Fake diversity, so it seems, in the CFL according to Convivium

And so did the rest of the Eskimos, Stampeders, Roughriders and Don Clark. Thank Topps’c commitment to “diversity”.

:frowning:

Normie Kwong is a “CFL type” all the way! And in nothing but the pure positive all the way.

Strange then that you (and everybody else) have been reacting with such complete indifference to Normie until now:

http://forums.cfl.ca/edmonton-eskimos/9/my-tribute-to-normie-kwong/106335/

???

…you reference an obscure post you made over two months ago in a forum aerial would have no reason to be in about an event that happened two years ago and sound taken aback?!

Yes!!! You bet I’m miffed! I put in a lot of effort on that post and it drew zilch response. And on a CFL forum to boot! Simply incomprehensible.

:o

…so you don’t feel too badly about it not getting any attention I’ll go remove it…

While I’m certainly not opposed to the “diversity” campaign, if the league is going to spend a whack of cash on an intiative, I would rather it be on something that informs the public how talented our players are. To me, talent trumps diversity in an attention-grabbing message.

Diversity is a “nice to have” SM campaign and not a “must have” IMO. All winter, one of Ambrosie’s primary talking points was that CFL players are “world class athletes.” I must have heard him say this a dozen times in various interviews and the town halls he held. I thought, “Great. Someone at the top finally gets the need to promote our amazing players.” Then my mind started conjuring up slogans like, “Real Men. Unreal Athletes.”

Instead, there has been zilch in the way of follow through on this and more of the “Diversity Is Strength” message which they promoted last year. We may never be able to convert all of the “NFL only” minds, but I would sure like to see them at least try. I’m not sure “diversity” grabs any fence-sitting or non-believing fan but instead, indulges in self-congratulation.

I agree. It’s a message that appeals to people who aren’t going to be induced to support the CFL with cold hard cash anyway.

It’s like the commercials Coors used to run on TV in the 1980’s featuring pictures of a snow capped mountain and a narrative involving Rocky Mountain spring water. Coors got all kinds of fan mail for running those commercials. The letter writers praised the commercial for not being crass like other beer commercials. Then the letter writer signed off by saying "“Oh, and by the way, I’m not a beer drinker”. Groan.

Maybe the CFL should run a campaign with the words “Diversity sure, but extreme excellence too!”

:-\

Good read rhymes, points well taken.

And while I’m at it, interesting along some of these lines:

People are burning their shoes. But Nike wants to be on the ‘right side of history,’ expert says

It wasn’t long after Colin Kaepernick appeared as the face of Nike’s 30th anniversary “Just do it? campaign on Monday that angry onlookers began posting videos of burning Nike products on Twitter.
https://globalnews.ca/news/4425863/nike-colin-kaepernick-history-marketing/

Colin Kaepernick and the NFL: The Importance of Diversity

http://www.thesubversal.com/colin-kaepernick-and-the-nfl-the-importance-of-diversity/


So is the NFL non-campaign of diversity, I mean they seem to be shuttiing out CK for employment, the way to go since the NFL this year will be “the biggest and the best and who cares about the CFL” once again for “NFL only counts” fans? Just saying.

My guess, like rhymes, is the “diversity is strength” campaign by the CFL hasn’t added one more fan to the CFL fanbase. And has it actually lost any fans as a result to the fanbase??? Who knows.

For the record, from NFL.com which I’m sure 99.9 percent of NFL fans couldn’t care less about, this statement being on the NFL website as some sort of “promotion” or “mandate” or “mission” or “values” what have you:

COMMITMENT TO DIVERSITY

DIVERSITY AT THE NFL

Diversity is critically important to the NFL. It is a cultural and organizational imperative about dignity, respect, inclusion and opportunity. Accordingly, diversity has been incorporated into the League Values and Strategic Constants and is therefore an integral element in establishing the League’s strategic initiatives. Diversity is the right thing to do both for moral and ethical reasons as well as for the long-term business success of the League. To speak effectively to the broad society externally, the NFL must represent and celebrate a broad society internally. We must overcome the existing cynicism by making progress in both the culture and composition of the NFL organization.

To be effective in embracing and supporting diversity as an organization, every individual must take ownership of the diversity initiative and strive to make a difference in the culture and behaviors of the NFL while impacting workforce composition and advancement whenever possible, as described below:

Diversity Mission Statement

To cultivate an organization and community representing a wide variety of individuals at all levels, all of whom respect, honor and celebrate the broad range of human differences among us, while also embracing the commonalities we share, and to provide each individual with the opportunity to achieve his or her full potential as organizational goals are pursued.

The overall objective of the diversity effort is to create a culturally progressive and socially reflective organization that represents, supports and celebrates diversity at all levels.

The NFL strives to be a model of diversity and inclusion. The NFL defines diversity as the respect and appreciation of race, skin color, gender, nationality, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, physical abilities, age, parental status, work and behavioral styles. Accordingly, it is the goal of the NFL to honor and celebrate the broad ranges of human difference among us, while also embracing the commonalities we share, and to provide each individual with the opportunity to achieve his or her full potential as organizational goals are pursued. To achieve organizational success each individual must take ownership of the diversity initiative.


Speaking of diversity, I wonder why the legends of yore from Indian Jack Jacobs, Normie Kwong, Johnny Bright, Ulysses Curtis and Bernie Custis to Red Storey, Annis Stukus, Nobby Wirkowski, Sam Etcheverry, Jackie Parker and Angelo Mosca never pontificated on the subject of “diversity”? It seems that they were content to let their play on the field do the talking… Hmmmm, perhaps just another case of “Those that can, do, while those that can’t, talk.”

:-\

Given that those are the only two options, which category are you in?

Well I certainly can’t play football (very well anyway). I was always too skinny and uncoordinated as a young fellow. And now I’m 66, (pretty spry and vigorous but still 66).

:frowning:

Of course I’m not the one pontificating about diversity either. I say leave that to Angelo Mosca and the other fellows I mentioned from the days before “diversity” became just another buzzword bandied about by the chattering classes.

:wink:

How about you?

???

Well, it’s not my false dichotomy so I don’t really need to categorize myself. Anyway, I always thought it went “Those who can’t, teach.”

As for players who overcame barriers to thrive in professional sports, I would never think of expecting them to speak publicly about their experiences if they are not comfortable with it. But the guys you mentioned lived a lot of collective decades after their playing careers, and I’m not so sure none of them ever spoke about their challenges. Seems like an extraordinary claim to make.

Good read here about Chuck Ealey’s daughter and her writings of her father:

Child of ex-CFL QB Ealey writes of dad’s rise to fame

The daughter of retired CFL quarterback Chuck Ealey knew his remarkable life story was too big to condense into a children's tale.

So Jael Ealey Richardson decided to focus on a smaller yet significant segment of her father’s journey: overcoming a segregated upbringing in Portsmouth, Ohio, to rise through the ranks in school and sports.

The biographical children’s story “The Stone Thrower” (Groundwood Books) shares the same title as Richardson’s father-daughter memoir of the same name published in 2012.

In her new book featuring illustrations by Matt James, Richardson begins with her dad’s birth in 1950 at a time and in a community with strong racial divisions. …


Wonderful interview on TVO’s The Agenda this past week with Chuck Ealey as mentioned in another thread.

Watch the Chuck Ealey interview here…

https://tvo.org/video/programs/the-agenda-with-steve-paikin/the-champ-is-here

Yes, you’re right. That part I fudged.

Well, it's not my false dichotomy so I don't really need to categorize myself.
Hopefully you're not suggesting that I have to pontificate about diversity even though I can't play.

:o

I was merely pointing out that it’s ironic how the pioneers of diversity chose to let their play on the field do the talking, at least during their playing careers.

:slight_smile:

Not sure where the irony is.

You know who didn’t let their play do the talking back then? The guys who were shut out of the pros because their skin was the wrong colour.

Actually, the full version goes like this:

Those who can, do.

Those who can’t, teach.

And those who can’t teach, teach gym class.

You don’t find it ironic that the trailblazers didn’t whine about it? They just did it? While the ones doing the whining today about how unfair things used to be in days of yore aren’t the ones facing the same barriers?

And the last such potential CFL player was who/when? What has he posted in this thread?

???

The questions to ask are:

a. Were they silent about their obstacles because they chose to just overcome those obstacles on the field?

b. Were they silent about their obstacles out of fear from public backlash?

c. Were they silent about their obstacles because those obstacles did not really exist?

A lot of oppressed people do not speak out about their oppression due to fear of reprisal, but their silence should not be taken as lack of concern about their oppression.