inspection is always an us-vs.-them deal, like we’re trying to find something wrong with someone’s race car. In reality, that couldn’t be further from the truth. We just love it when a car sails through the safety and rules compliance inspection. Mo’s smile and the way she does this important job just puts everyone at ease.”
And, as if to throw mud on France’s pile of refutations Grant somehow has faith that her plight was worthwhile and that NASCAR is a place where black people can work and flourish:
Despite her experiences, Grant’s opinion of motorsports in general has not soured. Grant openly encourages other minorities to pursue a career in NASCAR.
“I would tell them to go for it,” Grant said. “It’s an exciting, wonderful sport, minus the troubles and the people I had to deal with and the ignorance that was present in the garage area. Motorsports in general is a fun and exciting career. I would not think twice about doing this all over again because I really enjoyed what I did.
“We have to work together to change the racist culture. Anyone that has an interest in motorsports, they should be allowed to work in that environment without having to deal with racism or sexism. It’s not OK to just say just because of the environment you can’t work there. … It’s not an easy place to work, but if this is what you want to do, you have to work hard and fight for it, put your time in and demonstrate that you’re capable of doing the job.”
Does this sound like a woman who ‘chose to make this about money and about a lawsuit’ as France so subversively claims?
Grant’s lawsuit and the circumstances surrounding it are as fascinating as they are important. Before Grant’s lawsuit was filed very, very few people outside of NASCAR’s ranks even knew a black woman acted in the capacity of a NASCAR official.
And for this sport that has such a dedicated following that they are called “NASCAR Nation” the Grant lawsuit has much larger ramifications than a potential payout to the woman from NASCAR’s coffers, well at least whatever insurance company they use to protect them from losing their asses when they are on the losing end of claims like this one.
This is about the very heart of NASCAR.
It is about the essence of its collective socio-political conservatism and all the inherent baggage that reality brings with it.
It is about racism.
It is about misogyny.
It is about men and locker room humor.
It is about human beings and our basic loathing and therefore failure to possess the wherewithal to accept and respect someone different than us.
And beyond all of that it is about a white pathology rarely discussed because self-examination is the most difficult to do of all human responsibilities.
With all that is involved in this singular lawsuit by this woman who is singular within her sport, the constant din of press coverage of Mauricia Grant’s lawsuit is strangely - and at the same time, not so strangely - absent.
But this is what has been covered:
ESPN.com’s LZ Granderson once wrote that the people in and around NASCAR should not be called “rednecks” and that the word was akin to a racial slur.
Oh really.
I wonder what he thinks now? Probably that the few should not be lumped in with the many. But, then again, when Granderson criticized the false phenomenon that is Kimbo Slice, he said Slice’s persona reflected poorly on all black people. You cannot have it all ways, but that certainly is the message.
One perceived negative persona is a reflection of the whole —– when that whole is black. But when it’s NASCAR - white people - it’s just a few bad apples; some “rogue” racist and misogynist agents within the sport. Right?
Right?!
But the press mainstream press and the mainstream sports Internet gadflies will tell you that the treatment of the Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens is the same, that both have been equally castigated. Bob Costas did so in his town hall meeting on sports and the media.
When Kimberly Bell was found to be Barry Bonds’ girlfriend she was everywhere. She quickly became his “mistress.” She appeared on FOX News with Geraldo Rivera. She was the cornerstone of a book. Her words were used as proof that Bonds used steroids.
People like Jeff Pearlman wrote that he had to explain to his daughter about cheating through Barry Bonds. Well, Jeff, have you explained the concept of statutory rape through Roger Clemens? Are you telling your daughter about misogyny and racism through the NASCAR men who Grant says exposed themselves and made racist remarks to her constantly for two years?
Where are those commentaries about Clemens, Jeff?
And what of Isiah Thomas and the sexual discrimination lawsuit filed against him? The national media led by the New York press kept Zeke in the news like he was —— Eliot Spitzer. Except Thomas’ media run was longer and much more contentious than that of the dalliances of a high-ranking government official.
And while the case can surely be made that the coverage of Thomas’ misogynist and misanthropic behavior silently co-signed by his boss, James Dolan, was warranted, it in no way should be in the press’ crosshairs more than incidents that speak to the culture of an entire sports as popular as that of NASCAR.
When Sean Taylor was murdered black columnists acted like the racists they so abhor and jumped to the fore in castigating Taylor and his alleged lifestyle while the Washington Redskins safety lie dying in a Miami hospital. When he died they continued to write about another waste of a young black man; “hip-hop” culture was to blame cried Jason Whitlock; Taylor’s refusal to remove himself from the dangerous urban club lifestyle and some ephemeral payback for an unknown past nefarious deed got him ultimately killed lied Michael Wilbon. These “leading” black journalists created their own bash Taylor bandwagon and urged everyone to hop on; they were not going to be caught pants down defending another incorrigible black athlete.
Instead they got caught pants down acting like their white peers for whom it is their perceived privilege to publicly flog black men and women who participate in the athletic arena. Others wrote nothing at all.
When this sportswriter and, oddly, white sportswriters told a different story of Taylor, his background, his demeanor, and his murder, we were brushed aside in an effort to sweep Taylor into the same trash pile occupied by Michael Vick. When it turned out that their words were wholly inaccurate, those leading the anti-Taylor charge sought only to defend themselves - and never apologized. The silent ones finally wrote, and many credited their white peers for maintaining perspective in a situation given to knee-jerk reactions.
Now we have Mauricia Grant.
And we largely have silence.
Sure, we have Jason Whitlock on FOX sports trying to be ahead of the curve in the hope of setting the table for all conversation dealing with Grant with yet another hopelessly myopic commentary that speaks more of some tortured inner demons dealing with his skin color and his perception of black women than it does anything real about the events:
Damn! If you’re looking for confirmation of NASCAR stereotypes, you can pretty much find them all in Grant’s $225-million lawsuit. According to Grant, her white male co-workers repeatedly flashed their weenies, dropped the N-word, asked to see her breasts, talked sympathetically about the KKK and called her a stupid, nappy-headed ho. And when none of those tried and true seduction techniques worked, “Mo” Grant says they resorted to spreading rumors that she was a “Ho-Mo.”
I mean this in the most non-offensive, non-gender-specific, Rick James way, Mauricia Grant is not a Ho-Mo, she’s a soon-to-be “Rich Bitch.”…
In all, I counted at least 20 allegations in her lawsuit that were racist, reprehensible and totally unprofessional. Her lawyers also listed perhaps another 20 allegations that seemed bogus and overly sensitive. Claims that NASCAR officials didn’t come to her aid when a group of race fans shouted “Look at the black official” or complaining that her co-workers said “Mo looks hot today” weaken the seriousness of her legitimate charges.
But that’s nitpicking. I guess her lawyers wanted to overwhelm the court with volume. They don’t need it. There’s more than enough there to charge NASCAR with gross negligence and indifference without pointing out that chassis supervisor Alan Shepard asked Mauricia to purchase his mistress gifts.
Before reading her actual lawsuit, I was suspicious of her allegations and motive. I had no doubt that Grant experienced an unprofessional work environment. I don’t believe there is such a thing as a professional work environment. And I say that realizing that in my younger days I occasionally contributed to a lack of professionalism. I’ve never worked in an environment where women couldn’t complain of some sort of aggressive or subtle sexual harassment. Inappropriate sexual relationships on the job are the norm more than an abnormality. And I’ve heard enough white, black, Mexican and Asian stereotype jokes to perform a Chris Rock standup routine.
I expected Grant’s lawsuit to be filled with stuff I’d seen before, stuff you see on every job.
But this was different. She might have felt more comfortable working as a barmaid at a stripclub. I’ve heard they have the good sense to throw you out of gentlemen’s clubs if you pull out your six iron or five wood. (Now, if you unveil an eight iron, they’ll hand you a Chippendales application.)
NASCAR is in serious trouble here. Unless it has some awfully good dirt on Mauricia Grant, the organization should angle for a quick settlement, fire most of the clowns who worked with Grant and get Isiah Thomas and Sean Salisbury to host a diversity seminar.
The grotesquely sophomoric tenor - attempt at pith - of Whitlock’s piece only acts to cheapen the seriousness by which the Grant lawsuit should be viewed. But that’s what happens when you cannot separate “real talk” for real tackiness.
Beyond Whitlock’s seemly fare, there is not much in the way of commentary on Grant. Unless you count the ravings of a madman from Motorsport.com who completely downplays Grant’s claims to the point where she is no more than an affirmative action negress who needs to have thicker skin:
While it would be incorrect to say Grant got her NASCAR job solely as a result of its Drive for Diversity program, it would likewise be incorrect in saying her skin color likely didn’t play any role whatsoever in moving her to NASCAR’s “short list,” inasmuch as Ms. Grant is of African descent (but so, too, are Moroccans and Algerians, etc., of the African continent, but for some odd reason they’re not considered of “African” descent in the U.S. But that’s another deal, entirely).
If anyone at this point is expecting to see this writer herein unilaterally attempt adjudication of this matter, they’re not going to read such.
This writer will recommend, however, everyone “toughen up” a tad.
And so, in the face of such writing, we have a mainstream press that is completely silent on the issue of Mauricia Grant while the blog poster at AOL Fanhouse, Whitlock and the gentleman from Motorsport.com have their day and hold sway. But relative to Grant, big time Internet sports blogs like The Big Lead offer only a link to a London(!) newspaper with the sardonic line:
“NASCAR Officials named in $225 million lawsuit. That’s why you wait until she asks.”
Wonderful.
That other bastion of mainstream-acting hyperbole and achingly white mainstream sports perspective, Deadspin, wrote this of the matter. And who is their voice of authority? Whitlock.
Beautiful.
But that is the way of sports today, eh? Chad Johnson’s antics and Brandon Marshall quotes about wiping his ass are all the rage - and much more sports-worthy than the topic of Grant and NASCAR.
Meantime what do those black writers who are so effusive when it comes to following others’ leads or critiquing black athletes have to say about Mauricia Grant’s lawsuit?
Nothing.
Oh, I forgot, they’re all too busy covering the NBA Finals to be bothered.
Great.
Wonderful. Beautiful. Nothing. Great.
That sums up the lack of coverage and the feeling about the lack of coverage of Mauricia Grant and her lawsuit against NASCAR.
Now, what again was the sound of one hand clapping?
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The following are but a few of the many incidents listed in Mauricia Grant’s lawsuit:
72. On or about November 30, 2006, White Official Shaun Johnson sent Plaintiff MAURICIA GRANT an email entitled “International Disadvantaged People’s Day” which read:
Today is International Disadvantaged People’s Day.
Please send an encouraging message to a retarded friend,
just as I’ve Done. (sic)
I don’t care if you lick windows, interfere with farm animals, vote
Liberal or occasionally shit yourself…….. You hang in there
Sunshine, You’re fucking special…
86. On or about November 21, 2007, Plaintiff MAURICIA GRANT received a text message from White Official David Duke which read:
I love all Yall mofos
i am that nigga
HAHAHA
Holla
PIMPALICIOUS
103. On or about the week of March 18, 2006, while they were working the Atlanta Motor Speedway race in Georgia, Official Mike Wilford held in front of Plaintiff MAURICIA GRANT some loose diamonds and rubies he was carrying, and suggested that the jewels were hers if she would agree to be his mistress. Plaintiff was disgusted. Officials Mike Weddle and Rick Noble were present, and laughed hysterically.
112. On or about the week of April 14, 2007 while in Texas working at the Texas Motor Speedway, NASCAR Busch Series Assistant Director Mike Dolan approached Plaintiff MAURICIA GRANT while he was eating an ice cream sandwich. Mr. Dolan commenced licking the cream in a lewd manner, insinuating that the chocolate cake was a vagina and he was performing oral sex. While doing this, Mr. Dolan stared at Plaintiff and raised his eyebrows suggestively. Plaintiff MAURICIA GRANT was repulsed.
Comments
16 Responses to “Mauricia Grant and the Disdainful Sound of One Hand Clapping”
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Man, I am alternating between depressed and pissed. Disappointed in the fact that coon is still alive and pissed that some of us can’t run a Nat Turner on some bitches.
Shit like that is good in a way. It shows folks that the journey is not completed. Good find, real talk.
Good luck and be careful while making your move, D.
Insightful column per usual but I was struck especially by your LZ Granderson reference and the fact Blacks are judged as a whole while whites are viewed as individuals. In his Granderson’s article he used more energy to castigate Slice than taking to task the individuals who posted pics of gorillas to symbolize him. I have no problem with Slice because the few times I’ve actually seen him on television he never projects himself as a sub-human coon but he does need to control his image more because racist whites use his image to reflect their racism and fear of what they see as the stereotypical buck nigger. Cross between Kunte Kinte and Lil Wayne indeed.
It’s that same racist, slave imagery that’s at the basis of Ms. Grant’s lawsuit against NASCAR and more power to her too. I’ve heard too many stories about what goes on at these ‘events’ to have any good feelings about them so it’s no stretch to believe the ones who run the sport can be just as racist as their fans and I will group them all as one because the silent ones are just as reprehensible as the ones who spew the venom. Instead of always telling us, Blacks, how to conduct ourselves that same advice needs to be given to the mainstream society as well because Black America is not the laboratory where all the pathology of this country is spawned.
Harvey-
Thanks - and I’ll def be careful… I just cannot believe that MSM and its Internet counterpart is so bold as to pass over Grant’s lawsuit - so far - like it’s a non-story….
sankofa-
He’s effing unbelievable….
D - good luck moving; I’ve done it a couple of times and it’s hard enough by yourself. I can’t imagine doing it with a family.
I’ll defend Deadspin mildly: something was posted on it here this weekend, but it’s not exactly thorough or connects the dots, obviously. It’s just there.
It says a lot that this isn’t front and center on, say, Outside the Lines. The problem is that it won’t get a lot of attention, because NASCAR as a whole is not as stupid and foolish as James Dolan, and will offer a settlement — with a non-disclosure clause built in, of course, and a non-admission of guilt by the corporation. I give it a month before we hear of such a settlement, with terms undisclosed and documents sealed.
However, the PDF document of the charges is a stain that lasts forever, even if no one will pay it any mind.
S2N-
Thanks…. it’s edited….
When I saw about Mauricia Grant’s complaint, it didn’t surprise me at all. I read what some of the brief articles had about Mrs. Grant. I knew the inevitable “Duke lax don’t rush to judgement”, and she just wants to get paid comments were going to come up. I also wasn’t surprised at the venom reserved for her on the message boards.
I know that in Mrs. Grant’s lawsuit, she says she told some higher ups about the incidents, but they were of course ignored. Sounds like typical corporate America. You’re being too sensitive, oh, that’s just how they act, suck it up. I know one person even went as so far as to tell her that the men she was working with were ex-military and if she wanted to be successful, she should follow their examples. I saw that and was like, wtf?!?!?! That’s just unacceptable on any job. I was just surprised she stayed as long as she did. She still speaks fondly of her job, and said she’d have never have filed the lawsuit if she felt that her firing was justified and not just retaliation for her speaking up.
It should come as no surprise looking at the broadcasts of Nascar and some of the fan’s behavior that this came about. I know I read somewhere that one of Mrs. Grant’s colleague’s was a white woman who was similarly sexually harassed, but didn’t report it. I would hope that it would shed a light on Nascar that needs to be shone on it. I know that won’t happen, though. The MSM has already buried this story so deep, you would barely know about the lawsuit. Down here in Nascar country, it barely registers in the papers or on the news. Not when you can talk about how Dale Jr. just won his first race in over two years or when Jeff Gordon hasn’t won a race in over two years or when Richard Petty just sold off Petty Enterprises, etc.
On a brighter note, it doesn’t look like this news is going to deter some of the younger generation from trying to still get jobs with Nascar:
http://triadhomes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080614/NRSTAFF/849658783/-1/newsrecrssarkive
If these kids can get jobs with Nascar, they ought to thank Mauricia Grant for helping them on their path. I hope that if Nascar becomes more inclusive to minorities, that they don’t treat her like baseball and especially the players does Curt Flood. Her speaking up just might be the difference it takes to get more minorities into the garages. I don’t expect to see minorities in the cars on the top circuit full time any time soon.
dwil, nice piece. MSM has been pretty damn silent. The totality of the charges — including all the dick-flashing — is pretty staggering. I suspect we will hear more from MSM this week… but i could be wrong.
kos, thanks for the article link, but I’m not so sure. That “younger generation” is based off the comments of one single 20 year old with a line that says that classmates “echo his comments”. Do they echo them loud enough to get even one second quote? My general rule is that I never claim a possible “trend” if I can’t include at least three anecdotal examples. Author might be reaching.
MODI, I graduated from NC A&T. The NASCAR program is pretty big there. They didn’t begin their association with NASCAR ’til after I left, but I have gone back and seen some of what they are doing. Mostly, kids from rural VA and NC are in that program. Alot of them dream of being the next Wendell Scott. You’d be surprised how many of them want to get into the business. I remember while I was there, this one guy was racing on one of the really minor league tracks. I think he got to race in the Craftsman Truck series some, but that’s about as high as he ever got. Last I heard, he’s still trying to get to the big time and stick. I’m just happy that they’re not giving up. Maybe one day, NASCAR can get some kind of equality to it.
Dwil, Nice article. I liked her response, when someone ask her what’s it like to be Black? She said it’s a privilage.
I hope this lady kept copies of the text messages, e-mails and other correspondence. But her situation explains why minorities (particularly people of color and women) need to keep every shred of evidence of abuse in an office situation. You can’t react angrily to it or swear at someone about what they did, lest you be considered an “angry Black” or “uppity.” And, I pray that Ms. Grant did not “laugh with” the idiot crew or join in their games (risque speech, dirty jokes, lockerroom/barracks banter) becuase when you do that, and then sue, it will be used as evidence that you “tacitly agreed” to the treatment you received and that it was “all in good fun.”
I hope this lady got all the shit she alleges these guys said on tape.
It needs to be shown, once again, that there are white folks out there that are racist and in a position to assert that against someone. Normally, whenever you call a white person a racist, YOU’RE the one that gets blamed for being a racist. It’s a crazy world.
i’ll be writing on about this soon, but (suprisingly) foxnews article isn’t too bad.
he talks about how the response from France is pretty telling.
good article, btw.
Well since I don’t have any respect for Fatlock, I didn’t have any to lose. Oh well. Its interesting that NASCAR suspended two individuals over these “allegations”…..isn’t that sort of an admission to something being amiss? No?
SI has an interview with Mauricia.
Wow
The writing/reporting done on Mauricia in the Fanhouse piece was super bias.
“It is about racism.
It is about misogyny.
It is about men and locker room humor.”
Very true…I can only imagine that her work environment was 10x worse than any thing Brain Cox had to deal with.
To Keep from copy and pasting your article back, I must say that your completely on point about human self reflection and the perception of the whole vs a few bad apples as far as specific group application goes.
“I mean this in the most non-offensive, non-gender-specific, Rick James way, Mauricia Grant is not a Ho-Mo, she’s a soon-to-be “Rich Bitch.”…”
I can’t (can) believe Whitlock wrote something as ignorant as that line. I happened to stumble over to his place while I was checking my e-mail to see him exonerating the Boston Celtics from being a racist organization. wtf? I’ve never heard of the Celtics being racist per say ..just the city of Boston. Funny thing is, if you look at the comments section over there, people still call him a Race baiter and other derogatory terms
“Here’s what they think about you”……….
Good read/ and good luck on the moving process
Sankofa said, “Man, I am alternating between depressed and pissed. Disappointed in the fact that coon is still alive and pissed that some of us can’t run a Nat Turner on some bitches. Shit like that is good in a way. It shows folks that the journey is not completed.”
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This statement is evidence that racism is a cancer deeply rooted in this country. The acusations against NASCAR are no surprise to me. The fans of this sport are basically angry because the history of racism in this sport is being brought into the public spotlight.
Late to the party, but…
The coverage of this my both the MSM and the NASCAR media has been infuriating.
A chunk of coverage is focusing on Brian France and citing this as another example of how he is ruining the sport. Some fans are saying he never should have let it get to the point of a lawsuit - not that there should not have been a culture to allow it to occur. Of course, those same fans will take any opportunity to blame anything on Bill France.
Then there is the balance of coverage which is blaming her for it - as unfortunately always seems to happen in most coverages of media harassment - which is ridiculous.
The fan response, somewhat predictably due to the base, has resorted to racist, and sexist derogatory terms, with the phrase “money-grubbing ho” being bantered about as if they are “witty”. Yet when the sport responds by suspending the named guys, I don’t think it is unreasonable to assume a smoke/fire situation.
Then, the coverage last week when news came out of Obama possibly sponsoring the BAM Racing car led to such lovely comments as “I hope it crashes and blows up”. Classy.
MSM coverage portrayed it as Obama pandering to the NASCAR base, but it turns out that BAM Racing came to them - and to McCain, and a third-party candidate as well. So not exactly pandering, ESPN?