Editor’s note: The following article is an op-ed, and the views expressed are the author’s own. Read more opinions on theGrio.
They say Deion Sanders is controversial and one of the most disliked coaches in college football, and that sounds funny to me. When they say he’s controversial and disliked, my first question is this: controversial to whom? And disliked by who? Because among my friends and acquaintances, he’s like a thrilling supernova shooting through the sports universe. The people I rock with are absolutely rooting for him. He’s the return of the brash, bad-ass, swaggerific Black superstar we’ve always loved. But then again, most of my friends are Black (and if they’re not, I know for certain that they’re allies) so my friends look at Deion as part of our tribe. He represents no threat to us. His victory is ours. Now, if you’re white and not an ally, you may see Deion as a threat. That’s because he may remind you of a threat. This is America. We’ve seen this dynamic play out before.
Deion is a man of deep self-confidence. Like, unshakeable self-confidence. Deion thinks highly of himself and he’s not shy about telling you that he’s great and then he goes out on the field and proves he’s great. He’s a Black man with ironclad self-belief. He’s egotistical and braggadocious, but Deion leavens his swagger with comic levity, avuncular wisdom and nuggets of Christian faith. But a big Black ego can be frightening to white people, especially to white men.
I feel like we saw something similar play out with Muhammad Ali. He was, like Deion, a man of towering self-confidence who constantly and eloquently told us how great he was. As far as the way Deion conducts…
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