What’s New World???
YES! TCS is FINALLY back from a summer hiatus and ready to tackle any/all important social, economic (or just socio-economic LOL) issues…with a touch of Black male perspective. In ramping up TCS for another fall run, you might notice a few changes (for instance, there’s a poll on your bottom right…so vote!) and one idea I thought up was weekly articles I could include, one of which being named “You Know How We Do…” that kind of epitomizes Black thought, implications, or actions which could easily be misunderstood by other races…or even other Blacks. No better place to start than with the 100m dash run by Jamaica’s Usain Bolt…
I guess I should start by saying that Usain Bolt is a freak of nature! His 6′4, 200lb frame matched with a long stride and God-given athleticism is the perfect formula for an Olympic class sprinter. Oh and he doesn’t just sit on his gifts, the young man has already built a long resume of world competition wins and trains year round in Jamaica to best utilize his talents. OK, with all of that being said, why is it that while breaking a WORLD RECORD in the most watched Olympic Track and Field event (100meters) Bolt felt the need to pull up 20m early and begin his celebration…BEFORE FINISHING THE RACE?!?!
Black people are thought of to be a very expressive and passionate people. Fine with me…but I do think that there is a time and place for everything. The Olympics Games are always historic in reference to the cross-cultural implications and international diplomatic constructs, so is this really the place to show-off and embarass your fellow international competitors on a global scale? NO!!! Listen, you can give the argument that he was simply excited and had a reason to be after setting a world record and years of training, but that is ABSOLUTELY no excuse for acting an ass and being a sore winner! Ok, so you won…now is your chance to show the world the class and dignity that your country and fellow countrymen represent, instead you represent your country as classless and indignant firecrackers, only good for brief flashes of greatness (especially when you consider that Bolt accounted for ALL of Jamaica’s 3 Mens Golds!).
I have to be honest, I’m aware that Usain Bolt is a once-in-a-liftime talent on the track and deserved to win the 100m and 200m, but that only gives him even more of a responsibility to utilize his talents for more good than the self-gratification that he seemed to be most interested in. Put it like this, compare Bolt’s win and celebration to that of Tommie Smith of the US who chose to his Olympic victory not as an indulgent personal pedestal, but rather as a GLOBAL SHOWCASE for the injustices going on back home.
Am I taking Bolt’s victory too far? Do you think that his vicotry and celebration was well deserved or a little on the conceited side of glory? Was anybody else a slight bit embarrassed that Bolt couldn’t just win the medal graciously without any self-promotion? Is this any reflection on Black people and Black culture as a whole?
// TCS
:: But I’m Sayin’ Though…