The most unfortunate Jewish newsmaker since “>TMZ published one tape of Sterling in a racist rant, followed by an extended cut at “>Sterling being banned for life from any affiliation with the NBA and “>Clippers Owner Donald Sterling is a Blight on Jews' History in Basketball.”
Marc Tracy wrote:
It’s sad for all the obvious reasons, but it’s also sad because basketball and the National Basketball Association have historically been a concentrated locus of Jewish-black exchange, and even solidarity. Due to patterns of racial acceptance in the United States, Jews broke into mainstream basketball first and have attained more positions of power, frequently using those hard-fought positions to open the sport up to blacks. If the relationship has occasionally veered toward the paternalistic, it has nearly always been well-meaning. Of course, when Sterling did things like compare his team to a Southern plantation (allegedly), he went well beyond even the worst kind of aloof liberal condescension.
Nothing in Tracy's article should surprise the casual follower of Jewish history or basketball history. It also shouldn't be too provocative.
Jews have a rich history in basketball—and, no, not just as owners. (Probably my favorite experience as a reporter was “>The Worst Franchise in Sports History. Sterling also is a blight on human history—here's a few “>comically disgusting one). Stands to reason, then, that Sterling would be a blight on Jewish history in basketball too.
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