Philadelphia—Just when the world was beginning to warm up to Allen Iverson he has decided to express himself in terms so racist, bigoted and violent that many are drawing comparisons between the 76ers star shooting-guard and the infamous Atlanta Braves redneck, John Rocker.

For those of you who have kept your heads out of the NBA swill over the last few days, Iverson has decided to release a new Rap CD some time around Christmas filled with racial and sexist slurs, and lyrics that glorify both the use of guns and overt violence.  ESPN.com has reported that the following are some of the excerpts from Iverson’s new release:

“Come to me with those fag--- tendencies and you'll be sleeping with the maggots be." 

"Get money, kill and f--- bitches, I'm hittin' anything and planning on using my riches." (This song ends with a murder scenario.) 

"Life goes on, n-----s don't live that long." 

"Man enough to pull a gun, be man enough to squeeze it." 
(This song ends with the lyrics played over the sounds of a gun being cocked and fired.)

Now, I recognize that we are all entitled to our first amendment rights.  Free expression forms the foundation of American political and cultural life. My only question is this: why has Iverson sunk to this all-time low in exercising his first amendment rights?

Here is a guy who has seen in stark detail what racism and violence can lead to.  In 1993, he was sent to jail for a crime that no one has ever been able to prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that he committed.  Many believe that Iverson was convicted solely for racist reasons. Iverson served four-months in prison before gaining reprieve from Virginia’s first black governor, Doug Wilder, who granted him conditional clemency.  Had Doug Wilder not been personally sensitive to the alleged racism that led to Iverson’s incarceration, he might have spent years behind bars for a crime he may not have committed.

Given all of this, one would think that Iverson would not want to fuel the flames of intolerance in this country.  One would think that Iverson would be more willing to promote mutual understanding in a world too often dominated by ignorance and fear.  His rap lyrics, however, serve only to further cement racist stereotypes in this country.  

Spike Lee, a person of no small stature in the community of American artists, went as far as to call Iverson’s music a “21st century minstrel show.”  The implication here is that Iverson is attempting to play some mythical, gun toting, gangster version of a black man.  He has stereotyped himself into playing a personality far less admirable than his own authentic one.  

Iverson has also failed to take into account the larger picture here.  His rap lyrics, which he will probably defend by saying that they are the expression of his angst as an African-American living in a racist country, are completely counterproductive.  He should ask the African-American men currently sitting on death row in Texas whether his lyrics contribute anything positive to the general dialogue on race relations in the United States.

All in all, I count myself among the many that are disappointed with Allen Iverson.  I couldn’t agree with Spike Lee more when he said, “I’m not saying he can’t rap, but I’m talking about the material, the content…It’s the content, and I love Allen but he’s messing up on this one.”

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10/14/2000

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