A class worth honoring: A look at Calhoun County
Jun 20, 2009 | 1692 views | 6 
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In that way, diversity remains an elusive goal.
Tonight, however, the Calhoun County Sports Hall of Fame will shine a momentary light on the possibilities that exist when diversity is not only welcomed, but is placed on display.
Among the hall's six 2009 inductees who will be honored at the Anniston City Meeting Center is a quintessential cross-section of Calhoun County. Jimmy Pettus, Jennifer Chandler, Council Rudolph Jr., Carlton Rankin, Harold Warren and Robert Motley are a collection of all us — whites and blacks, men and women.
Athletically, all are undeniably worthy of admission to this hall of fame. Granted, the hall's first class of 2005 included the county's irreplaceable sports heavyweights, from Anniston football coach "Chink" Lott to Jacksonville State's duo of Rudy Abbott and Bill Burgess, to the voice of Malcolm Street, and to the leadership of Lou Scales, Robert Mosby, Louise Marbut and Van Deerman. And that's not even all of that heralded list.
But this class may rank with the original inductees as among the best. That it includes a gold-medalist from the 1976 Montreal games, a standout baseball umpire from the Negro Leagues, a former NFL starter and several noteworthy high school coaches and players gives this group special weight.
Yet, this class, and the hall's previous inductees, as well, represents many of the splendid things about Calhoun County, a diverse county whose past is tinged with examples of people seeing differences in race, ideology or background as reasons to disassociate instead of come together.
That may not be the goal of this hall of fame's directors, but it is a feather in their cap that this class represents a mirror image of Calhoun County. It's a reflection of who we are, of what we should be. Accomplished athletes and coaches. Teachers of a countless number of our youth. A mixture of men and women across several boundaries.
Calhoun County should celebrate its opportunities to be inclusive to all, to show the possibilities of diversity, teamwork and equality. This is but one example of many. Yet it's one worthy of support, for the betterment of us all.
Ok, I get your point.
Regards,
I say talk about it somewhere else, not in conjunction with this. It is like a preacher preaching a sermon on salvation at a funeral. It is a day for the deceased. This was a day for those being honored.
After all, we are different. It isn't just race, it's also ideology and background.
Regards,
Race is only one objection. There is another more general aspect. That is that it never seems to fail that you always have people who want to take advantage of situations that others have created. In this case it was liberals.
But here we have some blacks who worked hard and accomplished something. They may have had some help but most had to come from them. Now here comes the libs and want to join in and take the opportunity to promote diversity. Heck, let them promote it at an event honoring their own accomplishments, not piggybacking on the accomplishments of someone else. But you are right. That is what they do.
If we want to rise above race, stop talking about it at every opportunity.