BuzzFeed gathered an online panel of five writers to debate whether the recent proposal to ban the n-word makes any sense or has a chance.
AP Photo/Rick Osentoski, File
We had five writers — Joel Anderson and Justin Carissimo of BuzzFeed, Ta-Nehisi Coates of The Atlantic, Monique Jones of The Baltimore Sun, and Greg Lee of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel — join in an email roundtable discussion Tuesday about the Fritz Pollard Alliance's proposal to institute a rule that would penalize NFL players for using the n-word on the field. The panel exchanged emails for a couple of hours, and this is the result. Writers were free to use "n-word" or "nigger" in their post according to their preference.
Joel Anderson: Dear Greg, Monique, Ta-Nehisi and Justin:
If not for the Fritz Pollard Alliance, it's not a stretch to suggest Mike Tomlin, Marvin Lewis, Lovie Smith, and Jim Caldwell might have spent much of their NFL careers waiting for opportunities that would never come.
History is instructive here.
It was little more than 11 years ago when the late Johnnie Cochran and civil rights attorney Cyrus Mehri threatened to file a class-action discrimination lawsuit against the NFL if it didn't improve its dismal record for interviewing and hiring black front-office candidates. At that point, the NFL had only five black head coaches in the history of the league. Five. By 2002.
A month later, then-NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue announced that he was forming a committee to address the league's hiring practices. Two months later, the league announced what's more commonly referred to as the Rooney Rule, which requires NFL teams to interview minority candidates for head coaching and senior football operation jobs.
A few months later, the Fritz Pollard Alliance was formed to monitor the NFL's hiring practices and promote and mentor NFL minority coaches, scouts, and front-office personnel. And it's clear that, to some extent, they have the ear of the NFL and its top decision-makers and they've been influential in bringing about a number of important changes within the league.
Which brings us to this latest bit of news, which is the alliance's proposal to institute a rule that would penalize NFL employees for using the n-word.
It's tough to know how seriously the NFL will take the advice of the Fritz Pollard Alliance here. But given its history of cooperation with the group and in the wake of high-profile incidents involving the use of the racial slur, including the bullying scandal with the Miami Dolphins, it's clear this proposal will receive at least nominal consideration. At the minimum, it's been good for generating headlines and, um, online conversations. Consider that ESPN's Outside the Lines aired an hourlong special on this very topic Sunday. An hour!
So Greg, let's start with you. Is this a worthwhile effort?
I can't wait to see where you take this conversation.
Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin.
AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar
Greg Lee: I would say the league is making a mistake if they want to eliminate the n-word. It is a can of worms that cannot be opened when they have an NFL franchise with a derogatory name such as the Washington Redskins. I think when you start with n-word, then they have to consider eliminating other ethnic slurs.