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(written circa 1998)

Niggers play football, baseball, and basketball while the white man is cutting off their balls...niggers tell you they're ready to be liberated, but when you say to him, "Let's take our liberation", niggers reply, "I was just playin'.
— The Last Poets, "Niggers Are Scared Of Revolution"

"Yo, money got moves! You see his cross-ovah?" "Word, brotha definitely got skillz! He should go pro!"

I'm sure we've either been blessed to be the one, these two are talkin' about, or know someone that possess such skillz. Most that are athletic have, at one time, pursued the dream of goin' pro. Mainly the sport is basketball or football. But the game today is developing into more of a capitalist sport, where we find rich white (or blacks who possess a white mentality) leeches attempting to squeeze every nutrient and vitamin out of black athlete's as if they were Florida oranges!

You can't blame a brotha for staying at the courts into the wee hourz of night, or lifting, running, and catching day in and day out. Nobody want's to have a hard time paying billz, and everybody wants to be able to buy what they want, when they want. This eurocentric 'dog-eat-dog-live-for-today-eff tomorrow' mentality has made it so most brothas feel the only way "out" is through professional sports.

With the opportunity for jobs decreasing, minimum wage similar to what NIKE payz foreign labor to make their shoes, welfare next to elimination, and the cost of living rising, athletics seem the only "legit" way out. Most young Afrikanz think this and go to school because they want to receive a college scholarship, which will get them closer to turning pro — or as of late, do what Kevin Garnett has done going pro right out of high school.

I believe the american amateur and professional athletic regime is a nothin' but a modern-day slave trade. It is a legal pimping business that shatter the lives of many world-wide, in particular, Afrikan males. I speak this from both the heart and experience. I received a four-year Track and Field scholarship at a major university and I still suffer from the psychological spellz that were put on me.

Most kidz will tell you when they grow up they want to be some type of professional athlete. Not realizing the low percentage ratio of even making the high school team. Most of these young beautiful, black shining faces will be crushed by the jawz of sports competition and most won't recover. I''m sure you can recall a few legendz in your burrough. "Brotha Scoop, you know, the one who is a legend; he used to play at the park. You know, the one who used to have a nice handle and crazy up's; he went to college, couldn't make it and ended up droppin' out. You may see him on the court still, but he ain't playin' he sippin' somethin' out of a brown paper bag and he's on crack!"

Athletics are highly marketed. Why? My opinion is it's a diversion; a distraction if you will, from what really needz to be done, like, liberating our economic situation and obtaining a cultural knowledge of self. Just using that would enable us to set up Afrikan-owned business' that employ our people, 'cause let's be frank people, the only jobz out here for us collectively are still at the lower end of the socio-economic scale.

THE STRIKING CORRELATION OF THE DRAFT AND SLAVE AUCTIONZ
Everything has a root. To understand how sports evolved, we must go back to a time when YT first realized he could use our melanated rhythm for profit. True, after they colonized Afrika they had nobody new to exploit, so they looked for other thingz to release their aggression and need for control. They held barbarous sporting events like fighting lionz inside an arena. But when they realized Afrikanz were much quicker, more agile, could jump higher, and was more spontaneous, creating sport was inevitable.

Looking at the history of athletic competition, there really isn't much a difference in YTs mentality. Whitefolk have alwayz looked at Afrikan people in the eyes of profit, thus, we were never seen as equal men and women in their eyes but rather objects or toolz to amass fortune. Our mental, physical, and spiritual being is what made them so infatuated with us. They felt the need to steal us all for themselves, as if we were humanz with insurmountable tenacity, but no direction. That's like saying we're intelligent enough to run the whole offense, but not intelligent enough to be the quarterback, so our position will be called "slash" as in "running-" or "option quarterback". (In order to understand the nature of our relationship with YT, please refer to the piece, IZ YT Human? or Mutant!)

We must also understand that athlete's are only good if they can produce, meaning, make money for YT). If you're injured, or if you're lucky enough to fulfill your four yearz of eligibility in school, after that, you're of no use. When you examine the the process of the Atlantic Slave Trade, we were dispersed to the America's and the Caribbean. At the same time, over 100 million of us were either murdered, starved, or committed suicide in this nearly 25-year slaughter which then led to nearly 500 yearz of hard, free labor. Take a moment and think of the many remainz of our Ancestorz that lie on the bottom of the Atlantaic... Ashe'! (for more, watch the Video Article, White Sugar: The Mark of Cane on DGTv)

Upon reaching the docks in the new world of America, our Ancestorz were lined up and sold to the highest bidder for labor we have yet to be compensated for. This is where the annual NFL and NBA drafts have similarities to the the Maangamizi or Middle Passage holocaust. One of the most exciting tymz around the year is the NFL auction, I mean, draft. Each draft is relatively the same only the slave docks, oops again, I mean training camps are now in stadiumz or practice fieldz. This is where athletes get clocked in the 40-yard dash, get tested on their physical strength with a max-out bench press test and a number of other agility tests. After all stats are tallied, the name of the athlete is passed on to plantationz, I mean, franchise clubz and they try to purchase the player with a contract. What's mostly concentrated on is the height, weight, and strength of athletes, because this is what attracts spectatorz, who'll pay for season tickets — many, seasonz in advance — to see these athletes play.

Another just as interesting thing that goes on is the "trading" of athletes from one plantation/team as late as one-half into the season. This meanz the athlete must pack up and leave. So what he just bought a new home in New York, pack up, "ya ass is movin' to Utah!"

What an athlete goes through is somewhat sadistic. In athletics, they stress fitness, but why are their diets so poor?! Most, if not nearly all, athletes eat tonz of decayed flesh, or what you may call meat, carbonated acid (soda), and pop so many pillz and injectionz they'd be considered a junky but because the're literally a product, it's tolerated. In other wordz, you can be addicted to drugs as long as you continue to turn a profit for your slavemaster, I mean, team owner loot, but if you're a junky on the street, it's a different story!

As these athletes build up their muscle strength, most have not exercised the biggest and most important muscle, the heart. With a poor diet, artificial weight gain formula's, and other drugz sanctioned by team physicianz, they don't even realize they're not only shortening their athletic career, but their life as well. Most don't even think about "after athletics" until they are either too old, been benched, or injured. By then, most have made million's but got nothin' to show for it.

THE BUSINESS BEHIND SPORTS: WEALTH OR RICH?
Let's face it, professional sports is a business who's focus is in the field of entertainment. Sayin' this, it is no different than most other operationz in entertainment. All enterprises have revolving doorz with participants (actorz, playerz, etc) getting up to 15 minutes of fame. whilst the ownerz (production houses, agencies, or in this case, franchise ownerz) rake in unspeakable profits infinitely!

With all the billionz made in professional sports generate, the average player doesn't have much time to set themselves up for the rest of their lives. Let's do the math:

According to the NFLPA (National Football League's Players Association), the average career span for a player is 3.5 yearz and in 2009, the average salary was roughly $770,000. In the NBA (the same year), the average playerz career lasts about 4.71 yearz and makes $5.84 million. An NFL player can make at least $2.7 million in 3 yearz whereas an NBA player could make $27.5 million in almost 5 yearz. With approximately 435 playerz in the NBA and 1696 NFL playerz, that's a LOT of bread bein' made!

It's estimated 78% of the NFL comprises of Afrikan playerz and the NBA has about the same number. Although these are peanuts compared to what ownerz make, these are sumz of money you and I would take in a heartbeat; 'cause we know that's at least enough peanuts to make butter!

But the question remainz, why hasn't this wealth found its way to the Afrikan community? Where are the Afrikan firmz and corporationz in place to both employ and compete with the global market? And no, Ebony/Jet is not an example! They were not started with money from athletics. So where are these current and ex-athlete's investing their loot? Oh... rimz, mansionz they don't need, and the extravagant lifestyle they're duped into believing they must live. Their greatest contribution may be a small foundation that bearz their name.

I place blame on these Afrikan athlete's who fall into this trap, but hold (predominantly white) agents most accountable. There is a systematic reason

Professional sports was supposed to be a way out, and it has... for individualz, collectively?... that's another story. The NFL is approaching is first centennial (founded in 1920), and the NBA, as of 2011, 65 yearz (founded 1946). Even though playerz probably weren't making half that 20 yearz ago, more than enough has been made to have created something by now! Why hasn't it happened?

Author of Forty Million Dollar Slaves, William Rhoden couldn't have said it better, "The community of black athletes, like the black community at large, is wealthier and in some ways more powerful than ever before, but in many other ways it resembles that wandering lost tribe, a fragmented remnant unable to organize itself to project the collective power it embodies but is afraid to use." (*another book worth reading is Raceball: How the Major Leagues Colonized The Black and Latin Game, by Rob Ruck)

Everytime I hear how much an athlete weighz or how fast and strong he is at each annual draft, it remindz me of the slave auctionz (drafts) of the past. The only difference is that todayz athletes are being paid for the work. But if you think about it, a $3-4 year million contract is but pennies to a franchise that racks up a couple hundred million annually and they'll be here far longer than the career of the athlete who just signed, thus the stating the difference between 'rich' and 'wealthy' as Chris Rock spoke about, "Shaq is rich, but the man who signz his checks is wealthy!"

In all actuality, we are in worse shape than when being auctioned for free labor a couple hundred yearz ago! Why you ask? Because we are given millionz of dollarz and we still ain't free! With the billionz of dollarz American-Afrikan athletes have collectively grossed, all they have to show for it are a bunch of receipts from money spent on non-Afrikan-owned products and services! When we didn't have anything we had dreamz of what we would do if we had money. We said we'd open up our own businesses which would create jobz and so on. Well, at present, Afrikanz, especially in america, are making the most money we've ever had! We have more millionaires than at any time in history, yet we're still 99% consumer and less than 1% producer! Everything we buy, someone from another culture made it. Whether it's buying a pair of shoes or some BBQ Ribs from the chinese restaurant around the corner.

We obviously have no clue of our spending power for if we did, we could buyout any company! In 1995, American-Afrikanz spent a total of $399Billion. All the other ethnic races (including YT) put together only totaled approximately $323 billion! In 2010, our number jumped to $836Billion!

On March 11, 2011, Horowitz Associates, Inc.'s annual State of Cable and Digital Media revealed in their Multicultural Edition study that almost a third of urban consumerz (31%) watch TV content via alternative platformz such as on a computer/laptop, on a mobile device/tablet, or streamed directly from the Internet to the TV through an "OTT" device such as an Apple TV, a Vudu Box, an Xbox, or a Blu-Ray DVD player.

36% of American-Afrikan consumerz watch TV content on alternative platforms at least weekly versus 25% of white consumerz. Mobile TV viewing is highest among American-Afrikan and Hispanic urban consumerz at14% compared to 7% among white and 5% among Asian consumerz. TV viewing through a computer or laptop alone found that 17% of American-Afrikanz do so, versus 15% of whites.

Now, last I checked, there's approximately 41million American-Afrikanz, meaning we make up about 13% of the U.S. population! This is but an example of one category we lead, yet there are no Afrikan-owned tv stationz and a few film houses (if you wanna include Tyler Perry's gender-changing, boot-licking operation). Why haven't our athlete's thought of collaborating in this field?! It's a goldmine right now! I reference William Rhoden's quote as a reason...

If we all stopped purchasing NIKEs for one year and purchased from an Afrikan-owned shoe line (there are a few), they would take a major loss (this is also strategic on their behalf, because they have several elite Afrikan athletes wearing their apparel)! If we did the same to any business, they would feel our power! On the flipside, it's one thing to boycott, but us American-Afrikanz have a habit of spending money, so alternative businesses is the key.

As soon as Hiphop matured into a billion-dollar industry, Marketing firmz ran by whitefolk re-directed their marketing strategies to the urban market so their products would appeal to us — only because they secrete more from our buying power. The result, just as countless Fortune500 companies owe their success from the exploitation of Afrikanz through slave labor, Afrikan peoples buying power have continued to be the cornerstone to many of their riches. They do this by using Afrikan athletes to endorse their product. Look at the urban-twist commercialz have been like the past decade.

Ask yourselves, we're in a new millennium and we still don't we have an Afrikan company that makes televisionz, computerz, and cars; not even toothbrushes?! But there's a reason for this. Do you really think the white establishment (global white supremacy) would give these amounts of money to Afrikan athletes if he didn't have something in place where they'd end up givin' the money right back? These diversionz were put in place to make sure they would never think of building Afrikan-owned businesses and more importantly, Afrikan-centered schoolz!

Most Afrikan athletes have white agents who do a good job at keeping them away from our neighborhoodz. Instead of creating collaborative foundationz with other athletes, most are urged to donate large sumz to white-owned charities (like United Way — who's founderz and executives have alliances with the Illuminati). We all know these organizationz are not in the business of liberating Afrikan people economically, socially, and spiritually!

I would say the prep and collegiate side is worse where these pimps have an unlimited pool of candidates to exploit. Universities are raking in millionz annually from the exposure amateur athletes bring to their schoolz. Football and basketball are noted as the highest revenue-generating sports.

Think about it, Notre Dame isn't known for their academics, it's their football program. Do you see adidas outlet stores selling Notre Dame Law School shirts?! Same goes for Florida State, North Carolina, Michigan, UCLA, this list goes on; none of these schoolz would make the extra revenue made from sports were it not for the Afrikan athlete!

Notre Dame has a multi-million dollar contract with NBC through the 2015 season. The last contract that ended in 2010 where they grossed a flat amount of $9million . Who get's the money? Certainly not the athlete!

The money also keeps construction on campuses (jobz most Afrikan construction companies don't get) with new buildingz, stadiumz, and arenas. It buyz the coaching staff their carz, their childrenz tuition, their family vacationz, their newly built home in the suburbz, and so on. But what does the athlete get? A scholarship and a lil' tv coverage for four yearz max.

The top five BCS bowl games (Fiesta, Orange, Sugar, Rose, and National Championship) have payouts of $17 million — the NCAA (National Control against Afrikan Athletes) doesn't cut one check to the athlete. The star athlete, who just won the heisman trophy and brought millionz of dollarz to the university media exposure and endorsements simply by wearing the university's jersey — another way of saying who you "belong" to or who your master is).

The exploitation of the college athlete was given national attention with the recent ESPN 30 for 30 documentary, 'The Fab Five' that aired in March 2011. In the documentary, retired NBA player and Michigan/Fab Five legend, Chris Webber made reference to how his #4 jersey was being sold and he hasn't seen a penny of it. After CWebb left Michigan and went the pro's, NIKE started selling his jersey with his name on the back. Think CWebb got a check? He was later implicated with receiving money from Michigan basketball booster, Ed Martin. If this did happen I don't see what's the big deal, but that's an unrelated topic.

Jalen Rose spoke of how NIKE cashed-in on the long, baggy shorts and black socks, raking in millionz, while they, the one's who made it a hot sell in the first place, didn't even have pocket money to buy pizza! This pattern continues, NIKE continues to sell an retro jerseyz even after the player has moved on! In this case, Michigan continues to rake in profits because even though the Fab Five playerz were there for two yearz, Michigan continues to gross proceedz, so in essence, he's still their property!

The 1994 movie 'Blue Chips' that starred Shaquille O'Neal depicted how some programz and alumni take care of their athletes. Personally, I didn't see nothing wrong with that. After all, it's the playerz that go out and win games, which bringz national attention to the universities, which lures additional stand-out high school athletes around the country to sign letterz of intent to play for these universities, which will ensure these universities will continue to make money for yearz to come! The additional perk is this also attracts regular students to enroll at these universities — more money!

Many may not know that when you are a collegiate athlete on scholarship, you cannot work nor play your sport for any money because it is a violation against NCAA rules. I was told even if you play a pick-up game and receive money from it, I'd be in violation. I firmly believe collegiate athletes should be paid a salary! Not only would this cut down on the number of athletes who leave early for the pro's, it would bring excitement back to college sports!

For universities that constantly produce national attention, they can count on that money being there for yearz to come. Meanwhile, if I blow my knee out during a game and can't play any more, I'm no longer "the man" 'cause I can no longer score touchdownz for my overseerz team.

In my eyes my college track & field coach was alwayz suspect to fraud. For one, he had a son who was handicap. During my freshman year, he had multiple major surgeries. That year, we won the outdoor Big East Track & Field championship. That fall, he showed up in a brand new car. He also owned some expensive woodland in the suburbz where he had his home built. I'm thinkin' to myself, where'd he get the money to do all this? Last time I checked, it was me and my fellow teammates that busted our ass and won the championship! By the way, what did we get for winning? A polyester warm-up suit! Bottom line, athletes keep executives and ownerz of franchises paid for generationz!

It is also obvious professional sports and sporting agencies do their best not to encourage Afrikan athletes to invest in their communities. If multi-million-making successful current and retired athletes like Michael Jordan, Shaq, Magic Johnson, George Foreman, LeBron James, and the like thought of doing something big like supporting the construction of an Afrikan public school system, or even something less intimidating to the white industrial complex (global white supremacy) like a film house — who am I kidding?! Any and everything a group of financially well-off Afrikanz do together is a threat to whitefolk! Ancestor Dr. John Henrik Clarke often spoke of how Afrikan people could take care of ourselves the world-over, if we created products and services exclusively for Afrikan people!

THE CONTINUED MISEDUCATION OF BLACKFOLK: JALEN ROSE & 'UNCLE TOM'
Let me first say, I got madd love for Jalen Rose. He's a voice to be reckoned with when it comes to speaking truth about sports. But I must correct him on one aspect on a rebuttal to one of his comments made regarding Black athletes who played for Duke University. I agreed with everything he said until he defined those playerz as "Uncle Tom's".

We all know being called a sell-out or more precisely an Uncle Tom is probably the ultimate diss — especially when called this from another Afrikan. For yearz Afrikan people who did thingz to be in favor of whitefolk were called 'Uncle Tom's'; the problem is, hedz don't even know who Uncle Tom was.

The real Uncle Tom was an Afrikan born into slavery whose original name was Josiah Henson. This Afrikan gave his life to protect other enslaved Afrikanz. When his story was turned into a book, Uncle Tom's Cabin (1852) and then a movie, the writerz re-worked the script making Uncle Tom's character the opposite; a slave who was loyal to his master and all too eager to please whitefolk.

Here is where we see history altered in America's early dayz primarily to imprint a stereotype we still suffer from today that has proved to be socially, economically, and spiritually beneficial to their plight of being the superior race. The film and book (along with images illustrating the book) had a major role in permanently ingraining these stereotypes into the American psyche. This enabled the term "Uncle Tom" to become synonymous with Afrikanz being "boot-lickerz", "lazy", alwayz "shuckin' and jivin'," and "passive" with the no will to be free.

His character became the "happy darky", slow-talking carefree style we've become accustomed to see in later characterz like Buckwheat of the Little Rascals, the Pickaninny and Uncle Remus. The light-skinned mulatto was seen as a sex object; the affectionate, dark-skinned female became the mammy; and the portrayal of our Afrikan children became the Pickaninny often seen with knotty-tangled braidz with big protruding lips painted red. All these characterz are personified in this book.

The book was counter-attacked by Afrikanz like James Baldwin who wrote an essay, "Everybody's Protest Novel," and in the 1960 and 70s, the Black Power movement sayin' Uncle Tom engaged in race betrayal. But it seemz, as with everything else, we Afrikanz rely on YTs information, leaving the incorrect portrayal of Uncle Tom to remain what is believed — hence, Jalen Rose's inaccurate use of the term.

All this ignorance proves whitefolk continue to successfully to teach the masses an incorrect, caucasion-favored version of history.

The following morning after Rose's comment, Grant Hill gave an emotional response, but it was ESPN analyst Chris Broussard's response that brought some perspective, which I hope leadz to a continued discussion... we'll see...

Find out more about the history of Uncle Tom here. As well, learn of otherz at our Versus Series.

ADDITIONAL READZ:
• Athletics vs. Slavery pt. 1.5: Time to Pay the Piper Enslaved!!
• Athletics vs. Slavery pt. 1.75: Athletes Can Spark Da Revolution! But Will They?
• Afrikanz in the Olympics?!
• TORCH-ure: Why Do We Honor the Olympics?!!?
• 'Forty Million Dollar Slaves: The Rise, Fall, and Redemption of the Black Athlete' by William C. Rhoden
• Taboo: Why Black Athletes Dominate Sports and Why We're Afraid to Talk About It by John Entine

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