Allen Iverson wants us to believe that he fears the Philly police. Okay. Iverson has done time, and he is a black man, connect the dots and Allen wants you to buy into the vibe that he’s a marked man by the Philly police.
I’m a black man, now I have been stopped, often; I know what it feels to be stopped for being black. Yet I am certain that if I go to prison, for putting the beat down on some whites boys in a bowling alley, I ain’t gonna get a pardon from the governor whether that governor is black or white. And I know that if I get in some domestic trouble, I can’t afford the high priced legal help that AI can afford.
So what’s up with that? AI wants to live thug life, but then cry about being sweated by the Philly Blue. I ain’t buying the hype. Now Rodney King graphically showed us that in America, being a black male makes you a target. That’s what AI or his attorney is counting on – play the race card. This time it ain’t working, at least not for me
Many of today’s African American athlete lives a different lifestyle. Often they push the envelope crossing the line of athletics and hip hop. There is a saying that musicians want to be athletes, and athletes want to be musicians okay fine. If a young Bill Walton wants to be Jerry Garcia, then Mountain Man Walton shouldn’t be upset when the mainstream press wants to see how much bud he was smoking. The same applies to AI. If AI wants to embrace the thug image, then don’t trip when the dark side of that persona comes back to haunt you.
But keeping it on the real, AI ain’t worrying about some Philly cop putting a bullet in his back. Some young “G” trying to get a rep is something altogether different. That is why many of these young brothas are carrying heat. Today’s young athlete embracing the hip hop vibe needs to recognize the inherent danger that lurks behind the facade of the hip hop nation. The phat cars, big chains, and the material trappings have made them targets. AI knows that.
The late Tupac Shakur was thought by many, the greatest rapper of his era, sexy, and talented, yet he was lyrically connected to the underbelly of the gang/thug mentality, and by doing so, he made himself a target.
Street economics of scale put a price on his head. The popularity of Tupac did not prevent him from being gunned down. Allen Iverson is no different. We have seen Jalen Rose carjacked in Los Angeles, and Paul Pierce robbed and assaulted in Boston. It’s only a matter of time before a major African American athlete will be killed, not by overzealous police, but by some young hoodie trying to get a rep. The Allen Iverson’s of the world knows that, I know that, so when it happens doesn’t be surprised.
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