Old saying.
Two wrongs don't make a right.
New saying.
Just ahead.
First, the following article, published at CNN.com, authored by Roxanne Jones and entitled "Right Voice, Right Time".
Two wrongs don't make a right.
New saying.
Just ahead.
First, the following article, published at CNN.com, authored by Roxanne Jones and entitled "Right Voice, Right Time".
Roxanne Jones, a founding editor of ESPN Magazine and former vice president at ESPN, has worked as a producer and as a reporter at the New York Daily News and The Philadelphia Inquirer. She was named a 2010 Woman of the Year by Women in Sports and Events. Jones is a co-author of "Say It Loud: An Illustrated History of the Black Athlete" and CEO of the Push Marketing Group. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of the author.
(CNN) Unapologetically
black, that is the attitude that Beyonce -- and to a large degree
Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton -- brought to Super Bowl 50.
And as a lifelong NFL fan who's attended more than 15 Super Bowls, Bey
and her perfectly timed, bold, Black Panther-inspired halftime tribute was a beautiful thing to behold. It was everything.
Without
asking for permission, Beyonce redefined what it means for a celebrity
to command the stage while the whole world is watching. Going beyond the
game and the glitter, the 34-year-old pop icon used her star power to
shine a light on the problem of race in America. Singing a cleaned-up
version of her new single release, "Formation," Beyonce dared to use the nation's most-viewed event as a platform to shout #blacklivesmatter.
There were nods to Michael Jackson, to Black Greek step shows, to Malcolm X and a salute to the 50th anniversary of
the founding of the Black Panthers. For a minute, watching Beyonce and
those strong black women sporting black berets and big afros march out
onto the field, I forgot I was watching a Super Bowl performance. For
the first time I felt like I wasn't just a spectator of the game but
that the game had become a part of my black experience in America. With
just a few lyrics, Beyonce connected with black women everywhere. Her
performance became personal.
I like my baby hair, with baby hair and afros
I like my negro nose with Jackson Five nostrils
Earned all this money but they neva take the country out me
I got a hot sauce in my bag, swag
I like my negro nose with Jackson Five nostrils
Earned all this money but they neva take the country out me
I got a hot sauce in my bag, swag
Add
in the pro-LGBTQ messaging of Coldplay's performance and the soulful
rendition of Lady Gaga, who has long stood with the gay community,
belting out the national anthem, and you have a vision of an America
that I aspire to live in one day. A nation where equality and justice
aren't just reflected in the words we recite, but in our everyday
interactions with one another. It is a vision of America for which men
such as Malcolm X, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., Huey Newton and too
many of my ancestors and their advocates fought and died.
Sadly, it is a vision of America that still scares some people.
So
predictably, the Beyonce bashers were out in force, calling the
halftime performance politically charged, an assault on police officers,
scandalous. "This is football, not Hollywood," former New York Mayor
Rudy Giuliani complained later, showing just how out of touch he is with
sports culture.
The truth is the star-studded, billion-dollar industry
that is the NFL merged with Hollywood long ago.
The problem is that Giuliani and those critics
are out of touch with a lot more than sports. They are out of touch
with America. They act as if the devastation of Hurricane Katrina, which
disproportionately affected poor blacks, didn't happen on American
soil. As if, far too many unarmed black men and boys haven't been shot
and killed by police officers on American soil. As if, systematic racism
doesn't exist in America. And, as if we don't have a right to protest
this brutality and demand law enforcement reforms by proclaiming
#blacklivesmatter. Like it or not, Giuliani, Beyonce's message was right
on time.
Her "Formation" video
features scenes of a young black boy dancing in front of riot police,
who signal their surrender by putting their hands up, referencing the
"Hands up, don't shoot" anthem of the Black Lives Matter movement
inspired by the 2014 killing of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri.
Tidal, the streaming service of her husband, Jay Z, reportedly plans to
donate $1.5 million to Black Lives Matter.
We
tend to criticize celebrities for talking about politics, for taking a
stand on serious issues. We resent it when stars such as Cam Newton
confront race head-on as he did before the big game, saying that many
fans dislike him because he's a brash, black quarterback. But in our pop
culture-crazed, message-driven world, there's no denying celebrity
voices can influence the lives of many. Celebrities such as Beyonce,
Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars are part of a refreshing generation of famous
voices who are showing that fame can and should be used to push for
social justice.
So I say, thank you Queen Bey, for having the creative courage to join the fight for justice. You slayed.
First, as a rule, I don't have anything but admiration for anyone, up to and including celebrities, who are willing to take a stand for something in which they passionately believe.
The operative term in that last sentence, though, being "as a rule".
Second, although I'm not particularly either enamored of, nor repelled by, the contribution that Beyonce makes to the Billboard charts, I would adamantly refute anyone who attempted to accuse me of being a "BeyBasher".
Those disclaimers divulged, here's my considered, and respectfully offered, reaction to what Ms. Jones has to say in her op/ed.
Puh-leeze.
Fifty plus years ago, Ted Dealey, the then owner and publisher of the Dallas Morning News was one of several prominent newspaper executives invited to visit with the President for coffee and conversation.
Dealey took it upon himself to throw caution, and good manners, to the wind and, in front of the entire group, berate the President for what he believed to be an unsatisfactory performance in office by the Chief Executive.
In what he apparently considered to be an oration of powerful patriotism, Dealey informed the President that what America needed was "a leader on horseback" and what Dealey, and his readership, were getting for their money was a President "riding his daughter's tricycle."
The daughter Dealey referred to by name was Caroline.
And the President who was rudely taken to task was, of course, Caroline's daddy.
John F. Kennedy.
Kennedy responded with some tough language of his own, putting Dealey in his place and not bothering to waste time or breath trying to make the newspaper tycoon understand that what was objectionable wasn't the criticism, but the allusion to his six year old little girl.
A tasteless, classless and completely inappropriate show of discourtesy.
Oh, and not for nothing, but, yes, Ted Dealey was of the same Dealey family that had been prominent in Dallas politics for generations.
So prominent, in fact, that a large chunk of downtown Dallas was named in honor of them.
Perhaps you've read of it through the years.
Dealey Plaza.
Roxanne Jones seems to be fervently faithful to the belief that Beyonce's performance at the Super Bowl was nothing short of a Rosa Parks moment, an expression of moral outrage and courage, focusing a global spotlight on injustice and inequality.
Again...puh-leeze.
Rosa Parks civilly disobeyed a city ordinance, was taken off the bus and went to jail.
That simple brave gesture was a ripple that eventually generated a wave of activism, conflict and, in no small measure, change.
Beyonce exploited the availability of a global spotlight to promote a new single release and disguised the exploitation in a cloak of protest and racial resentment. At the conclusion of the "entertainment", she was assisted to her limo and, escorted by a full contingent of the same kind of police officers she had denigrated in the "act", was driven to her luxury weekend accommodations, acquired through AirBnB to the tune of ten grand for the weekend. One can only assume that a splendid smorgasbord of edible and drinkable delights was ready and waiting her arrival.
Not exactly three hots and a cot, there, Rosa.
And while Super Bowl performers are not, by NFL policy, "paid" for their appearance, all expenses incurred resulting from that appearance are paid.
Reasonable estimates put the figure in the neighborhood of $600,000.
Not a bad neighborhood, by any stretch.
And let's not forget the aforementioned promotion of her new single, seen, and heard, on the telecast to the tune of 112 million people, give or take, in the U.S. alone.
Not a bad tune, either.
No reasonable person would fault Beyonce, or any other citizen, for that matter, for expressing a point of view.
Hijacking the half time show of the Super Bowl was, at the very least, bad business judgement.
Because for every one watcher/listener throwing their blanketed pig to the coffee table in solidarity and screaming "testify, sistah!", there were, rest assured, a couple of dozen watcher/listeners throwing their blanketed pig to their coffee tables in annoyance and/or disgust and screaming "what the fuck?....like having to listen to Coldplay isn't enough?"
And hijacking the half time show of the Super Bowl was, at worst,...
...a tasteless, classless and completely inappropriate show of discourtesy.
Roxanne Jones wrote a little over 700 words praising, and proselytizing on behalf of, "Queen Bey" and her courageous, controversial choreography.
Due respect, I've got a rebuttal that consists of just two words.
Pish.
Tosh.
And the title of Jones' article?
"Right Voice, Right Time"?
Brings us to that new saying I promised at the outset.
Two rights can be oh, so wrong.
First, as a rule, I don't have anything but admiration for anyone, up to and including celebrities, who are willing to take a stand for something in which they passionately believe.
The operative term in that last sentence, though, being "as a rule".
Second, although I'm not particularly either enamored of, nor repelled by, the contribution that Beyonce makes to the Billboard charts, I would adamantly refute anyone who attempted to accuse me of being a "BeyBasher".
Those disclaimers divulged, here's my considered, and respectfully offered, reaction to what Ms. Jones has to say in her op/ed.
Puh-leeze.
Fifty plus years ago, Ted Dealey, the then owner and publisher of the Dallas Morning News was one of several prominent newspaper executives invited to visit with the President for coffee and conversation.
Dealey took it upon himself to throw caution, and good manners, to the wind and, in front of the entire group, berate the President for what he believed to be an unsatisfactory performance in office by the Chief Executive.
In what he apparently considered to be an oration of powerful patriotism, Dealey informed the President that what America needed was "a leader on horseback" and what Dealey, and his readership, were getting for their money was a President "riding his daughter's tricycle."
The daughter Dealey referred to by name was Caroline.
And the President who was rudely taken to task was, of course, Caroline's daddy.
John F. Kennedy.
Kennedy responded with some tough language of his own, putting Dealey in his place and not bothering to waste time or breath trying to make the newspaper tycoon understand that what was objectionable wasn't the criticism, but the allusion to his six year old little girl.
A tasteless, classless and completely inappropriate show of discourtesy.
Oh, and not for nothing, but, yes, Ted Dealey was of the same Dealey family that had been prominent in Dallas politics for generations.
So prominent, in fact, that a large chunk of downtown Dallas was named in honor of them.
Perhaps you've read of it through the years.
Dealey Plaza.
Roxanne Jones seems to be fervently faithful to the belief that Beyonce's performance at the Super Bowl was nothing short of a Rosa Parks moment, an expression of moral outrage and courage, focusing a global spotlight on injustice and inequality.
Again...puh-leeze.
Rosa Parks civilly disobeyed a city ordinance, was taken off the bus and went to jail.
That simple brave gesture was a ripple that eventually generated a wave of activism, conflict and, in no small measure, change.
Beyonce exploited the availability of a global spotlight to promote a new single release and disguised the exploitation in a cloak of protest and racial resentment. At the conclusion of the "entertainment", she was assisted to her limo and, escorted by a full contingent of the same kind of police officers she had denigrated in the "act", was driven to her luxury weekend accommodations, acquired through AirBnB to the tune of ten grand for the weekend. One can only assume that a splendid smorgasbord of edible and drinkable delights was ready and waiting her arrival.
Not exactly three hots and a cot, there, Rosa.
And while Super Bowl performers are not, by NFL policy, "paid" for their appearance, all expenses incurred resulting from that appearance are paid.
Reasonable estimates put the figure in the neighborhood of $600,000.
Not a bad neighborhood, by any stretch.
And let's not forget the aforementioned promotion of her new single, seen, and heard, on the telecast to the tune of 112 million people, give or take, in the U.S. alone.
Not a bad tune, either.
No reasonable person would fault Beyonce, or any other citizen, for that matter, for expressing a point of view.
Hijacking the half time show of the Super Bowl was, at the very least, bad business judgement.
Because for every one watcher/listener throwing their blanketed pig to the coffee table in solidarity and screaming "testify, sistah!", there were, rest assured, a couple of dozen watcher/listeners throwing their blanketed pig to their coffee tables in annoyance and/or disgust and screaming "what the fuck?....like having to listen to Coldplay isn't enough?"
And hijacking the half time show of the Super Bowl was, at worst,...
...a tasteless, classless and completely inappropriate show of discourtesy.
Roxanne Jones wrote a little over 700 words praising, and proselytizing on behalf of, "Queen Bey" and her courageous, controversial choreography.
Due respect, I've got a rebuttal that consists of just two words.
Pish.
Tosh.
And the title of Jones' article?
"Right Voice, Right Time"?
Brings us to that new saying I promised at the outset.
Two rights can be oh, so wrong.
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