Mike Ditka admits he doesn’t know exactly what happened in Ferguson, Missouri, but the former Chicago Bears coach seems pretty certain about what didn’t happen. In response to five St. Louis Rams players taking the field while making the “hands up, don’t shoot” gesture before their game on Sunday, Ditka told the Chicago Sun-Times: “I don’t want to hear about this hands-up crap. That’s not what happened. I don’t know exactly what did happen, but I know that’s not what happened.”…. Before going on to say he felt “embarrassed” for the players, Ditka blasted the reaction to a grand jury’s decision not to indict Wilson: “The shame of it is, I’m not sure they care about Michael Brown or anything else. This was a reason to protest and to go out and loot. Is this the way to celebrate the memory of Michael Brown? Is this an excuse to be lawless? Somebody has to tell me that. I don’t understand it.”
There’s an old, care-worn warning about being careful to travel where angels fear to tread. Clearly, Mike Ditka never got the memo. While I’m certainly not going to agree with his views or dispute his right to them, I can’t for the life me imagine what Ditka thought there was to be gained by wading into the controversy surrounding events in Ferguson, MO. Especially when his words portray a clueless old White man too wrapped in White privilege to understand the issues and sensitivities involved.
Ditka admits to not knowing exactly what happened when Officer Darren Wilson shot and killed Michael Brown, yet he says, “I don’t want to hear about this hands-up crap. That’s not what happened.” Could it be that doesn’t understand because he just doesn’t care? Is he asking why people won’t just let it go and move on? As a former NFL player and coach, Ditka interacted frequently with African-Americans, so it’s not as if he’s blind to their stories. For whatever reason, he’s now choosing to ignore the reality that far too many African-Americans face on a daily basis.
What is it that makes Ditka feel “embarrassed” for the players engaged in the protest? It’s not as if they were standing on an Olympic medal stand, thrusting black-gloved fists into the night sky and staring at the ground during the playing of the Star-Spangled Banner. The protest was quick, it didn’t disrupt the proceedings, and it was clearly a heartfelt gesture from African-American players deeply affected by what happened and continues to happen in their community. Since when is taking a stand offensive or embarrassing? Or is Ditka reacting like so many other privileged Whites (e.g.- Greta van Susteren) who want politics kept out of their football because having the truth thrust in their face is uncomfortable?
For Ditka to claim that the grand jury’s refusal to indict Wilson “was a reason to protest and to go out and loot” only demonstrates the mindset of so many Conservative Whites who refuse to look past their own ignorance, arrogance, and self-interest and empathize with the plight of others. Was there an element present in the protests looking for any excuse to burn, loot, and destroy? Without a doubt, and no one should be condoning those responsible for the chaos. To simply condemn the looters out of hand betrays a refusal and/or inability to understand the anger and rage generated within the African-American community in the aftermath of the shooting of Michael Brown.
What Ditka fails, or simply refuses, to understand is that the protest he decries was not a cheap attention-grabbing gimmick. They were attempting to draw attention to a very real problem that likely hits very close to home for them as young African-American males. Not that Ditka would have any frame of reference for understanding that, of course. He’s never faced down a police officer terrified of him because of his skin color, nor will he.
Perhaps the next time Ditka feels moved to hold forth on a contentious social issue, he should keep his own counsel. Unless he enjoys looking like an ignorant, insensitive, and self-absorbed old man.
