PART 2

PRESIDENT OBAMA
HOW ABOUT THIS

BREED

BLACK NFL
REFEREES


JOHNNY GRIER

QUESTION

what's even harder to  find in history

than African American Umpires

that's right Black NFL Referees

There have been SEVEN  Black MLB Umpires in Baseball history. Only THREE African American NFL  Referees. They are Johnny Grier the first ever but not until 1988. Now  retired. The other two are active Mike Carey since 1995 and Jerome  Boger, 2004. It appears Boger was promoted to coincide with Grier's  retirement.

So here is the "simple"  math that portrays the very basic and real Racism here. There are 17 NFL Referees at the top of each NFL officiating team. With 14 games  each week with 4 teams having their bye week. So at most the only 2  African American Referees are working on any given Sunday during the  season. On some it will be only ONE.

Some more basics just in  case you need them. 7 officials are assigned to each NFL game. Head  Linesman, Line Judge, Umpire, Back Judge. Side Judge, Field Judge and  The Man in charge of it all The Referee. Lots of Judges ONLY one Ref.

More math. So in total  there are 17 crews comprising 119 officials and a few more on call just  in case of illness or injury. But 119 is the relevant number. Of those  to use the phrase an "all time high" 26 were African American last  season. That comes to 19%. Now some will jump for Joy. NINETEEN ....  WOW !!!! So we'll put it another way for you. Even though impossible to  fully verify the distribution.

You will NEVER ever see  the majority of any NFL officiating team meaning 4 of 7 being African  American. It has NEVER happened NOT even in one game in NFL history. As  for 3 of 7 Officials bring Black it is very unlikely you will watch a  game all season in which it happens. As for 2 Black officials out of 7  you will see it occasionally. Many games you will see ONE Black  official. There are games you will see none.

Still impressed ??

Back to the Main Point.  Unless you are lucky and wealthy enough to have a Dish TV + NFL Sunday  Ticket you have a very good chance of going all season without seeing  one of the two African American Referees in charge of an NFL game. The  further point is that there have been hundreds of Referees in the long history of the NFL but only THREE  African Americans. Far far less than  1%. And let's say it again it was not until 1988. That's right 1988  until the first Black NFL Referee was named.

So think about this

All through the 1950s,  1960s, 1970, and 1980s up until 1988 with all the "tokenism" going on  throughout Sports to give the appearance of fairness and some equality.  For those FOUR decades the NFL did not even feel the need to name even  one African American NFL Referees. And now they are doing nothing to  make up for the Outrage except making sure here in the 21st century  they can't be accused of having NO Black Referees.

Imagine this

As fair and logical as  it would be for Commissioner GOOdell to state "our goal over the next  5-10 years is to have FIVE Black NFL Referees to try and make up for  the abusive pattern of Racism practiced by the NFL throughout its  history toward American Americans officiating in the NFL." ARE YOU  KIDDING. Goodell would not make such a statement even if there was a  gun to his head.

Why. 1) the NFL has no  interest of admitting such a problem or past practices, but here is the  even more insidious issue 2) if some how the NFL announced such a goal  there would be howls of protest from the WHITE fan base.

How DARE the NFL  institute "quotas" (sic) for NFL Referees. What a "racist" (sic) thing  to do and denying White officials positions they "deserve" (sic). Of  course needless to say brings us to the more than obvious point. There  has always been a QUOTA system. A WHITE Quota system. The only reason  there are so many African Americans on the field is that choosing  players logically is based on TALENT there is NO such process when it  comes to discretionary choices such as officials most of all Referees.

Which FINALLY brings us  to

President-elect Barack Obama

and our new ongoing  series

WHAT SHOULD PRESIDENT  OBAMA DO ??

Here in the Box over the  next 4 years again and again - today for the second time - look at an  issue in Sports through the prism of how an AFRICAN American President can ever so easily begin to correct so many examples of Racism in  American Sports but needless to say which President Obama will NOT do.

President Obama will  work every day to make sure he is NOT seen to be the AFRICAN American  President. Just like Commissioner GOOdell he will be ever fearful of  antagonizing his WHITE "fan base."

That is of course unless  African Americans and enlightened White Americans challenge him telling  him again and again to stand up against all the many "places" Racism  still exists in America. Obviously we have already started doing our  part in the Box even before Election Day and Obama's "official"  election and Inauguration.

So here is what the new  President

could do which is so so  easy and

simple do nothing more  than

make one very private  call to

Commissioner Goodell and

say "Roger I just read  the

Black Box about NFL

officials what is going

on here can't we have

some equality Roger."

YES SIR Mr. President

right now I'M ON IT

how about FIVE

Black Referees ?