I made a couple of calls to make sure this isn’t some sort of prank, and sadly, it’s indeed legit. A former pro wrestling promoter is starting an all-Caucasian pro basketball league which hopes to start in June in 12 cities, among them Augusta, Ga. The All-American Basketball Alliance announced its plans in a news release Sunday evening, hours before Martin Luther King Day. Excerpt: “Only players that are natural born United States citizens with both parents of Caucasian race are eligible to play in the league.”
OK global warming, we’re pretty much done here. We thought we were making progress, but you can go ahead and cook us up. Just try and spare the dolphins; they’re smart.
Meet Don “Moose” Lewis, the commissioner of the AABA who incredibly, somehow did not acquire the nickname “Bubba” or “Skeeter.” He told the Augusta Chronicle that the reasoning behind the league’s roster restrictions is not racism.
“There’s nothing hatred about what we’re doing,” Lewis said. “I don’t hate anyone of color. But people of white, American-born citizens are in the minority now. Here’s a league for white players to play fundamental basketball, which they like.”
Lewis said he wants to emphasize fundamental basketball instead of “street-ball” played by “people of color.” He pointed out recent incidents in the NBA, including Gilbert Arenas’ indefinite suspension after bringing guns into the Washington Wizards locker room, as examples of fans’ dissatisfaction with the way current professional sports are run.
“Would you want to go to the game and worry about a player flipping you off or attacking you in the stands or grabbing their crotch?” he said. “That’s the culture today, and in a free country we should have the right to move ourselves in a better direction.”
I called the Augusta Chronicle to make sure this was real, and indeed, a nice fellow in the sports department confirmed it. He also assured me that the league will probably never get off the ground.
But believe it or not, the Chronicle got a few emails supporting the league. It’s my understanding that those emailers may have had relatives who were shot with arrows by Burt Reynolds during a canoe trip, and are still a little angry. But I could be wrong.
***
I swear I didn’t make this up [With Leather]
Basketball league for white Americans targets Augusta [Augusta Chronicle]
White Promoter Pushes For All-White Basketball League [NewsOne]
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- Evann - Jan 26, 2010 at 4:11 PM
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If you want to watch fundamental basketball without the bells and whistles… watch the WNBA, yes an all-women’s league does exist. Professional sports are played for entertainment, people love to watch the BEST athletes perform at the highest levels–and many athletes never make it to that level. Creating a league designed to single out every other race other than whites, is absolutely ridiculous. For players not JUST white, who can’t make it to the NBA–there are farm leagues even pick up basketball. I’ve had enough of the white extremist views and they do not need to be reintroduced in the 21st century especially in the United States where we have come so far to eliminate prejudice and racial tensions… Lewis’ hopes of an all-white basketball league serve as a reminder of the progress yet to made…
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- vinnide64 - Jan 26, 2010 at 4:13 PM
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jeb, jeb, jeb,..i can see your true colors! what is rattling in your head that makes you think that just because a man works with blacks and wants to have a fight in a black nation means he is not racist? j edgar hoover hired blacks to the fbi but he was a known racist, john wayne had a black (you had to look hard) and he was racist, and this one might get you, but one of the biggest racist of all DON KING! cus don don’t care about black or white, just green…but to say no guns will be in the locker room cus it’s gonna be all rite! oops i meant all white is crazy. Now let me lay this senario on ya’ about the AWBL(all white basketball league)…the league does start and in the 1st 2 weeks this guy named bret burd stands out he is the kobe of the AWBL, he avgs 27ppgs 9rebs and 10assts he has them (yall) coming out in droves to see how basketball should be played… then a breaking news story on ESPN: bret burd has been kicked out the league after learning that he failed a backgroung check in violation of league rule 1a: said player must be of PURE WHITE descent to play in the AWBL and it has been confirmed to ESPN that burd’s great grandmother was BLACK!!! then over the next 6 weeks more are kicked out due to this same violation and the league folds due to participation and it is later learned that 94% of the players would have kicked out cus of this same reason. just nibble on that….
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- Jane Garner, MD - Jan 26, 2010 at 6:07 PM
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yes, a white supremacist. Dangerous and the wrong direction. We have made progress in race relations and must avoid this kind of thing.
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- Blackbull - Jan 26, 2010 at 8:53 PM
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Somedude,
i hope you take the time to read this because you just don’t get it. The reason there is a BET is because there are so few Blacks on “mainstream” network TV. Count the number of Blacks and shows featuring Blacks on the networks and maybe you can see my point. It has gone so far out of whack that there is a show with a Black cartoon lead character but he is voiced by a white man. We can’t even be the voice of our own characters. There are no white shows on BET, because if there were, there would be no room for Black shows. There already are White Entertainment Networks. They are called CBS, NBC, ABC, FOX.Just look for Black actors on these prime time shows and you will be looking for a long time. Just like you like to see people that look like you when you watch TV, so do I.
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- vinnide64 - Jan 27, 2010 at 2:30 PM
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DANG! dude that was strong.. you came hard and a bit misguided but strong. you make it sound like we’re taking something from the white man that his money is paying for (they call them owners)and that month you spoke of, well we didn’t do that and did you happen to notice that it’s the shortest month of the year even with leap year attached. Remember bobby where there are blacks there is some white group we answer or pay to. they call them executives.
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- Bud - Jan 28, 2010 at 3:48 PM
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Can we move Duke basketball into this league? Shavlik Randolph, Greg Paulus and the other floor-slappers need to make money, too.
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- whitey - Jan 29, 2010 at 10:01 PM
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I live in the northeast. I used to love watch the nba when Magic played against Bird. Now I could care less. I watch lacrosse and hockey.
The reason White kids are not on the court is they do not get court time, and their lives do not revolve around the sport. I would love to see the nba bend over backwards to get WHITE KIDS involved in basketball as the whiter sports try to do with their sport, hockey soccer baseball try to get blacks in their sport ! Hey lets see a league with no player over 6’5″ no tattoos widen the 3 second box enforce walking carrying and fouls no chest thumping and lengthen the shot clock to 40 seconds! Finally affirmative action for this league. 12.5% black 14% latino 65% white and 8.5% other. Finally no felons allowed zero Thugs allowed.
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- Seriously - Jan 30, 2010 at 9:56 AM
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I do understand what you are saying but the fact remains that the organizations you speak of were created when blacks were shut out. Well, they are not shut out anymore but your organizations remain. You still think of old and need to re-evaluate your stance. It just does not carry weight anymore. It used to but the times have changed and your organizations have not. Do you not realize we voted a black man for president? Yet we still need NAACP, Black Caucus and BET\Awards to explain that all the blacks are still repressed and do not have the advantages that whites do. Yet the Acadamy awards recognizes everyone. The Democrat Caucus recognizes everyone ect… Only YOUR orginazations lock people out that are not your skin color. You my friend are the most racist people of them all. I am not trying to offend you but you need to look at the world of now and not the world of old.
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- BrownBull - Jan 30, 2010 at 5:33 PM
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I call BS on your comment. The reason there is not many black folks on tv is because blacks make up.. 15% of the total US population? So 15% of the people watching TV are black at the most. Learn how to do math and you will see why certain % of certain races are on TV.. As a proud African American, even I understand this.
To all the white people out there Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson do not represent the majority of black people views. Someone please get them off TV!!
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- Keep Telling Yourself That Jason - Jan 30, 2010 at 7:59 PM
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In the NBA, all players play by the same rules. White players are not held to a certain set of rules while Black players are allowed to run freely. You have absolutely no evidence to support your claim that more Black players are stars in the leauge only because of the game rules in the NBA. White and Black players come up through the same system, playing highschool basketball and college basketball before making it to the NBA. Your “rules difference theory” does not hold water at any level. Stop trying to make up excuses unless you have some evidence to support your claim.
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- Use Logic, Seriously - Jan 30, 2010 at 8:07 PM
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Do you seriously expect organizations born out of strife, repression, suffering, discrimination, and opposition to hatred, to just close their doors and shut down operation because things have changed for the better. We have made steps in the right direction with those organizations in existence. Why would they shut down if they participated in getting racial conditions to be that much better? Why stop now? You think things are equal now? You think racism no longer exists? True, things are so much better, but does that mean that there is no more work to be done? Wake up. We still have milestones to overcome in education, financial differences, and yes, even in the entertainment world. Did you know that not one black director has ever won an Academy Award? Do you think it is because no black director has ever been deserving of the award? Do you think there is no black director to ever have the talent and vision to win that award? If you want to say that things have gotten much better since the slavery, since Jim Crow, since the Civil Rights fight, then I agree %100 with you. But if you want to say that things are equal now and there is no need for black people to continue the struggle to be represented correctly, to overcome the setbacks of slavery and Jim Crow, to catch up from being held back with discrimination, seperation, and hatred, then you are absolutely %100 wrong.
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- brendan - Jan 31, 2010 at 4:02 PM
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What the man of this league owner is trying to get at is that whites dont have any heroes anymore just like blacks dont in hockey so this guy is just trying to get whites back into basketball i 100% support this idea it isnt raceist at all BET is a milion times more its a slap in the face to whites i mean c’mon it isnt necesary for bet not to sound ignorant but minorities are to much of babies and wimps to open there eyes and figure out what the real world thinks since the mid 90′s to about the early 00′s basketball has had a strong white player since john stockton
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- tashard - Jan 31, 2010 at 4:08 PM
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I agree with brendan blacks have people to look up to in baseball basketball and football the three most popular sports in the united states if more blacks were in hockey we would play which is probably why we dont and we only play realyy baseball football and basketball and i tottally understand and i think BET is more offonsive because of the lack of evidence why they have it
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- craig - Jan 31, 2010 at 8:29 PM
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u may as well go ahead and start one, it ain;t like your gonna make it any other league, at least in your all white league you;ll have an excellent chance of starting and not to take any mreal punishment if you go up to dunk, sounds real fine to me, ‘that;s less tears and sitting the bench and still getting paid 6 figures, hurry up and start it that;ll be the only championship alot of those guys are likely to see anyway
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- Diary of a Mad Black Woman - Feb 2, 2010 at 2:31 PM
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To everyone who supports this is on some BS and you should be ashamed. And yes they did say something when they wanted to start a all Black league, anything African Americans do some one always have a comment. Also when they started the WNBA they said something and no one supported that is why teams keep dropping out. It sad that in 2010 we still have these issues…Grow up and break down all the barriers. Football, no one says anything that 90% of all quarterbacks are white. and lets not go there that most of the head coaches are white…so dont give me that BS that white men dont have a chance to succeed. There are many white talented Basketball in the NBA and there are some that have caused some action that was all roses…So like i said all ignorant people as those who support this notion give it up and get some education and act right…and yes I said act right because you all are just wrong so grow up and learn the facts and learn how to play some championship Basketball and maybe just maybe you and your friends may get a chance of being in the NBA.
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- OtisMan - Feb 4, 2010 at 4:57 PM
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Finally , a rooney rule for the white guy. Since 89% all the nba players are black, why not start a while league? There are currently black only colleges, whites are excluded from alot of things, and we are the minority now. I see no problem with this at all, if you don’t like it, then don’t watch it. Nothing wrong with learning fundamental basketball.
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- philip weirick - Feb 5, 2010 at 9:21 AM
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i like it and i would support it. lets bring some class to roundball. im tired of there crap. its pathetic. they dont even appreciate the millions they make –but they like the guns they can get with the money they make–screw em -give us a white league -not a damn thing wrong with it. if they dont like the league they can stay home
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- Clint - Feb 5, 2010 at 5:15 PM
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If the ratings are high enough on TV let them have an all white basketball team. If nobody watches it will die, so I say let the people decide what they want.
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- RR - Feb 6, 2010 at 1:34 AM
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Good Answer and you know it’s true. I am white and agree with you
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- Rob - Feb 6, 2010 at 1:43 PM
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He certainly has the right to do it, but it just doesn’t do anything to help the racial divide in our country.
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- daniel burke - Feb 9, 2010 at 12:52 AM
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If this guy has enough money as stupidity, then I think being from Mass. I’ll start an all only Black Colored National Hockey Team franchise. It amounts to only one team but they can’t be any worse than the Bruins are playing!!! I wonder what McHale, Bird, Havlechek, Cousey, Walton, Ainge and other white folk who worked hard to be they were in sports would feel a little sad knowing that all whites and blacks don’nt make it to the PRO level. This guy needs to get off his horse. Bottom Line!!(PS: Bless his heart but old Red when he coached sure liked his white boys.)
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- WhiteMan - Feb 10, 2010 at 11:05 AM
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The white kids are in the school, studying, getting an education, and being driven by there parents to make themselves someone someday. You just do not see many, if any, white kids playing basketball 10hrs a day. Funny how you see black kids everywhere playing basketball. WHite kids are bad later in life because of this. White kids grow up to be doctor and lawyers because of this. Black kids grow up to be basketball players.
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- surtinman3 - Feb 10, 2010 at 1:01 PM
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KINDA LIKE BET NETWORK
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- zu - Feb 10, 2010 at 3:48 PM
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U idiot, if u get rid of double standards, then why do you need to exclude people?
By picking and choosing u are using double standards. Think b4 write.
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- JimC - Feb 11, 2010 at 8:54 PM
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I really don’t see the problem here. We already have the NBA which is over 90% black. Don’t believe me? Check the facts. If there was any league that was 90% white there would be lawsuits saying this was illegal and a certain percentage of players must be black. Since the blacks dominate this league they are fine with it… Of course. In the end, who care if it’s an all white league or all black league or midget league, whatever. What it will come down to is money. Whatever people are willing to pay for will be what matters. While we’re deciding what is right or wrong, lets have an all educated league. There’s nothing I find more upsetting than to hear of these guys being given multi million dollar contracts and that can’t even read the contract they signed or spell their own name. Lets have a league where a proven 12th grade education is mandatory. Make them pass tests that prove they are educated before they get the right to make millions of dollars for putting a ball in a hole. Then again, maybe that’s what they’re creating by having an all white league anyway.
