I also agree that Jim Brown was from a different era with a lot of consciousness around him. Thus, it may have been a little easier for him than if he was held as high as Black athletes are today and with their contracts, endorsements, and eye of the social media. Though it would be tough for anyone to take a stand in any era that can help change the world.

I remember seeing how Chinese fans responded to Kobe at the 2008 Olympics. I was thinking, man, he may or may not know how much power he really has. Now his influence may be less at this stage of his career. Though the Lebrons, MJs, and Kobes, probably could have set-up their own basketball leagues at the height of their powers.

Now today people are nowhere as socially conscience, although some here claim to be. Young people today are living under harsh economic burdens and the chance to make millions would over rule most of their social responsibilities. I’m not blaming anyone, everyone has their own priorities.

Times have changed and Jim Brown is old and too old to change and he can’t see the world as Kobe does and this has nothing to do with Kobe being raised outside the country. Kobe is just a reflection of his time as most of his peers. What Jim said about Kobe can be said about any athlete of today.

It is the parents who allow their children to be used and programmed to think only about themselves without knowing anything about their history and how, if it wasn’t for people like Jim Brown and the many other trail blazers who paved the way so these people could have the opportunity to showcase their abilities, they wouldn’t be in the position they’re in today. It is also the lack of true leadership in the community in order to help the parents who may not always know what’s best for their child. But lets be real, this is all about money and who gets it.

If you’re an athlete, there are camps that are setup for our youth as young as 7, 8, or 9 years old. So they already know who our best are and they start planning to do whatever they can, including paying off family, friends of the family, and so called leaders, in order to keep the youth in their camp, and this goes all the way to college. But we can counter this by creating our own camps and start programming our youth to respect their elders who made it easy for them to do what they do and remember to always give back to their community. The bottom line is we can’t expect our children to do the right thing, when we haven’t taught them what the right thing is.

Black Unity means financial independence and happiness

To take a portion of the money and make a low income development to help the needy would be a good start. But it would take balls to make a move such as the summit of ’67 that Jim Brown organized. Although athletes make alot of money, one must remember that they are given a set amount of time to enjoy their talents before they have to face life in the real world. I recently saw the two part interview of Jim Brown on youtube and know that his views are not what today’s jocks want to hear. To sacrifice yourself for the greater good is a hard thing to do. Brown has the courage to face issues and discuss them honestly whether you agree with him or not. I applaud this effort as he was not going to allow himself to be accepted for anything less than the man he is.

No smiling, shuffling of the feet, and being afraid to go toe to toe with the adversary took Brown to a high level of respectibility among his peers. Kobe should just listen and take whatever positives he gets out of the talk and apply them to his life. This would demonstrate the power of change and the willingness to accept constructive criticism. Leadership of those that paved the way should always be a required path for all of us to follow. Peace out, Papacool.