Harry Carson goes on a political rant during HOF speech

[Canadian Bacon]

http://www.profootballhof.com/hall/story.jsp?story_id=2177

this is more a poilitical topic than sports so please keep it here

I think he should've thanked teammates, coaches his family and other people who helped him to reach the NFL and kept the race BS to the NAACP

[DVD Polizei]

Anywhere else, nobody would've cared.

[Birrman54]

where was the political rant? I briefly scanned the speech and didn't notice anything I considered objectionable, if you did perhaps you'd like to quote the section.

[Jason]

I thought the 9/11 reference was a little clunky, but I don't have a problem with any of his other comments. They were both heartfelt and accurate.

[kvrdave]

His time in the limelight, so he can spout off about any crap he wants, imo. I think it reflects poorly, and when I see any entertainer (that really what he was) do this my reaction is, "Shut up and entertain me, bitch." But no big deal.

[antennaball]

I saw absolutely nothing objectionable and even the 9/11 comment was a nice gesture. Unless I missed it (I admittedly started skimming), the race comments were very brief and were certainly not harsh.

[The Cow]

Anywhere else, nobody would've cared.
Most people don't even know who Harry Carson is. Non-issue.

And then there's that whole thing about him wanting his named removed from the ballot because he wasn't selected in the first coupla years...

Oh wait, you selected me. I guess it's okay now.

[NCMojo]

I believe this is the section that the OP is referring to:
As a Hall of Famer, I want to implore the NFL and its union to look at the product that you have up on this stage. These are great individuals. The honor of making it into the Hall of Fame is great, but it was even greater to have the opportunity to play in a league with 18,000 individuals. There are some of the best individuals I've ever encountered. We'd get on the field and we'd fight tooth and nail, we'd try to knock each other out, then we'd walk off the field, pat each other on the rear end, and say, Congratulations, hang in there, whatever.

Those individuals I am extremely proud of participating in a game, and it is just a game, I'm extremely proud to have participated in that game with those 18,000 individuals.

I would hope that the leaders of the NFL, the future commissioner, and the player association do a much better job of looking out for those individuals. You got to look out for 'em. If we made the league what it is, you have to take better care of your own.

The other thing I'd like to say is I congratulate Bill Willis on this, the 60th anniversary, of the integration of the NFL. It should have never happened. When you have a player like Fritz Pollard, having played in the '20s, being shut out, it should have never happened. I applaud Commissioner Tagliabue, the chairman of the diversity committee, Dan Rooney, for their efforts in bringing about a greater sense of diversity in the National Football League.

I hope that the owners and those in the positions of power will open it up to a greater sense of diversity and understand that even those players who have played the game who are looking to get into coaching give them a shot.
It looks like Harry Carson is asking the league to take care of the ballplayers who made the league great back before multi-billion dollar television contracts made even third-string linebackers into millionaires. That seems pretty fair and legitimate to me. And he recognizes and applauds the efforts of the NFL to bring more diversity to NFL front offices, and he urges them on even further. When you considering that African-Americans make up 75% of the personnel but only 16% of the coaches and less than 10% of the GM spots in the NFL, you can definitely see his point.

I certainly wouldn't qualify anything that Harry Carson said in his speech as a "rant". It seems very generous, intelligent, and respectful; he talks about his upbringing, his family, his coaches, and his sense of purpose and mission. He closes on a good note:

As I enter the Hall of Fame, I take so many people with me: my teammates, my family, my close friends, my coaches. I take my ancestors, I take my children. Most importantly I take the fans who have encouraged me game after game after game and over the last 18 years after I left the game of football.

I want to thank you. You've made me feel loved. With the situation I've gone through, I've gotten so much support from people, not just in New York, but around the world. I give thanks to all of you. This is for all of you. It's not just about me, but this is for all of you. Thank you.

I know things must seem different way up in Canada, CB... but down here in America, we respect people who have the courage to speak their mind.

;)

[kvrdave]

When you considering that African-Americans make up 75% of the personnel but only 16% of the coaches and less than 10% of the GM spots in the NFL, you can definitely see his point.


I wonder if we will feel the same if someone calls for more white guys on the field. Whitely is terribly underrepresented there. -wink-

[Rockmjd23]

When you considering that African-Americans make up 75% of the personnel but only 16% of the coaches and less than 10% of the GM spots in the NFL, you can definitely see his point.
That is a very striking statistic. We clearly need more white football players.

[RayChuang]

It looks like Harry Carson is asking the league to take care of the ballplayers who made the league great back before multi-billion dollar television contracts made even third-string linebackers into millionaires.

Having seen that speech live on ESPN I believe that Carson is wanting the NFL to put more efforts into the NFL Alumni group, which has been instrumental in helping NFL players from before the 1960's in their medical and financial needs. This is actually a very good idea, since so many of those older players really do need help, especially for football injury-related medical ailments.

[cdollaz]

No problem with what he said.

[Jadow]

"the 60th anniversary, of the integration of the NFL. It should have never happened."

So he's against intregation!

[Thor Simpson]

If that's a rant, then I'm wearing pants. And believe me, nobody has ever laughed this hard at my pants.

[WCChiCubsFan]

"the 60th anniversary, of the integration of the NFL. It should have never happened."

So he's against intregation!He was saying that the reintegration of the league should have never happened because before it became "whites" only the league had some African American players.When you have a player like Fritz Pollard, having played in the '20s, being shut out, it should have never happened.

[VinVega]

Carson did behave a little strangely when he wasn't selected his first year of eligibility, but I've got no problems with the speech.

[das Monkey]

Good, so I'm not the only one confused at this thread. I'd be the first to criticize the guy if he went on some unrelated political rant during an HOF speech (Iraq, tort reform, taxes, etc), but not only are his comments related to the sport and its history, but they're not even a "rant". He could have really gone off on underrepresentation in the front offices or lack of guaranteed contracts or the need for more alumni support, and he still would have been within context, but these comments are very mild and very reasonable. :shrug:

das

[NCMojo]

Again, in his defense... CB probably has no idea what kind of politics we have down here in America.

[Jason]

I know things must seem different way up in Canada, CB... but down here in America, we respect people who have the courage to speak their mind.;)

When did this start?