Do you see Michael Jordan as a black man or as Michael Jordan? (claim, doctor)

[blueherons]

I've seen Michael Jordan and I've even met him.

It would never occur to me to describe him as a black man.

I would describe him as one of the greatest athletes of all time.

I would describe him as a genius businessman.

I would describe him as one of the most charitable people on the planet.

[fluffypoopoo]

This is an interesting question. I wouldn't see MJ as a black man first — I'd see him as MJ first, and black man 2nd.

[CookieSkoon]

To me he's Michael Jordan and he is a black man.

That's just reality. Same as I am a white man, it is the most immediate and distinct visual description of anybody. Male/female/black/white/asiatic/middle-eastern/native-American/fat/thin/tall/short/hairy/bald/has all four major extremities attached/giant octopus/etc.

I do not, however, see him as a black man first because I know who he is. If I didn't, I would naturally identify him on first glance as a black man.

[Dopo]

Originally Posted by CookieSkoon

I do not, however, see him as a black man first because I know who he is. If I didn't, I would naturally identify him on first glance as a black man.

Interesting point,
since i grew up in a different country I see things a little different

Color, height, size, face shape, clothing, etc. .... I put the same value to all of them
I don't start with: "what color is that person?"

[rodentraiser]

Michael Jordan is Michael Jordan.

Our physics teacher asked me once if I had been surprised to see a black physics teacher when I walked into the class the first time. I told him I would have been surprised by anyone who wasn't old, white, or male.

But I understood the question he was asking and my answer to him was, "First, I saw you as the black physics teacher when I came to class. But after a week or two, you were just Tim, our physics teacher." And it's true. I didn't see him as black, but I just recognized him as Tim. He thanked me and it took me years to understand why.

This is a very interesting question I've always wondered about, though. I see myself as a person before I see myself as a woman or as being white. I wonder whether black people can see themselves as a person first before seeing themselves as black, or if that is impossible because of living in a country where the majority of people are white.

Oprah had a young black woman on her show once who said she didn't care about being black because she was just who she was. There were other black women on the show who then told her that she had to act black and to quit acting white and denying her race. It made me realize that who you are is how you see yourself, but I still don't know how hard it is to see yourself as one thing when everywhere you go, others see you as something different.

I get called a feminist (not in a good way) and I get reminded fairly often of how little people think of me as a woman, especially one who isn't married or a homemaker. But I still don't think that qualifies me to understand how an African American who thinks of himself as a person is affected when others see him as less than how he sees himself, and how much that must hurt.

[fly_me]

Originally Posted by Dopo

Do you see Michael Jordan as a black man or as Michael Jordan?

Sounds like a dumb question, but this is the point I'm making
If I ran into Michael Jordan with a friend and he told me
"Who? the black guy?"

I know for a fact I would say
"Black guy? That's f..... Michael Jordan"

My point is that at least for me, I don't see Jordan as "a black guy" same way I don't see him as "a skinny tall guy" ..... it's freaking Michael Jordan.

You are right, he transcends all the B.S. and is just MICHAEL JORDAN. I have asked others that did very well in the NBA what it was like sitting in the room with him and they humbly told me "He didn't even seem human. He was the greatest of all time and I felt small." This is from guys with huge egos. So nice their love of the game put them in a place like that when in a room with Jordan.

[fly_me]

Originally Posted by SWFL_Native

I see him as the greatest basketball player of all time and perhaps the greatest athlete of our generation. He broke the mold when it came to a personality and product representation among athletes. The fact that he is black really never crosses my mind other than I think he can be a great role model for today's black youth population. I far admire him over Tiger Woods, a Kardashian klan, or Lebron.

Agree. And that hurt b/c I do love Tiger but he was not discrete enough. Kardashians seems to have sold their souls to Satanism and all their men do poorly when w them or after.

[rstevens62]

Originally Posted by GeoffD

Michael Jordan of the Chicago Bulls was the best basketball player on the planet. "Michael Jordan" of 2017 is basically marketing virtual reality. I do my best to not confuse the two.

You are definitely right about that! Its strange to see Jordan shoes still popular among young people, since he hasnt even played the game since many of them were born!!

I cannot think of any other fashion trend that stands the test of time like the jordan brand.

[mistym]

Interesting discussion. I was born and raised in Jamaica and just saw myself as female. I’ve never had to fill out forms to identify my race until I came to the US, which I found ridiculous. Especially when you come from a country where the motto is “Out of Many One People”. No one has ever asked me to identify with one group or another. What the heck is African American, Caucasian, Hispanic not white, Pacific Islander etc? I’m Jamaican dammit!!

After living in the US for the majority of my life, I automatically identify as a Black woman. I'm also guilty of passing on this thought process to my nephews when I encouraged them to work hard. The first thing I say is you are a BLACK male born in America.

I think it has to do with the message being passed down in society – history to present day. When you grow with the belief that you are perceived a certain way – especially if negative, you (sometimes unknowingly) aspire to change that perception.

I believe that in the US people see me as a Black female and have never embraced the possibility that others may see me as a Female who happens to be black.

[Mrs.JT]

Someone mentioned Larry Byrd. What do you think of him when you first see him? He's a white man? A tall white man? An old white man? Larry Byrd? Or just a man?