Im not really a boxing fan. Ill catch the occasional free fight on tv, but I wont pay any amount of money for one of their pay per views. However, a recent bout caught my attention. Bernard "The Executioner" Hopkins VS Joe Calzaghe.
Not being a true fan, I have to admit I had no clue who Joe was. But I did know Bernard, and I knew he was a really good fighter, and in my mind, I just assumed Joe would taste defeat quickly. Little did I know, Joe was actually very well skilled. My bad.
The reason I was interested in the fight was not because I was expecting some pugilistic masterpiece, but because someone I was familiar with, someone I "knew", someone I thought was above the whole color thing, decided to go and insert race into the fight.
Yes, Bernard Hopkins, a black fighter, said about Joe Calzaghe "I would never let a white boy beat me. I would never lose to a white boy. I couldn't go back to the projects if I let a white boy beat me."
Not only did he call him "white" but he also called him a "boy." Could you imagine the uproar if it was the other way around? Could you imagine how the media would vilify Joe - and rightfully so - if he had said "I would never let a black boy beat me. I would never lose to a black boy. I couldn't go back to the suburbs if I let a black boy beat me"?
So seeing as I hate racism, no matter whos doing the offending, I was anxious to see just what would happen once they got into the ring. And I wasnt disappointed. In a split decision, "white boy" Joe Calzaghe beat Bernard "The Racist Executioner" Hopkins, and in the process becoming the new champion.
However, Mr Hopkins is in complete denial of the whole thing and swears "I won a unanimous decision." Seriously, he said that. But, he didnt say it from the projects cuz they locked the gates and wont let him in.
Til we meet again...
-- DBW --
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