Legacies pt. 2.

first, i want to start this off with an apology. 

in “Legacies”, i wrote that we should do away with the broad strokes of Kobe’s legacy, & have an honest conversation about the stains. 

however, i didn’t provide a solution on how we can achieve this goal or at least offer my opinion on what i think would work.

i contribute to the problem when i offer dialogue that isn’t solution based.

& to be honest, i don’t know what to do.

nearly a year after his death, we are all too afraid to talk about that thing no one wants to talk about. & those who are willing to speak out are deemed insensitive & inconsiderate. 

we don’t want to upset his widow. we don’t want to anger his fans. but we are perfectly fine with muzzling victims & reminding them that there is never a good time to address their pain.

when will be the appropriate to discuss this? it wasn’t appropriate when he was still playing. it wasn’t appropriate when he retired. it wasn’t appropriate after his death, & over a year later, it’s still not appropriate.

every delay adds a morsel of salt on their wounds. every “not so fast” reaffirms the notion that a talented man can assault someone & the only party punished is the victim.

how can we honor his legacy? by being honest.

if he can apologize to his victim, the least we can do allow her & women like her to heal. allow them to be heard without calling them liars, gold diggers or whores. we can stop inhibiting honest discussions about the incident. we can put aside our YouTube highlights, jerseys, posters, & hats, and LISTEN.

we can honor him by learning from his poor choice & commit to understanding the importance of consent. we can hold any & every athlete accountable for the poor choices they make when they are off the clock, & not let our fandom obscure what we really need to see.

the honor is in the honesty.