Fan Goes Bananas At An NHL Exhibition Game

An exhibition NHL game in London, Ontario was marred by an apparently racist incident Thursday night when a fan threw a banana peel toward black Philadelphia Flyers forward Wayne Simmonds. This occurred as Simmonds took part in a shootout during his team's pre-season game against the Detroit Red Wings. One report said bananas were actually thrown at Simmonds twice during the game, but it was only during the shootout that one reached the ice.

Is it possible the fan who threw the banana(s) was concerned about Simmonds' potassium level and was sending a subtle message? Could it be the fan was trying to expand on the Legend of the Octopus? No, I'm not buying those theories either.

Both the NHL and several players (current and former) were quick to condemn the actions of the fan. On Twitter, Norton Sports, a Chicago-based athletics management company, offered a $500 reward for the identity of the suspect.

In a league that is approximately 93% white, ugly incidents like this are bound to happen. As the NHL becomes more racially diverse, it's possible we may see a rise in this type of behavior by some white fans threatened by blacks taking over "their" sport. However, with the NHL and others speaking out against this type of nonsense, hopefully that isn't the case.

Side note: Simmonds demonstrated that he has thick skin by scoring on the shootout (one of two goals he netted during the game). However, the Red Wings prevailed 4-3.

Read more here: Banana thrown at black NHL player in pre-season game

Contract Reveals the Beatles Took A Stand Against Racial Segregation

As if I needed another reason to love The Beatles, a contract that recently turned up reveals The Fab Four refused to play for segregated audiences during multiple tours in 1965 and 1966. That was a smart move on the part of John, Paul, George, and Ringo. After all, why shouldn't blacks and whites have been allowed to revel in the phenomenon that was Beatlemania alongside one another? You can read more about the contract here at HuffingtonPost.com.

Below is a clip of The Beatles performing "I'm Down" during their legendary concert at Shea Stadium in 1965.

Gretchen Carlson Brings Race Into the Serena Williams Controversy

During Sunday’s women’s U.S. Open final match, Serena Williams had words for chair umpire Eva Asderaki after she had called a code violation on the tennis star. This caused Fox & Friends co-host Gretchen Carlson to weigh in with her "wisdom".



Since when has the term "hater" had any racial connotations?  It never has, but I suspect Gretchen knew this all along. Whether they're calling President Obama's 50th birthday celebration a "hip-hop BBQ", accusing him of "chugging 40s" in Ireland, or Gretchen's take on the Serena Williams rant, many at Fox (including their website Fox Nation) have demonstrated a pattern of playing divisive tactics when it comes to race. Although it's shoddy journalism, it pays off for Fox because their typical follower buys into it without question.

Besides Gretchen's race-baiting, here are some other things that caught my attention during the clip:

1. When Gretchen claimed that a couple of years ago Serena "almost took the ball and put it down the throat of a line ref", she is flat out lying. This is what really happened. Threatening to do something isn't the same as almost doing something. Besides, who really believes Serena was going to take a tennis ball and actually shove it down that woman's throat?!

2. Brian Kilmeade was absolutely right when he shot down Gretchen's claim that Serena's outburst was an example of the "entitlement generation" in today's society. When you're getting schooled by Brian, you're in bad shape.

3. Considering that Gretchen lies and distorts regularly on national TV, she's in no position to call out Serena Williams for setting a bad example for kids.

There is a worthwhile debate that can come from Serena's recent tirade and that's whether or not a race/gender double standard exists when it comes to how we view athletes who go off during the heat of battle. For example, how often have the folks at Fox "News" talked about the on-court behavior of Andy Roddick? But hey, why should Fox launch a thoughtful discussion when they can toss racial red meat at the sheeple?