One of the upcoming Super Bowl Sunday commercials will feature Florida Gator standout Tim Tebow expressing his pro-life views. The spot is funded by the far right Christian conservative group called "Focus on the Family." In a preemptive response, Planned Parenthood has released their own commercial featuring former Viking Sean James and Olympian Al Joyner. In the ad, the athletes say they "respect Ms. Tebow's decision" not to have an abortion when she was pregnant with her son Tim, but they are also "working toward the day where...every woman's decision about her health and her family will be respected." As a man, sports fan and someone who is also pro-choice, it's refreshing to see male athletes step up and deliver this message. It's also cool to see it delivered in such a classy and tasteful mannerI am wondering, however, if there are any pro-choice present day athletes that are more prominent and popular who could have delivered this message or are they all too chicken-sh*t to "take a stand" on something other than choosing Sprite over 7-Up or Nike over Reebok. It reminds me of when Michael Jordan famously refused to endorse the opponent of racist Senator Jessie Helms in his home state of North Carolina because, as he put it, "Republicans wear sneakers too." Utterly shameless. Jim Brown should have kick-dropped him, and Muhammad Ali should have bit his lip, shook his fist at him and spit out some clever rhyme in response to Jordans's cowardice. For that matter, even though I disagree with Tim Tebow's pro-life position, I respect him for standing up and supporting something he believes in. Most present-day athletes, with endorsement deals hanging in the balance, don't have the heart. That's why Planned Parenthood had to go and unearth these two almost forgotten former greats. Okay, for real, I have no clue who the hell Sean James is, other than I read he used to play for the Minnesota Vikings. But I'm glad to see him, whatever position he played, along with Al Joyner doing this spot. Well done.
Mason Jamal writes about issues pertaining to the style, substance and sensibilities of men (and sometimes women). For more of his musings, you can visit www.MasonSays.com. You can also follow him on Twitter @masonsays and him on Facebook.
Comments: (6)
Add a comment
By: Samuel Hairston on 2/06/2010 11:48AM
It is rather sad that Black men would be applauded for standing up in support of Planned Parenthood when it is a known fact that this organization was instituted for the purpose of keeping the Black population from increasing by encouraging abortion. Our society has been killing the unborn for so long that it has become insensitive to its true impact on our nation. And let's be real and truthful for once. The truth of abortion is that it is not for the health and well-being of the mother, only a way to get rid of a problem caused by irresponsibility on their part. May God continue to bless those women who have chosen the responsible position as well as bless and forgive those who have not.
Reply to this Comment | Report This
By: Mason Jamal (author of the post) on 2/06/2010 12:05PM
@Samuel
Wow, thanks for sharing that 'little known' fact in black history - how apropos for the month of February. That's as bad as Popeye's Chicken including some secret ingredient in its recipe that sterilized black people. I respect your pro-life position. I disagree but I respect it. Thanks for commenting.
Report This
By: Samuel Hairston Jr on 2/06/2010 8:06PM
Thank you, for your reply. Seriously,though,check out the history of Planned Parenthood and it's founder.Have a Blessed Day.
Reply to this Comment | Report This
By: Samuel Hairston on 2/06/2010 8:05PM
Thank you for your reply. Seriously, though, check out the history of Planned Parenthood and it's founder. Have a Blessed Day.
Reply to this Comment | Report This
By: MYMISSION on 2/07/2010 9:40AM
First of all Focus on the Family and other like minded groups could give a dam if black women aborted black fetuses. They cheer when black kill off each other and have set themselves up in gangs to genocide off one another. So don't believe the hype that their message pertain to black women. The more aborted black fetuses the merrier.
Bill Benett, the former U.S. education secretary turned talk show host said back in 2005 that "if you wanted to reduce crime, you could if that were your sole purpose. You could abort every black baby in this country, and your crime rate would go down." Bennett was fielding a call from some nut who was postulating the if the abortion rate in this country hadn't been so high for so many years, we would have a fiscally sound Social Security system now. Bennett's response was to introduce his abort black babies theory as an argument. In an interviews after the remarks were made, Bennett said he was merely quoting from a bestselling book on economics, that put forward the hypothesis that falling crimes rates are related to increased abortion rates decades ago. "It would have worked for, you know, single parent black moms; it would have worked for male babies black babies," Bennett said. There was total silence from Focus on the Family for these jaw dropping comments. No outrage about killing the unborn and speaking for them that is suppose to be their mission. The same Focus on the Family who rant about the liberal agendas that are destroying the family and America. They showed the true nature of their agenda and it sure as hell wasn’t about the life of black boys. They are in bed with Communist China and follow their doctrine on who gets aborted. In China its girl babies in America its black boy babies; those destine to be thugs and criminals.
Bill Bennett is a hypocrite, a loathsome fungus on the tree of American politics, a man who has worked unceasingly to make America a worse place. When he's not publishing the works of others under his own name, he's rolling the dice at Las Vegas and Atlantic City, addicted to gambling and in debt because of it. All the while claiming that America's poor would be rich if only they had the righteousness and moral fiber than he does.
There has never ever been a demonstration by this so-called focus on family groups outside facilities that do abortions that cater to black and non white women. This movement is strictly an attempt to control white women bodies and there right to make decisions about their bodies. Most people on both spectrum's of the abortion agree that they see it as a decision between the woman and her God. These focus groups have a white supremacy agenda. If they could have their way white women would be force to have 15 pure white children like they use to before birth control. And what Hitler tried to do in Nazi Germany in trying to bred blond blue eyed Nordic looking babies.
Focus know that the day is coming when whites will be the minority in America. Their agenda is so warped that they don't care if the white woman or girl has been raped, victims of incest, baby is deformed doom to 24 hour care, as long as its white, she’s going to birth it.
They see white women as just a vessel to birth the white race. Their focus on the family ends once the woman or girl gives birth. After the baby is born she's on her own. There no funds to help those who are in need or help to pay for the children with medical care with birth defects. No focus on going after father and women who don't pay child support and that is something they should be right up there with abortion. How about the lack of focus on the epidemic of women who didn't abort their baby being abused by the men in their lives in front of the baby? Focus groups should be seen for who they really are. They are scary and should be feared like Al Qaeda terrorist, maybe more.
Reply to this Comment | Report This
By: BlackAvenger on 2/08/2010 8:35AM
Focus on the Family mission should be going after dead beat dads who drop their seed and leave their babies to fend for themselves. Many use the excuse they don't pay child support because the mother won't let them see their babies. BS. All they have to do is go to court and demand their right to see, spend time, and financially support their babies. True some women are vicious and use the babies and keep them away from the fathers but in most cases the fathers want to play father when it’s convenient for them and have not spent a dime on the support of the babies. Some women just aren't going to go for that. Any men who really want to be in their children's life will be in their lives. Black children especially boys need fathers in their live not an infrequent visit from their sperm donor. Black women must stop having babies by uneducated, broke, no job, worthless, immature bums, thugs and scum bags who all they can offer them is sex and sperm. Stop having babies with no real men in their lives to help them through life with their babies. With all the birth control out there if a woman gets pregnant it’s because she wants to. A hungry baby in a shelter can't bring happiness to their lives and replace what’s missing in it. They bring realities of life. Black men coming out of prison are infected with AIDS from anal sex with men are spreading it to women and babies and polluting the black blood line. They are infecting desperate to have man black women who get pregnant and birth AIDS infected sick babies. When they aren't infecting women and babies they are infecting men. Blacks are so lost in self hatred of one another death to blacks is coming from all directions and its all leading to the genocide of black race. Focus on the black family must be to stop killing each other and hating being black and have strong, healthy and educated black families.
Reply to this Comment | Report This