“The eyes of the Lords of the Land grew challenging; but, blinded by the glittering prize they sought to keep, they could not detect the stealthy forces at work in the world, forces which were destined to wreck their empire and disperse us Black men like whirling atoms upon the face of the Earth.” Richard Wright’s 12 Million Black Voices

Donald Sterling.

He has vowed to sue the NBA and he is refusing to pay the fine imposed upon him of $2.5 million according to CNN’s Don Lemon.

He has no clue as to what he has unleashed.  So, let’s talk about it.

Donald Sterling will forever go down in our history as the racist NBA owner of the Los Angeles Clippers.  And, by his own admission (remember he said his friends had been calling him to report his girlfriend’s fraternization with Black people?), he does not stand alone as he is but one of the “unlucky” members of society to have his thoughts revealed.   As an 80 year old man, Donald Sterling has not reached this disgraced place in his life because of a leaked recording of his views, but because his views are the compass that have driven his lack of humanity towards others; and, when people are thought to be worthless because of their race, they are treated without value.

Sounds like a plantation mentality to me.

Donald Sterling will never apologize for what we heard, and at 80, an apology won’t change the core set of taught beliefs he has cultivated in 80 years.  After all, in his exclusive interview on Anderson Cooper 360, his racism and bigotry were shown to be even more apparent as he proceeded to further denigrate basketball great, Magic Johnson, his commitment to the Black community, and his HIV status.

Perhaps Mr. Sterling doesn’t realize the indictment he imposed on Jewish people when he said that they get ahead because they help one another by offering each other zero percent interest. I would wonder that if it were true for all Jews or as a traditional Jewish practice, why “his people”–these community servants of which he boasts, are incapable of extending financial breaks to others.

And, since I am a thinking and learned individual, it appears that Jewish people are doing no different than what their Holy book teaches, just like Muslims do no different than what  Islam’s Qur’an teaches in regards to interest (it is haram–forbidden).

Magic Johnson has risen to the upper echelon of financial success because he has been benevolent. Because he has opened his hands to others, he has reaped abundant blessings. Gentrified Harlem benefits from the Magic Johnson Theater and Starbucks. Black men and other people that have contracted HIV will continue to use Magic Johnson as a source of inspiration so that they can live, shamelessly. Looks to me like Magic Johnson has helped more than Black people–but then again, Black people have always helped others.

Magic Johnson is not the issue within the Black or the human race–he is the example.

Mr. Sterling is a racist, terribly misguided, and ill-informed.

Through it all though, he doesn’t get my anger, but he does get my pity because he doesn’t have very much time to realize how much racism has robbed him of his humanity, and thus led to what he has become at this point–a defiant, litigious, old man with a [racist] chip on his shoulder.

If each of us was to openly share our innermost thoughts about other groups aloud, we would be a nation of meanies.  

And, if we chose to harbor those [ill-perceived] ideas, assumptions, and feelings toward others while having the economic, political, and social power to negatively impact the lives of those groups, we would be a nation of Donald Sterlings–racists.

Sure, the LA Clippers and the NBA rallied together in Round 1, Game 5 of the Playoffs under the banner “We Are One” just after Commissioner Silver’s announced punishment of Sterling. But, prior to that game, the mental conundrum the Clippers organization faced when deciding if and how to honor their profession and still stand up to their boss, brought with it the crossroad of humiliation and compromise.

This is what racism does.

In a press conference discussing the implications of Donald Sterling’s actions on his team, Head Coach Doc Rivers made the point that whenever racism is the issue, the burden of response is always placed on the targeted group.

Magic Johnson had to justify his behavior and givings to the world all because Donald Sterling was given a public platform by the media in which to attack Johnson’s credibility, again. First Sterling attacked his value as a person, and next he was able to attack his benevolence as a humanitarian.

Racism.

I’m very concerned that the media, specifically Anderson Cooper, found it necessary to provide Donald Sterling with an exclusive stage as he further poisoned the ears of the world and castigated an entire group of people–Black people–in an attempt to sanctify another and deny being racist.

Since I know Donald Sterling’s kind of racism is not germane to him, I’ll liken the platform he was given to that of propaganda.

But who really benefits?

I’m sick of the Donald Sterlings of the world recklessly using their insecurities and their racially-induced hatred to hurt others, and I’m equally tired of the complicity of outlets that help his cause while operating under the guise of providing a space to let us hear the offending party’s side of the story. None of Donald Sterling’s side needed to be heard once it was found to be his voice on that now infamous recording.

To the Sterling apprentices being groomed at the behest of the media, white privilege, and pure, unadulterated racism understand this: Black people are NOT the mules of the world. We are a very resourceful people with a history and evidence to show it. The ones of us that have “made it” and the ones of us thought to be the “bad apples” of the bunch are one people. We won’t disown each other no faster than Whites will disown their racists and others.  And, we are not leaving America anytime soon.

The race war brewing inside of Donald Sterling is his own burden to bear, and there are too many humans on the planet that would prefer to wear more than just the badge of our race in order to validate our existence and our God-given right to BE.

“Until the philosophy which hold one race superior/ and another inferior/ is finally/ and permanently/ discredited/ and abandoned…everything is war…that until there’s no longer first class and second class citizens of any nation…until the color of a man’s skin/ is of no more significance than the color of his eyes, Me say war/ that until the basic human rights / are equally guaranteed to all /without regard to race/ dis a war…” Bob Marley “War”