After losing in Chicago Monday night, Packers safety Nick Collins attempted to throw his gloves into the stands to a Packers fan. A white Bears fan (full of liquid courage I'm sure) spit at Collins and called him the N-word from above the tunnel where he was out of Collins reach. Collins, naturally disrespected by such a cowardly act, responded by throwing his mouthpiece at the guy and tried desperately to get a piece of him before he was separated by security. The spit, the slur, and for what? A football game?
Nigger. There it is. The word that has been given so much power in our society. The word that carries the burden of oppression, the weight of hate, suppresses intellect, and undermines the concept of equality between blacks and whites in this country.
Why is it some fans believe that when they go to a sporting event their humanity can be tossed aside because they root for the team in the other uniform? Where on a ticket does it give you permission to be some sort of vial, disgusting idiot? Something has to change.
No one born and raised in this nation is ignorant of the pain that the n-word has caused. The mere mention of this singular word in mixed company causes a hodgepodge of reactions. Some shutter, some smile, some become infuriated. So, to think this word can be callously yelled from the stands of a football game without repercussion requires a mental incapacity of which I am not familiar.
The defense that it is okay to yell it at a game because people have paid their money is a weak one at best. I pay money at the grocery store. Is it okay to curse the cashier? I pay money at the movie theater. Is it okay to yell at the screen and spit at the guy in front of me? Use common sense people. And to use a radioactive word to get under the opposing team's skin (after the game I might add) because you paid your money is equally asinine as the above examples.
Did Nick Collins do anything wrong? The NFL is deciding whether to punish him. Funny how that works. The guy called Nigger and spat at is the one who's facing punishment.
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