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It appears grace is missing these young men.We just witnessed two
tragedies in the span of a week. The late
Kansas City Chiefs linebacker, Jovan Belcher, fatally shot his
girlfriend, 22-year-old Kasandra
Perkins on Saturday at the Kansas
City
home they shared with their 3-month-old daughter, Zoey.
He then drove to the Chiefs’ practice facility at Arrowhead Stadium,
where
coach Romeo Crennel, general manager Scott
Pioli and defensive
assistant Gary Gibbs witnessed Belcher
commit suicide. How utterly tragic…
Shortly
afterward, the
NFL was rocked by the car crash that killed Dallas Cowboys player,
Jerry Brown, and left his teammate, Josh Brent, facing a manslaughter
charge as
the driver of the vehicle. Two weeks ago, San Francisco 49ers defensive end, Demarcus
Dobbs, walked away from a one-vehicle accident on his 25th birthday,
and was
arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence. Would this rash
of
incidents lead us to believe there’s an epidemic or are these merely
coincidences?
Sudden and
untimely death is nothing
unusual for the Black community. Heck, Chicago
is anticipating at least 436 homicides this year. Just a couple of
hours prior
to this writing, an 18-year-old was hurt in a burst
of gunfire near a school bus. Three or four people started shooting in
the
direction of the bus, which was near a busy intersection. The
18-year-old was struck in the leg. He was taken by the bus driver to a
local hospital,
where he was listed in good condition. At least one bullet hole could
be seen
in the side of the school bus. Unfortunately, this rash of unhealthy
behavior is
not unusual.
What is
unusual is millionaires’
and well-paid athletes’ lives spilling into the unusual. Making
super-money for
playing a child’s game is unusual. Being a highly, well-paid athlete
and
committing suicide is unusual. So what are the common denominators in
these
tragedies?
I can’t say that I am 100%
sure, but I’ll settle for 95%: the
preparation given to these young men in their formative years is in
question. Dealing
with the stressors of fame, money and family are foreign concepts to
newly-minted millionaires. Being able to afford the premium sports car
and then
testing its limits are unusual. Driving 100 miles an hour is unusual;
and who’s
there to deny them the opportunity to ruin their lives? I’ll say that
mentoring
is secondary, at best, when it comes to preparing these young men for
real life
off the field.
I’ll even venture to say
that low literacy rates are common
factors in the undisciplined nature portrayed by these young men. When
our
children buckled down in studies, they
exhibit discipline. They may or may not be willing, but it is
discipline. From all appearances, these young men lack
discipline. These are young Black
men, for whom a lack of discipline is a sure element in the
extinguishing of a
hopeful life. Pro football cannot save an undisciplined soul.
Would this rash of incidents lead us to believe there’s an epidemic or are these merely coincidences?
My hopes are that the
National Football League, the NFL players
union, former players and the college alumni will step outside their
cheerleader roles and step into the role of mentoring and playing “the
heavy”
with these precious lives. Brown’s death and the
arrest of defensive tackle, Josh Brent, after police say he caused the
fatal
wreck by speeding and driving drunk, put the NFL Players Association’s
safe
ride program back in the spotlight. It was revamped three years ago
after
concerns that enough players weren’t using it. Are programs enough to
save
lives? I see programs like that (and remember DARE, the youth drug
prevention
program?) as band-aids treating the symptom, but failing to cure.
Union spokesman, Carl Francis,
said the program is
a strong point of emphasis, and every player’s membership card includes
the
contact information. And John Glavin, CEO
of
Florida-based Corporate Security Solutions Inc. that runs the program,
says he
is happy with how the union gets the word out about the program. What’s
he
happy about? People are going to jail - and dying. Though these are
grown men, there
need to be mandatory rules in order to be a part of this elite club,
the NFL. These
are extreme instances; they call for extreme measures.
Look, I am a Black man who
happened to make it into
my 50s. A reckless lifestyle was only saved by grace. It appears grace
is
missing these young men. I imagine there are hundreds more we don’t
know about,
but it’s just a matter of time before the next incident falls into the
column
of the unusual.
BlackCommentator.com Columnist, Perry Redd, is the former Executive
Director of
the workers rights advocacy, Sincere Seven, and author of the on-line
commentary, “The Other Side of the Tracks.” He is the host of the
internet-based
talk radio show, Socially Speaking in Washington, DC. Click here to contact Mr. Redd.
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