''Doug, obviously you've been a black quarterback your whole life. When did race begin to matter to people?''
One of the most notable media press conference sports questions in history, as a reporter asked this of Doug Williams, the first black quarterback to play in a Super Bowl. I love Doug's response even though he misinterpreted the question,
''How long have I been a black quarterback?'' Well, I've been a quarterback since high school, and black my whole life."
In 1988, the Washington Redskins quarterback was the first to start and win a Super Bowl. In fact, he would end up being named the MVP for his stellar performance, throwing 4 touchdowns. Since then, there have been a few black quarterbacks in the big game, but today it is no big deal. In football the racial barriers have been broken.
In the 1960's Martin Luther King said this about our nation and race,
"I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."
Although we have broken down some of those racial barriers, mainly in sports, the unforgiven act of racism still exists today. Most recently in Ferguson, Missouri where racial tensions have risen for a few months now after a white police officer gunned down an unarmed black man.
Though we have come along way in fixing racism in our country, there's still more work to be done. Just recently I attended a one-day conference for work (Intervarsity Press) on multi-ethnic issues. The table I sat at included: Norwegians,Hispanic, German and Austrian. We each had our own individual story as we shared about our heritage. The one thing we all had in common? We were all servants of the Lord, united in Christ, seeing each other with rose-colored glasses.
Mark Twain once reminded folks,
"Do the right thing. It will gratify some people and astonish the rest."
If you are looking for some great books on race reconciliation click on the link to ivpress on my home page.
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