Author Topic: Weird Question About Race and Celtic Fans  (Read 11029 times)

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Re: Weird Question About Race and Celtic Fans
« Reply #30 on: January 20, 2016, 01:00:11 PM »

Offline Celtics18

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Are there any other Celtic fans out there who ever think about how it might be better for the team that its best player is a person of color and not a white guy?

For instance, when there was a chance the C's could get Kevin Love, I was for it but there was a part of me that didn't like the idea of the face of the franchise being a white guy given the history of race in Boston and the accusations of racism the team faced in the past.

I'm personally well aware of the Celtics history of commitment to both winning and diversity. The first NBA team to draft a Black player. The first NBA team to field an all-Black starting 5. The first professional sports team in the country to have a Black head coach. And certainly teams of this century have been as diverse as any. But not everyone knows all this.

I'm also aware of the type of harrassment Bill Russell and others endured during their time in Boston. And even though the league became a lot less White in the following years, Boston still built teams around Havlicek and Cowens, and then Bird and McHale which fanned flames of people who thought the Celtics were a racist organization. I don't believe it is. If I thought that, I wouldn't root for the team. But given that history, I do feel a little uneasy at the prospect of building the team around, say, Dragan Bender or bringing in Love as our #1.

Would I take either guy on the team, assuming they can play? Glady. Turning down talent because of my weird feelings about race would be silly and defeat the purpose of the "whatever wins" attitude the team has always taken. But those feelings still exist and I was curious if other Celtic fans ever thought about it.

For whatever its worth I am White.

Let's cover some Celtics' history on race, shall we?  The Boston Celtics were the first team in the NBA to ever draft a black NBA player and they were the FIRST to have an all black starting lineup!!!

http://espn.go.com/nba/columns/story?columnist=adande_ja&page=Celtics-071219

Please stop with this NONSENSE!!!!

Thanks,

Smitty77

It's a shame you didn't read the whole post.
DKC Seventy-Sixers:

PG: G. Hill/D. Schroder
SG: C. Lee/B. Hield/T. Luwawu
SF:  Giannis/J. Lamb/M. Kuzminskas
PF:  E. Ilyasova/J. Jerebko/R. Christmas
C:    N. Vucevic/K. Olynyk/E. Davis/C. Jefferson

Re: Weird Question About Race and Celtic Fans
« Reply #31 on: January 22, 2016, 08:12:31 PM »

Offline Big333223

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OP is 17-23 years old. I'd bet money on it.
You'd be wrong.

I think it's telling that this became a thread about whether or not Celtic fans are racist, which isn't what my OP was about at all. The OP was about whether or not Celtic fans care how the franchise is perceived by others, falsely or not.
« Last Edit: January 22, 2016, 08:24:27 PM by Big333223 »
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Re: Weird Question About Race and Celtic Fans
« Reply #32 on: January 22, 2016, 08:14:58 PM »

Offline Big333223

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Are there any other Celtic fans out there who ever think about how it might be better for the team that its best player is a person of color and not a white guy?

For instance, when there was a chance the C's could get Kevin Love, I was for it but there was a part of me that didn't like the idea of the face of the franchise being a white guy given the history of race in Boston and the accusations of racism the team faced in the past.

I'm personally well aware of the Celtics history of commitment to both winning and diversity. The first NBA team to draft a Black player. The first NBA team to field an all-Black starting 5. The first professional sports team in the country to have a Black head coach. And certainly teams of this century have been as diverse as any. But not everyone knows all this.

I'm also aware of the type of harrassment Bill Russell and others endured during their time in Boston. And even though the league became a lot less White in the following years, Boston still built teams around Havlicek and Cowens, and then Bird and McHale which fanned flames of people who thought the Celtics were a racist organization. I don't believe it is. If I thought that, I wouldn't root for the team. But given that history, I do feel a little uneasy at the prospect of building the team around, say, Dragan Bender or bringing in Love as our #1.

Would I take either guy on the team, assuming they can play? Glady. Turning down talent because of my weird feelings about race would be silly and defeat the purpose of the "whatever wins" attitude the team has always taken. But those feelings still exist and I was curious if other Celtic fans ever thought about it.

For whatever its worth I am White.

Let's cover some Celtics' history on race, shall we?  The Boston Celtics were the first team in the NBA to ever draft a black NBA player and they were the FIRST to have an all black starting lineup!!!

http://espn.go.com/nba/columns/story?columnist=adande_ja&page=Celtics-071219

Please stop with this NONSENSE!!!!

Thanks,

Smitty77

It's a shame you didn't read the whole post.
lol

He literally quoted a post he didn't read.
1957, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1968, 1969, 1974, 1976, 1981, 1984, 1986, 2008

Re: Weird Question About Race and Celtic Fans
« Reply #33 on: January 22, 2016, 08:16:43 PM »

Offline Eja117

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Wow. This thread is still going. Wow