The Expense

February 13th. A day full of anxiety. Not because it was the day before Valentine's Day and I forgot to get a present. But because once again, I subject myself to the sensational depravity of the NFL.

People who look like me choose to endorse an industry that has repeatedly spat in the faces of the brave ones who dared stand up to the cruelties and conditions that have been plaguing the industry for decades. I just found myself astounded by the crippling fact that not even a full two years ago we were protesting the lives of black and brown people who had suffered at the hands of an unfair system. A system that our black leaders. Signers, rappers, and songwriters that we turned into advocates of the black community. Leaders who outshine policymakers, lawyers, and politicians. Celebrities who posted black squares in solidarity on their feed. Artists who get their dollar off of standing up for the injustices of black people. Shucking and jiving on the field of the new plantation. Singing, rapping, and performing all for an organization that has yet to provide a single black owner. In James Baldwin’s 1965 Oxford debate it was said that,

“America can laugh at the negroes joke. America can listen to the negroes music. The American dream has come at the expense of the American negro”.

What is more American than drinking a Pepsi, watching football, and enjoying the creativity of the American negro while simultaneously insulting all the ones who sacrificed so much just have us back on the field.

I deplore that we riot when it's convenient. But we easily sacrifice our dollars when we see people who look like us endorse an industry that can literally offer the world to whoever they want.

No mention of Kapernick, Omalu, or any of the others who have perished at the hands of the NFL.

But, I will not let the dynamics of race in the NFL overshadow the immensity of the moment. To have a full halftime show dedicated to Hip-Hop is history at work. Seeing Dr.Dre, Mary J. Blige, and all the other iconic performers who in their own right brought something to Hip-Hop was awe-inspiring.

I will not let the NFL use the music that means so much to so many be perverted into an instrument used to placate the crying voices that scream for justice. Music that comes from the heart should not be used for propaganda. Jay-Z delivered on the promise that his involvement in the NFL would bring. But is this gift of music enough to make us look past decades of abuse in this sport? I just don’t know.