With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility
Michael Jordan was once asked to speak out against the reactionary senator from North Carolina, Jesse Helms, and provide an endorsement for Helms’ rival in the race, a civil rights leader named Harvey Gantt. He responded, “Republicans buy sneakers too.” That glib response was similar to his ostrich-head-in-the-sand response to Nike’s Asian sweatshop scandal. And he remained close-mouthed on the issue of gun control when his father was tragically shot.
LeBron James, often seen as Jordan’s successor in terms of basketball skills and marketability, was put in a similar position recently when asked to sign an open letter to the Chinese government – the same Chinese government who’s funding and supporting the Sudanese genocide by purchasing two-thirds of the oil produced in the region and selling weapons to the janjaweed. Those suffering in the horrific and ongoing situation in Darfur found no sympathizer in James though. King James refused to sign the letter, providing the lame excuse that he needed to look into the matter further before signing his name to anything. Of course, as a sporting legend and one in the making, Jordan and James have no responsibility to speak out on issues of a political or social nature. It’s not in their job description.
But those who are in a position to influence situations and events to provide a better life for others should do so. Jordan never embraced that idea. He never shied away from being a public figure – his image was everywhere, not just in the US, but in the world – but he did shy away from anything remotely contentious, preferring to concentrate on the bottom dollar, and all those above it sitting in his bank account. Now James is beginning to follow in those Air-y footsteps – and in this case, that’s not a compliment.
At the other end of the spectrum is Greg Oden, putative future number one NBA draft pick, currently finishing up a stellar season at Ohio State University is a basketball legend in the making. But more than that, he has already shown signs of being a thoughtful young man who sees the world in terms of something larger than himself. Having just recently seen An Inconvenient Truth, Oden ran into a student on the Ohio State University campus who was working to raise environmental awareness. He promptly stopped to chat and donated $20 in aid of the cause.
A few years ago, on the eve of the Iraq war, Steve Nash made his feelings on the subject known in the form of a t-shirt. He was roundly criticized by fellow athletes and journalists. Yet several years later, it appears that a thoughtful athlete did have something of value to contribute to a politically charged subject.
Nash and Oden are examples of athletes who have a sense of their position in the world. They understand that through circumstances not of their choosing, they have a powerful pulpit from which to speak. They can use that space and time in any way they wish – to hock products in exchange for even more money or to help those less fortunate or to speak out on socio-political issues. Musicians do it all the time – admittedly to mixed reviews – but they never fear the importance of exercising their First Amendment rights.
In a commercial that sparked widespread debate at the time, Charles Barkley famously said, “I am not a role model… Parents should be role models.” He makes a fair point. Basketball stars get paid to play basketball, not to provide the nation with a moral compass, nor to cure the world of its social ills.
No, our sporting heroes do not have to do anything beyond showing up for work on the basketball court and the occasional practice. Whether or not they want to license their image for use in marketing various products is entirely their business. But if they truly want to live up to the title of “sporting hero”, it’s the Nashes and Odens of the world who are leading the way.