Society Offends Me
In 1972 the Miami Dolphins completed the only perfect season in the history of the NFL, going a perfect 17-0 and winning Super Bowl VII. Undefeated seasons are fairly common in college football, and in fact is generally required for any chance at playing for the national title. But in the NFL it is a different story. Nobody else has ever done it before or since.
The Hall of Fame quarterback that led that famous team, Bob Griese, went on to become one of the best color commentators in college football. Yet he now risks being remembered more for the remark he made on October 24, 2009, when a list of the current NASCAR top five drivers was displayed on screen. Regarding the fact that driver Juan Pablo Montoya’s name was not shown, as explanation Griese quipped, “He’s out having a taco.”
Griese certainly did not consider his words before he said them. He apologized during the game and later that day. He was given a one-game suspension by ESPN for it, but I have to wonder if the real punishment is yet to come.
This whole thing has been bothering me ever since it happened, because frankly, I think it’s way past time for people to lighten up a little bit.
Before you cinch the noose around my neck, let me say a couple of things first. I have many great friends of varied ethnic, cultural, and national backgrounds that I’ve made over the course of my life who I cherish and value, not only for the perspective they provide which broadens my own perspective, but for the numerous ways in which we are the same, as well as the ways in which we are different. I have been greatly enriched by having the opportunity throughout my career to benefit from diversity in the places where I’ve worked — I value that experience tremendously. And, believe it or not, I come from a background that’s endured its own share of discriminatory treatment. More on that later.
Because of those valued relationships, even more than what people might think of me in general, I’ve been measured in blogging about this. But I’ve got to tell you: I think we’re taking this whole discrimination thing way too far. I think the pendulum has swung too far the other way.
First off, I’ll state that, in my opinion, Mr. Griese should not have said what he said. He knows it. He knew it right after he said it. ESPN also thinks he should not have said it, and I agree with them.
Now that we’ve established that, I’d like to figure out exactly why what he said is considered offensive.
- Eating — I’m pretty sure this isn’t it. Every person eats.
- Eating A Taco — As far as I can tell, the act of eating a taco itself isn’t offensive, nor would it be offensive to suggest that a person might eat a taco. I have eaten a taco. More than one, in fact. I’m not ashamed of it. If you were to tell someone who does not read my blog that I have eaten a taco before, not only will I not be offended, but the other person will wonder why this is a big deal. So I can only assume that it is not the suggestion of eating a taco itself that was offensive.
- Implying That Juan Pablo Montoya Is Hispanic — Whether Griese meant to imply that Juan Pablo Montoya was Hispanic is hard to say. However, Juan Pablo Montoya IS Hispanic. Columbian, in fact. There’s nothing wrong with being Hispanic, or Columbian. So implying that a Hispanic person is Hispanic shouldn’t be a problem.
- Implying That Juan Pablo Montoya Is Mexican — I honestly don’t know whether tacos are really Mexican or not. I’m told they are. But the tacos we eat here aren’t necessarily authentic anyway. Regardless, there’s nothing wrong with being from Mexico; after all, Sammy Hagar lives there, at least some of the time. And we already established that Montoya is from Columbia anyway, not Mexico. I don’t see a problem here.
- Implying That Juan Pablo Montoya Eats Tacos — I don’t know whether Montoya eats tacos or not. We already established that it is not offensive to say that I eat tacos. Why would it be offensive to suggest that Montoya eats tacos? There’s nothing wrong with eating tacos.
- Implying That Juan Pablo Montoya Eats Tacos Because He Is Hispanic — Well, now I think we may be getting somewhere, although I have to wonder why this matters. Being Hispanic is not offensive. Eating tacos is not offensive. Is it offensive to suggest that Hispanic people eat tacos? Can someone explain why this is?
On the day that Griese made this comment, NASCAR driver Ryan Newman was also not shown on the screen. What if they had instead asked where Ryan Newman was instead of Montoya? What if Griese had commented about Newman, “He’s out eating a hamburger.” Certainly that would be equally offensive, right?
Or what if Griese had said the exact same thing — “He’s out eating a taco” — about Ryan Newman instead? Would that also be offensive?
If it is not offensive when it is said about a Caucasian from the United States, why is it offensive when it is said about a Hispanic from Columbia? I thought this whole thing was about treating all people as equals. How is this treating people as equals? Isn’t it wrong to treat people differently because of their differences, regardless of how we treat them?
This is society’s problem, not Montoya’s or Griese’s. In our society, we’ve done a great job of identifying the people who have been discriminated against. They are in protected classes. Those are the people who have been discriminated against. If you, like me, are not in a protected class, then it is not possible that others would discriminate against you. In fact, according to society, I can only be the instigator of discrimination, not the victim, because I’m not in a protected class.
The problem here is, according to the popular interpretation, discriminatory treatment now has nothing to do with treating people equally and fairly. It has to do with treating protected classes preferentially. Ironically, we fail to realize that by treating others preferentially, we draw attention to the fact that there is a difference. Treating them preferentially portrays the implication that they are uncapable of handling life the way the non-protected-class people face life, which is most certainly not true. The reality is that we are equals. Creating different sets of rules for different groups of people in society is exacerbating the problems and not solving anything.
Back in the middle of the 19th century, there was another group of people in the United States that were generally discriminated against by many in the general public. Members of this group were publicly ridiculed; many others in society shunned and ostracized them, even members of their own families; much of the general public would refuse to live near them or patronize their businesses. Prominent members were frequently subject to the wrath of mobs and riots, and even had property destroyed, and many were tortured publicly and even wrongly imprisoned. Members of this group were so persecuted that many were forced to abandon homes and property numerous times as they moved again and again attempting to find a place where they could live peaceably. Conditions escalated to the point that laws were changed in places such that it was not considered a crime to murder a member of this group in cold blood. This group repeatedly appealed to local and federal government for protection but were flatly and openly denied. Many members of this group, including a number of leaders, were killed. Our government did nothing to stop this. Eventually members of this group had to leave the country and flee to a barren wasteland in order to be left alone.
This group was not different because of their ethnicity or national background. This group of people were known as Mormons. Religion was the difference between them and those who discriminated against them so strongly. Because of their religion, which is the first freedom guaranteed us by the US Constitution, they were discriminated against, while the very government that should have guaranteed their freedom turned a blind eye or even in some cases participated in the discrimination, to the point that they had to leave the very country that should have guaranteed their rights in order to have any semblance of peace.
These are my ancestors. Even today, people have no issues at all saying derogatory things about members of my faith. They will make jokes about how many wives I have (1) or how many horns come out of my head (0) or whether I am allowed to drive a car or use electricity (yes to both). I find it ironic that a comedian or talk-show host can make fun of my religion in a public forum wherein he will knowingly make statements he either doesn’t understand or knows full well are untrue, and yet someone like Bob Griese can inadvertently and completely by accident say something as apparently benign as “He’s out having a taco” and have the whole world ready to string him up in a tree for being so racist and discriminatory.
I’m fully aware of the history of my ancestors. I’ve mentioned some of it here. It is a bit disturbing to know that this happened here in the United States, just some 150 years ago or so. But I’ve gotten over it, and so have the members of my faith. We aren’t on a crusade to have society make right to us all the wrongs that their ancestors did to ours. We’re not lobbying for our group to receive a special protected class status. And honestly, when people make fun of Mormons eating funeral potatoes or lime jello with shredded carrots inside, we laugh along with them. Even though I love funeral potatoes and avoid lime jello with shredded carrots like the disgusting fodder it is, it doesn’t bother me that people would joke about me eating either one.
In other words, I would not be offended if people claimed I ate food stereotypical of Mormons, whether I actually eat it or not.
It seems to me like we need to just relax a little bit, and choose not to be offended. I’ve found my life is a lot happier when I do that. How might society be if we all did this? Seems like that is something worth pursuing.
