Sad

[DukeFanSince1990]

Well this is depressing. John Henson apparently sent some racist scrambling for cover:

https://instagram.com/p/9B66RnCLqK/


It's 2015 right?

[tfk53]

Here is the link to story on ESPN. Sounds like the store is trying to blame it on the police. Does not sound like a smart move to do that as a jewelry store. Of course, by their apparent racial profiling actions towards Henson, smart is not in their vocabulary. Dissing a millionaire potential customer... also not too smart.


http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/13928294/john-henson-milwaukee-bucks-alleges-was-victim-racial-profiling

[phaedrus]

This is the most Milwaukee story I can think of. And by Milwaukee, I obviously mean "Greater" Milwaukee.

[brevity]

Mods, could you change the title of the thread? I clicked here hoping to read a sad football story.

[elvis14]

One can only assume that a UNCheat player was going to try to get something for nothing. They just didn't want to do business with a cheater.

Obvious...is it not?

[Henderson]

One can only assume that a UNCheat player was going to try to get something for nothing. They just didn't want to do business with a cheater.

Obvious...is it not?

Let's be careful; his sister is on our WBB team, does great burger videos, is a graduate student at Fuqua, and happens to be drop dead gorgeous.

That backstory explanation seems made up post facto to me, btw.

[elvis14]

Let's be careful; his sister is on our WBB team, does great burger videos, is a graduate student at Fuqua, and happens to be drop dead gorgeous.

That backstory explanation seems made up post facto to me, btw.

She has my full support. Obviously the back story is complete BS and the whole thing is disgusting. At the same time, I often look for new and interesting ways to make fun of UNCheat!

[flyingdutchdevil]

She has my full support. Obviously the back story is complete BS and the whole thing is disgusting. At the same time, I often look for new and interesting ways to make fun of UNCheat!

There are many avenues in which to mock UNC players and alums. This isn't one of them.

Really terrible what happened to Henson. Hope he's okay. Very impressed by his response. I would have thrown a brick threw the store window.

[JasonEvans]

Really terrible what happened to Henson. Hope he's okay. Very impressed by his response. I would have thrown a brick threw the store window.

No need for a brick. Just tell them, "I just signed a $45 million contract. I came here to buy a $20,000 watch and will probably be spending upwards of $200,000 on jewelry and watches over the next couple years... but I won't be spending it here. Oh, and my teammates who are just as in to expensive jewelry as I am won't be coming here either."

Then I would pick up a brick, hand it to the owner and say, "If you feel like throwing this through the window in anger, I don't mind."

-Jason "I bet the store sees business drop off a cliff... this was commercial suicide for this store" Evans

[Kfanarmy]

I don't get the whole "back story" must be made up shtik!

People want to believe that employees went to the back of the store simply because some black guy walked up to the door rather than believe that the store had been warned of a particular suspicious vehicle? Really they went to the back of the store; they hid just because he's black? I might believe the whole "they were racists thing," if he hadn't said himself that they hid.... come on folks, that is BS. That is insane.

[flyingdutchdevil]

No need for a brick. Just tell them, "I just signed a $45 million contract. I came here to buy a $20,000 watch and will probably be spending upwards of $200,000 on jewelry and watches over the next couple years... but I won't be spending it here. Oh, and my teammates who are just as in to expensive jewelry as I am won't be coming here either."

Then I would pick up a brick, hand it to the owner and say, "If you feel like throwing this through the window in anger, I don't mind."

-Jason "I bet the store sees business drop off a cliff... this was commercial suicide for this store" Evans

Then you're a better man than me. Despite being mixed race, I have been fortunate to never run into blatant racism from store fronts. Sure, I've been watched closely in stores, but I attribute that to more of my youth and poor fashion sense (this was a long time ago in my teens). If this happened to me now, I don't know how I'd react. Probably not well.

[duke blue brewcrew]

One can only assume that a UNCheat player was going to try to get something for nothing. They just didn't want to do business with a cheater.

Obvious...is it not?

If what John Henson is saying happened is true, then good for him for posting that story and the place of business. Racism has no place in modern society. We are all people, regardless of skin color, religion, or nationality. There are very few things in this world that would bring me to sympathize with a UNC-Cheater, but this is one of them.

[OldPhiKap]

It is sad that such attitudes apparently still exist.

It is heartening that they are almost universally condemned.

Race relations have a long way to go, but have come a long way in my lifetime. Still plenty of work to do.

[DUKIECB]

I too find the backstory complete "hogwash" as my grandpa used to say. As disturbed as I am that this incident happened, I am also shocked that a guy that plays 18 minutes a game and averages 7 points per and 4.7 rebounds gets a 4 year / $45 million contract extension. Good Lord

[flyingdutchdevil]

I too find the backstory complete "hogwash" as my grandpa used to say. As disturbed as I am that this incident happened, I am also shocked that a guy that plays 18 minutes a game and averages 7 points per and 4.7 rebounds gets a 4 year / $45 million contract extension. Good Lord

He also led the NBA in blocks per 48 min (5.28 bp48min). He's a legit player. A good piece to the Bucks's young core.

[striker219]

I don't get the whole "back story" must be made up shtik!

People want to believe that employees went to the back of the store simply because some black guy walked up to the door rather than believe that the store had been warned of a particular suspicious vehicle? Really they went to the back of the store; they hid just because he's black? I might believe the whole "they were racists thing," if he hadn't said himself that they hid.... come on folks, that is BS. That is insane.

I'm kind of inclined to agree with this, at least mostly. I'll admit that there may have been a racial component to the whole thing but I seriously doubt that it was the driving force behind the issue.

Per Wiki, there are about 14,000 people in the village, of which 1.9% are African American. While there may only be a few hundred black people in town, this can't possibly be the first time a black guy wanted to look at high end jewelry. This company has apparently been in business for over 100 years, and if the employees locked the door and hid in the back every time they saw a black guy coming it seems likely that the world would have heard about it before now.

[phaedrus]

I'm kind of inclined to agree with this, at least mostly. I'll admit that there may have been a racial component to the whole thing but I seriously doubt that it was the driving force behind the issue.

Per Wiki, there are about 14,000 people in the village, of which 1.9% are African American. While there may only be a few hundred black people in town, this can't possibly be the first time a black guy wanted to look at high end jewelry. This company has apparently been in business for over 100 years, and if the employees locked the door and hid in the back every time they saw a black guy coming it seems likely that the world would have heard about it before now.

The problem isn't that the "backstory" is completely false; it's that the backstory, such as it is, justifies nothing like what actually happened.

As to your second point, that's the scary thing: how many times has this happened to someone who didn't have 100,000 (ok, 10,000) Instagram followers?

[Highlander]

Per a statement from the jewelry store - a dark red Tahoe with dealer plates was parked in front of the store the day before, and a separate store in a nearby town was robbed over the weekend. The owners received a call the day before asking when the store closed, and were spooked so decided to close early that day. Owners had asked police for increased security, and panicked when the Tahoe returned due to the other robberies. Sounds plausible, but awfully convenient too.

Police report also apparently notes that the owner asked police to remain while Henson and his companion looked at the watches, a request that the officers refused.

http://deadspin.com/bucks-john-henson-says-he-was-racially-profiled-at-jewe-1737394259

This reminded me of a similar story of racial profiling from NPR's "This American Life" where W. Kamau Bell was mistaken for being a panhandler for talking to his wife (who is white) and her friends outside of a California Deli. The employee in question there was fired, but the incident that sparked it was a customer who complained that someone was outside harassing the customers.

IMO, the owners are going to get more blowback from this incident than they probably deserve, due to our desire for mob/internet justice. However, it is positive in that it sheds a spotlight on a problem which many in society think no longer exists or is exaggerated.

[COYS]

IMO, the owners are going to get more blowback from this incident than they probably deserve, due to our desire for mob/internet justice. However, it is positive in that it sheds a spotlight on a problem which many in society think no longer exists or is exaggerated.


I heard that This American Life Story, too, and can relate to it. My mom is white and my dad is black. I remember getting funny looks from staff at stores on occasion when I got to be a teenager. When I was with my mom, those looks would switch from suspicion to amused confusion (though I suppose some of it was disapproval) when I would walk up to a white woman and call her "Mom." Store owners immediately stopped looking at me suspiciously when they saw I was with my white mother. She acted as a de facto character reference for me. John Henson didn't happen to have anyone that was "supposed" to be there around to give him a stamp of approval.


That being said, I also agree that the owners are probably getting too much flak. The real villain is our society as a whole and how we've let so many generations go by without addressing the racism that still resides in our country's DNA. I think we frequently hang the weight of centuries of racism on individuals who do dumb things that highlight the subconscious biases that reside in the vast majority of us. Henson requesting an apology seems perfectly reasonable. But I hope that it prompts some meaningful conversations about why it was so easy for the store owners to believe he was a criminal. Assuming the back story is true (which I doubt that every little detail of it is but, anyway . . .), it is still worth questioning/wondering whether or not a white male driving the same car would have received the same treatment and, assuming that the police would not have been called in that situation, what it is about the color of an individual that tips the calculus from "probably just a coincidence that this guy drives a car from the same dealership" to "we better be safe and call the police."

[Edouble]

IMO, the owners are going to get more blowback from this incident than they probably deserve, due to our desire for mob/internet justice. However, it is positive in that it sheds a spotlight on a problem which many in society think no longer exists or is exaggerated.

Um, it's spelled Justise, actually.

[BD80]

It's bad enough to be ignorant as demonstrated by bigotry, but to add to it more general simple mindedness ...

John Henson is 6' 11" tall. Fairly good chance a man that height walking into a high end jewelry store is a basketball player who can afford the wares.

[oldnavy]

It's bad enough to be ignorant as demonstrated by bigotry, but to add to it more general simple mindedness ...

John Henson is 6' 11" tall. Fairly good chance a man that height walking into a high end jewelry store is a basketball player who can afford the wares.

I have always equated racism with stupidity, and unfortunately you can't fix stupid. I mean really, John Henson is one of the least scary people I can think of.

I have about 30 people a day come into my store that who look much more threatening than Henson!! Some of these people I know for a fact have spent time in jail.

[Kfanarmy]

Per a statement from the jewelry store - a dark red Tahoe with dealer plates was parked in front of the store the day before, and a separate store in a nearby town was robbed over the weekend. The owners received a call the day before asking when the store closed, and were spooked so decided to close early that day. Owners had asked police for increased security, and panicked when the Tahoe returned due to the other robberies. Sounds plausible, but awfully convenient too.

Police report also apparently notes that the owner asked police to remain while Henson and his companion looked at the watches, a request that the officers refused.

http://deadspin.com/bucks-john-henson-says-he-was-racially-profiled-at-jewe-1737394259

This reminded me of a similar story of racial profiling from NPR's "This American Life" where W. Kamau Bell was mistaken for being a panhandler for talking to his wife (who is white) and her friends outside of a California Deli. The employee in question there was fired, but the incident that sparked it was a customer who complained that someone was outside harassing the customers.

IMO, the owners are going to get more blowback from this incident than they probably deserve, due to our desire for mob/internet justice. However, it is positive in that it sheds a spotlight on a problem which many in society think no longer exists or is exaggerated.

Please explain how being on the lookout for a dark red Tahoe is racial profiling?

. red Tahoe parks suspiciously outside store
. similar store is robbed
. store closes early
. Red Tahoe parks outside store; employees call cops....
this incident only became racial when the driver got out of the car...everything else that happened was neutral. So if a white guy had gotten out of the car and the exact same thing happened, how would the press describe it: overly cautious employees? hypersensitive driver tweeting about nothing? Actually none of us would have heard about it...we wouldn't have heard a tweet out of anyone.

[magjayran]

Please explain how being on the lookout for a dark red Tahoe is racial profiling?

. red Tahoe parks suspiciously outside store
. similar store is robbed
. store closes early
. Red Tahoe parks outside store; employees call cops....
this incident only became racial when the driver got out of the car...everything else that happened was neutral. So if a white guy had gotten out of the car and the exact same thing happened, how would the press describe it: overly cautious employees? hypersensitive driver tweeting about nothing? Actually none of us would have heard about it...we wouldn't have heard a tweet out of anyone.

They saw a Red Tahoe one day. On that same day, a different store was robbed. Again they see a Red Tahoe so they assume that they are now going to get robbed. I don't think it's possible for my eyes to roll any farther back into my head.

[phaedrus]

They saw a Red Tahoe one day. On that same day, a different store was robbed. Again they see a Red Tahoe so they assume that they are now going to get robbed. I don't think it's possible for my eyes to roll any farther back into my head.

For a full breakdown of the implausibility of this Red Tahoe scenario, see here: http://urbanmilwaukee.com/2015/10/21/murphys-law-the-real-meaning-of-the-john-henson-affair/

[killerleft]

For a full breakdown of the implausibility of this Red Tahoe scenario, see here: http://urbanmilwaukee.com/2015/10/21/murphys-law-the-real-meaning-of-the-john-henson-affair/

Holding the writer as responsible to detail and scrutiny as he held those employees, I'm sure one of the talented folks on this board could make hay with his column. No matter how one wants to play this, there is no doubt that the employees were acting out of some concern for their health and the welfare of the jewelry store.

We can call it what we want, but they didn't just do this for racial profiling's sake. The topic of racial profiling is a worthy one. But does this one store have to be singled out and their business possibly ruined because of the national foocus upon it?

THAT is worthy of debate as well.

[nyesq83]

Jewelry store employees are in it for the love of gold and other things beautiful, and for the romance of helping loving couples waste money on rings and stuff.

A few years back, my cousin was murdered by a white junkie whose girlfriend and mom helped him get away. This lowlife family-enabled heroin addict murderous scum killed a married couple after that.

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9B07E6DA1F3EF934A1575BC0A9639C8B 63

Present Day: Paranoid profiling? OK. Some people are just idiots, some are active racists. Some even wear blue uniforms. Some have ignorant unfounded fear or hate for people who are not simply just not like them.

All the rest of us can do is try to love one another the best we can. Even while being feared or hated.

I hope I live to see the day that we all do not get outraged every time somebody kind of stupid does something kind of stupid based in ignorance or legit or non-legit fear, and then another person (with lots of success, money and celebrity) makes a big deal out of it to make the rest of us average citizens feel bad because of the stupidity of others.

[rsvman]

One important aspect that hasn't been adequately covered yet, in my opinion, is why Rolex?

C'mon, John! You got that kind of scratch, and you want a Rolex? How about a Patek Philippe or a Panerai or an IWC or something? You should've at least sent a text or an e-mail to JJ Redick* before going to look for watches. Jus' sayin.'



(Oh, and on a more serious note, the story is repugnant. Not sure we know everything there is to know, but no way, no how should it have happened the way it did.)










*for those who don't know, JJ is a real watch head. He has some amazing pieces, and much better taste than Henson, IMO.

[Henderson]

Please explain how being on the lookout for a dark red Tahoe is racial profiling?

. red Tahoe parks suspiciously outside store
. similar store is robbed
. store closes early
. Red Tahoe parks outside store; employees call cops....
this incident only became racial when the driver got out of the car...everything else that happened was neutral.

On what basis do you assume all those things all true?

[CameronBlue]

On what basis do you assume all those facts are true?

Apparently not on the basis that after it was sorted out who Henson was the store merchant/clerk still asked the police to remain while John was in the store. The police refused. (The larger point of the post that "facts" get lost on the way to public shaming happens all too often to damaging effect is valid).

[CameronBlue]

One important aspect that hasn't been adequately covered yet, in my opinion, is why Rolex?

C'mon, John! You got that kind of scratch, and you want a Rolex? How about a Patek Philippe or a Panerai or an IWC or something? You should've at least sent a text or an e-mail to JJ Redick* before going to look for watches. Jus' sayin.'



C'mon it's a Carolina thing man. They love to make fashion statements. Coach Hatchell remember her? (A fashion statement from which most of the wording should be redacted.)

[Merlindevildog91]

One important aspect that hasn't been adequately covered yet, in my opinion, is why Rolex?

C'mon, John! You got that kind of scratch, and you want a Rolex? How about a Patek Philippe or a Panerai or an IWC or something? You should've at least sent a text or an e-mail to JJ Redick* before going to look for watches. Jus' sayin.'

He went to Sheep U. He can't spell Panerai or Audemars Piguet or Breitling. Could maybe spell IWC, if someone spotted him the W and the C. Otherwise, he knows Rolex because that's what Fats probably wore.

Husband is a watch freak (I get Breitlings, usually in Duke blue, for every occasion. Shucks). He was shocked to see JJ profiled in one of his watch magazines. I was thrilled.

[Kfanarmy]

On what basis do you assume all those things all true?


I assume they are true, because they aren't refuted...if they weren't true, the police could easily have refuted them.

[Kfanarmy]

They saw a Red Tahoe one day. On that same day, a different store was robbed. Again they see a Red Tahoe so they assume that they are now going to get robbed. I don't think it's possible for my eyes to roll any farther back into my head.

Fair enough...my eyes roll just as far back on the notion that this is the first rich black guy to go to this jewelry store...probably just the first one to sit outside the store for hours trying to figure out what to buy.