--------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 122 WHITE HOUSE Ref: F5G00159 Date: 04/21/98 From: DAVID MOUFARREGE Time: 03:53pm \/To: ALL (Read 1 times) Subj: 1998-04-19 Statement By The President on15:53:0004/21/98 THE WHITE HOUSE Office of the Press Secretary (Santiago, Chile) ________________________________________________________________________ For Immediate Release April 19, 1998 STATEMENT BY THE PRESIDENT Three years ago today the people of Oklahoma City suffered the worst act of terrorism in our country?s history. It was an attack, not just on the people, a city, a state, a nation, but on what we stand for, how we govern ourselves and the values we live by. During that time, we have worked to bring to justice those who were responsible for this crime. And during that time, all America has stood by the people of Oklahoma City as they have worked to rebuild their lives. Today, once again, our thoughts are with the families of the 168 people whose lives were tragically lost. Their courage and the resilience of Oklahoma City has shown us all the full meaning of community. -30-30-30- --- * Origin: Kraut Haus * Rochester, New York (USA) (1:2613/404) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 122 WHITE HOUSE Ref: F5G00160 Date: 04/17/98 From: DAVID MOUFARREGE Time: 10:26am \/To: ALL (Read 1 times) Subj: 1998-04-15 Statement by the Press Secret10:26:0004/17/98 THE WHITE HOUSE Office of the Press Secretary (Birmingham, Alabama) ________________________________________________________________________ For Immediate Release April 15, 1998 1999 NATO Summit The President is pleased to announce that the North Atlantic Treaty Organization has accepted his invitation to host the Fiftieth Anniversary summit meeting in Washington on April 24-25, 1999. This summit will mark NATO's extraordinary record of success over the past fifty years in protecting the security of the United States and our European allies. As agreed at the 1997 Madrid summit, we hope to use the upcoming summit meeting in Washington to welcome the entry of Poland, Hungary, and the Czech Republic as new members of the alliance. Looking to the future, the summit will advance the common work of NATO allies and partners to build an undivided Europe that is peaceful, prosperous, and democratic. -30-30-30- --- * Origin: Kraut Haus * Rochester, New York (USA) (1:2613/404) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 122 WHITE HOUSE Ref: F5G00161 Date: 04/17/98 From: DAVID MOUFARREGE Time: 10:37am \/To: ALL (Read 0 times) Subj: 1998-04-16 VP Annouces New Effort to Boo10:37:0004/17/98 THE WHITE HOUSE Office of the Vice President ________________________________________________________________________ For Immediate Release April 16, 1998 VICE PRESIDENT GORE ANNOUNCES NEW EFFORT TO BOOST DELTA ECONOMY New Orleans, LA -- In what he called an effort to increase the pace of economic development in the Mississippi Delta region, Vice President Gore announced a major initiative by two of the region's leading community development organizations to combat the Delta's chronic poverty. The new initiative -- the Delta Regional Initiative -- is a combined effort of the Southern Empowerment Zone and Enterprise Community Forum and the Lower Mississippi Delta Development Commission. Working together, these two organizations will have more resources to break the cycle of persistent poverty and high unemployment rates that have plagued this area for generations, Vice President Gore said. This reinvigorated effort, Gore said, will forge a more effective engine of change by combining the expertise and resources of an organization specializing in local, community-specific action plans -- the Southern Empowerment Zone and Enterprise Community Forum -- with one that works on a broad-scale using a regional approach -- the Lower Mississippi Delta Development Commission. Vice President Gore also presided at a ceremony at which the two organizations signed articles of incorporation to create the Delta Regional Initiative. The new entity will be able to better channel federal funds and technical help available to Rural and Urban Empowerment Zones and Enterprise Communities in seven states: Arkansas, Louisiana, Illinois, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri and Tennessee. Decisions on how to utilize funds have not been made but, if Congress provides for the funds, they will go to targeted economic development assistance to the counties and communities in the lower Mississippi region. The effort is modeled after the Administration's Southwest Border Regional Initiative, launched last year to better focus resources on efforts to improve the quality of life in the impoverished rural communities along the U.S.-Mexico border. The Vice President Gore also called on Congress to fund the Administration's proposal for $26 million to support Delta-related rural development projects. With this initiative, he said, I believe we will improve the quality of life for the people of the Delta in such areas as health care, education, housing, agriculture, and natural resources, business development and the environment. ### --- * Origin: Kraut Haus * Rochester, New York (USA) (1:2613/404) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 122 WHITE HOUSE Ref: F5G00162 Date: 04/17/98 From: DAVID MOUFARREGE Time: 10:47am \/To: ALL (Read 1 times) Subj: 1998-04-16 Statement by the President on10:47:0004/17/98 THE WHITE HOUSE Office of the Press Secretary (Santiago, Chile) ________________________________________________________________________ For Immediate Release April 16, 1998 STATEMENT BY THE PRESIDENT I was deeply saddened to learn this morning of the tragic deaths of two small children in Arkansas, as well as the deaths of two individuals from Dyer County, Tennessee. My heart goes out to their parents and families and to the many who have suffered in both states. The destruction of last night's tornadoes was swift and powerful, and the threat of another storm looms in its wake. Disaster relief efforts began today at daybreak. James Lee Witt, the Director of FEMA, will provide me with an assessment of the destruction and FEMA is standing ready to respond if appropriate. The burden of recovery is heavy, but it will not be carried by these communities alone. Our thoughts and prayers are with the survivors as they mourn all that was lost and begin the difficult process of healing and rebuilding. -30-30-30- --- * Origin: Kraut Haus * Rochester, New York (USA) (1:2613/404) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 122 WHITE HOUSE Ref: F5G00163 Date: 04/17/98 From: DAVID MOUFARREGE Time: 11:02am \/To: ALL (Read 0 times) Subj: 1998-04-15 Letter to Congress on Nuclear11:02:0004/17/98 THE WHITE HOUSE Office of the Press Secretary (Santiago, Chile) ________________________________________________________________________ For Immediate Release April 16, 1998 TEXT OF A LETTER FROM THE PRESIDENT TO THE SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES AND THE PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE April 15, 1998 Dear Mr. Speaker: (Dear Mr. President:) As required under section 601(a) of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Act of 1978 (Public Law 95-242, 22 U.S.C. 3281(a)), I am transmitting a report on the activities of United States Government departments and agencies relating to the prevention of nuclear proliferation. It covers activities between January 1, 1997, and December 31, 1997. Sincerely, WILLIAM J. CLINTON # # # --- * Origin: Kraut Haus * Rochester, New York (USA) (1:2613/404) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 122 WHITE HOUSE Ref: F5G00164 Date: 04/17/98 From: DAVID MOUFARREGE Time: 10:52am \/To: ALL (Read 1 times) Subj: 1998-04-16 VP Statement on Tornadoes in 10:52:0004/17/98 THE WHITE HOUSE Office of the Vice President ________________________________________________________________________ For Immediate Release April 16, 1998 STATEMENT BY VICE PRESIDENT GORE ON TORNADOES IN TENNESSEE I am saddened by the horrible damage caused by these devastating tornadoes. My heart goes out to the people of Nashville. They are in my prayers. I have just spoken with Governor Sundquist and Mayor Bredesen to express my concern and offer our help. They have asked FEMA to place an urban search and rescue team on alert to aid the rescue efforts. We are monitoring this situation with FEMA and stand ready to support the states with any Federal assets that may be necessary. --- * Origin: Kraut Haus * Rochester, New York (USA) (1:2613/404) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 122 WHITE HOUSE Ref: F5G00165 Date: 04/17/98 From: DAVID MOUFARREGE Time: 11:51am \/To: ALL (Read 0 times) Subj: 1998-04-14 ESPN Live Town Hall Meeting o11:51:0004/17/98 THE WHITE HOUSE Office of the Press Secretary (Houston, Texas) ________________________________________________________________________ For Immediate Release April 14, 1998 REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT IN ESPN LIVE A CONVERSATION WITH THE PRESIDENT SPORTS AND RACE: RUNNING IN PLACE? Cullen Theater Wortham Theater Center Houston, Texas 7:00 P.M. CDT MR. LEY: Thank you, Mr. President, for being here. We deeply appreciate it. I know your race initiative has been underway for seven or eight months. There are problems in this country, issues in this country. As we talk tonight race and sports, what can this dialogue bring to the nation at large, for there are bigger issues than simply those in sports? THE PRESIDENT: Well, first of all, let me thank you and ESPN for doing this for the second time, and thank our panelists for being willing to put themselves on the line and be honest and open and accountable to the audience. I'd like to say a couple of things I think we can achieve. First of all, America, rightly or wrongly, is a sports crazy country and we often see games as a metaphor or a symbol of what we are as a people. So I think by dealing with both the positive things which have happened in terms of opportunity for people of all races, and people getting together and working together, and the continuing challenges in athletics, I think just by doing that we learn more about the rest of the country and what needs to be done. Beyond that, I think that it's important that people see that in athletics in America, that the rules are fair, that people get their fair chance, and I would hope, too, that the concern for the lives of the players off the field, off the court, and what they're doing when their athletic careers are over and whether they still will be full and equal members of society, closing the opportunity gaps that have existed historically between the races in our country -- whether there's something we can do about that, because that clearly will have larger implications for the society as a whole. But all of us as Americans, I think, should be both proud of how far we've come when we see what racial and ethnic and religious tensions are doing in other parts of the world, and at the same time, should be very determined to continue to meet the challenges that still exist, because our country is becoming more and more racially and ethically diverse, and if we can be one America, celebrating our diversity, but knowing what we have in common, then it's the greatest asset I can imagine for us to take into the 21st century. But it's something we really have to work at as I'm sure all these folks will tell. MR. LEY: Well, we've got 90 minutes to try. Let me turn to the gentleman seated to your left, Jim Brown. You were on our panel 14 months ago. Put your finger in the water here, take the temperature -- what's the last 14 months brought to your mind on this continuum of race of sports? MR. BROWN: Well, the first think I'd like to say is that I'm very happy that the President visited Africa and deal with the scientific fact of humankind. For all of my black brothers and sisters out there, I would like to say there's no reason to feel inferior because, as the President pointed out, mankind started in Africa, and we're all of that particular race. Having said that, I would like to say that I feel that in the last 14 months that we have made tremendous progress. Contrary to common belief, white America has stood up in so many cases -- going back to Paul Brown, dealing with the 49ers, dealing with Bob Kraft of the New England Patriots -- we have had tremendous opportunities. If we take advantage of those opportunities and use the rules of economics, we will then find our rightful place in this society. Use the positive spin. Talk to those who have been positive who have helped us, rather than addressing the negative aspects of racism. MR. LEY: Well, John Thompson, several times in the last few years -- '89 you walked off over issues with the NCAA; '94 there was nearly a boycott by the Black Coaches Association. Is it still an issue, though, in sports where you have to almost verge on civil disobedience '90s style and bring attention to these issues? MR. THOMPSON: I don't know whether you have to do a civil disobedience, but I think you've got to create a consciousness of the fact that there's still a lot of people who are able to participate in the cotton field who is not able to be the foreman or not able to be the boss, or not able to have that opportunity. And that's what I think you try to do. You've got to be able to talk about it sensibly without people becoming so sensitive to it and acting as if it doesn't exist. Several kids who are able to play at universities in this country who wouldn't even be considered for a job. And that's a fact. It's a sensitive subject; it doesn't mean that you become hostile, but you cannot close your eyes and act as if this doesn't exist. And I think that that's very important for us to discuss it, and that's why you need to be commended for having this type of a show, so we can discuss it intelligently. MR. LEY: Well, why is it so sensitive? MR. THOMPSON: Why is it so sensitive -- it's very sensitive because of the very fact that, first of all, a lot of folks want to act as if it doesn't exist. It's obvious by the fact that if you look in our society today at the number of kids who participate particularly in basketball, which is the area that I'm in -- if you look at the number of athletic directors that are in this country, if you look at the number of basketball coaches that are in this country, it's amazing to me how a person can be so competent as a player and so incompetent and his knowledge leaves him once he graduates from a university. And that same university does not select him to participate at any level. I think that becomes sensitive when you discuss that with folks. It shouldn't be sensitive. You should be able to openly sit down and you should be able to talk about it. But it's a fact. MR. LEY: Keyshawn, you're of the young generation of athletes. Your experiences vary, certainly, from many of the other people on the panel. You talk in your book about your perceptions of racism in sports. Give me the box-top answer. Where is it now to your mind? MR. JOHNSON: I think when I first got drafted into the National Football League there were things that were said to me as an individual player as everything being treated fairly and equally. I didn't see it that way my rookie year, which is a very sensitive subject. But also, in my mind, I wanted to do these great things for this team and help this team win, and at the time, we had individuals working within our organization that for some reason they didn't see it in the same point of view. So when I decided to write my book, those are things along the line that were race topics and issues that preyed in my mind and I thought that needed to be discussed. MR. LEY: You take none of it back? MR. JOHNSON: Excuse me? MR. LEY: You take none of it back? You stand by what you wrote two years ago, right? MR. JOHNSON: Oh, yes, definitely. MR. LEY: Oh, Carmen Policy, you work in football, and you have to make personnel decisions. I'm sure you're familiar with Keyshawn, with what he had to say about the Jets and personnel decisions. What was your reading of that, and as you look at personnel decisions that have to be made, how they can be interpreted? MR. POLICY: Well, I think what you had in Keyshawn's book was a young man speaking his mind. I think he was speaking his heart, as well. I think that having talked to Keyshawn before tonight's program began, he feels differently about his experience with the Jets today than he did last year. And I think he'd write a different book if he had the opportunity to do so in five years. And I think that you have to understand that we're dealing with very young athletes who are expected to be professionals. We're dealing with 21, 22-year-old passionate young men. And we have to take that into consideration when we bring them into the ranks of the pros. MR. LEY: Let's talk about hiring practices, though, in your league. You know, two winters ago there were 11 vacancies -- 0 for 11 on minority hires. Even in the past year, with a special head hunter in place for the NFL, reportedly that head hunter was not even contacted -- a gentleman who was supposed to find minority candidates -- as these positions were filled. Are you satisfied with what the NFL is doing? MR. POLICY: I think we have to understand a given. I don't believe there's an owner in the NFL that if he felt that an individual was the best candidate to be the head coach of his team and if that candidate were black, he would not get a job. There's no question in my mind he'd be selected. But I think the process by which we go about selecting our head coaches and the time frame into which it's squeezed is so flawed that we don't have the opportunity to reach out, go through the kind of barriers that are there and find that talent pool that's available -- and should be available -- to make our business a better business and make our sport a better sport. MR. LEY: Denny Green, how did you break through that barrier? MR. GREEN: Well, I don't call it a barrier, I call it a hurdle. And I think a hurdle is something that you can jump over, and I'm clearly ready to jump over that hurdle maybe for the rest of my life. I don't want my three children to have to jump over the exact same hurdle. I think one of things that we're doing here now is we're bringing a tremendous amount of focus on sports because we love sports. And I look at the National Football League; I've tried to be as involved as I can, as well as trying to bring a championship to the Vikings, but also to --- * Origin: Kraut Haus * Rochester, New York (USA) (1:2613/404) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 122 WHITE HOUSE Ref: F5G00166 Date: 04/17/98 From: DAVID MOUFARREGE Time: 11:51am \/To: ALL (Read 0 times) Subj: 02:1998-04-14 ESPN Live Town Hall Meetin11:51:0004/17/98 try to be involved with the Commissioner, Paul Tagliabue, and the rest of the, I think, leadership of the National Football League. But if you have a goal, you have to be able to measure the goal. If you measure the goal, 0 for 15 in the last three years, we have to say that the goals are specific, they're measurable, they're attainable, they're realistic and timely, and we failed in reaching our goal. We have not had any coaches hired in the last two years and I think that's wrong. MR. LEY: Let me ask the President, if I could, sir, so much of this is about numbers in sports and you know Dr. Richard Lapchik (phonetic) very well and his numbers that take into account -- should we be drawing conclusions from the numbers -- 0 for 15 over the course of three years -- does that say something? THE PRESIDENT: It says something. We just have to make sure we know what it says. For example, very often we assume that those numbers are there, there's some maybe even an illegal practice, which may not be true. But if you go back to what Carmen said, one of the things that I've seen -- or go back to what John Thompson said -- and you know, Georgetown is my alma mater so I always try to cheer for John and try never to disagree with him. (Laughter.) But there's some -- let's assume that there is absolutely no conscious racism in any of these decisions. I have been now in an executive position, I've been President for five and half years nearly. I was governor of my state for 12 years. I've hired hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of people. And every position I've ever held, I've always hired more minorities than my predecessors. When I was governor, I hired more minorities and -- more than all my predecessors combined. No one ever accused me of giving anybody anything for which they weren't qualified. But what I found out was, if that was goal, and you knew it was important, there was a certain network by which -- the easy network by which those decisions are made, and you've got to break through the network and change the rules if you want to do it. (Applause.) MR. LEY: So the numbers are important then? THE PRESIDENT: Number are important. But my reaction was, when Keyshawn's book came out -- you know, I'm a big football fan, I saw this and I saw him play in college. You know, if I were running his team, I'd just want to make as many touchdowns as I could, you know. And what I think you have to do is to kind of -- Carmen went around here and he really prepared for this tonight. So I think that's what we need people to do for these coaching positions. We need to think if this is a problem, we want more minority coaches in the NFL, we want more minority coaches in the college ranks, you have to say -- and we're making an honest effort to pick the most qualified people, why aren't we producing them? I'd say there's something wrong with the recruitment system, with the pool, and you've got to rethink that and make a real effort. My experience, my personal experiences, if you make a real effort there are lots people out there. Since I believe intelligence and ability are evenly distributed across racial and ethnic groups, if you look at it, you can find it. (Applause.) MR. LEY: Let me go to John Moores who owns the San Diego Padres. John, we're very happy that you're here tonight. We did this 14 months ago and baseball was unable to give us an owner. And going through the Commissioner's Office this time around, I will tell you, it was difficult, and finally we directly asked you and you did appear. Baseball, when it's graded out, subjectively, doesn't grade out well in this category. Are you satisfied with what your industry is doing, as an equity shareholder, to hire fairly? MR. MOORES: Oh, absolutely not. I think baseball is clearly the most diverse sport and it has more opportunity to show that diversity in hiring. One of the surprising things I found in baseball is that there are a number of extremely qualified people who have been passed over for reasons I don't understand. In particular, I'd like to put a plug in for Davy Lopes, who I think is probably the most qualified person on the planet who's not a manager of a major league team. And even though I would hate to lose him as one of our coaches, he clearly would add something to another club. I'd like to see him in the American League rather than the National League. (Laughter.) But that does give me pause and you wonder why those things happen. MR. LEY: Why do you think they happen? MR. MOORES: Well, I think the country has come a long way. And I'm terribly pleased to be in Clyde Drexler's hometown right now, where -- (applause) -- Clyde will restore the University of Houston and Phi Slamma-Jamma to its rightful position. (Laughter and applause.) MR. LEY: You're playing to the house. (Laughter.) MR. MOORES: But I must say, what Clyde would do -- the reception this community -- you just heard it -- has given Clyde is overwhelming. The university is having trouble keeping tickets in stock. That would not have been the case when I was a student there many years ago. We had a great white coach, but under no circumstances could that school have thought about anybody other than a white guy. So I think society is clearly moving in the right direction. But obviously, we have miles to go before we sleep. MR. LEY: All right, you're a baseball owner, Joe Morgan, you made your name and your fame in baseball. You were in our first town hall meeting 14 months ago, at which baseball did provide an owner at that point. What is your take of the temperature of the water of the last 14 months? MR. MORGAN: I think it has made a slight change. I think sometimes progress is subtle, like racism. It's hard to measure sometimes the progress. For instance, we have now -- meaning we, baseball -- has hired another minority manager, Jerry Manuel, but prior to that, there had been, like, 33 job openings and minorities had not even been given interviews. You can't say that we should have X-number of major league managers who are African Americans. I don't believe that. All I've ever wanted or asked baseball to do is to make sure that when an opening occurs, that African Americans are part of the interview process. There's no way in my mind that if Davy Lopes -- who I happen to agree with John -- Chris Shambliss, Cito Gaston -- there are a lot of players who are qualified to major league manager and they're not even interviewed when these job openings occur. And that's the problem I have. Like I said, you can't use numbers. I just feel like if you put them in the interview process, maybe, as Ron Shuler said, you can be overwhelmed -- as Jerry Manuel did, to get the job. But if you're not interviewed, you're not going to get the opportunity to prove that you're capable of being a major league manager. And I guess I go back to what John said; some of the greatest players in baseball history have been African Americans. Yet once they're finished, there's no place for them to go. And that includes the broadcast booth; that includes management positions, front office positions, even coaching positions. I think you'll find that there have been more African American hitting coaches than anyplace else -- not bench coaches who are helping make the decisions, but hitting instructors, because they're able to get along with the players well. So my point is, I just want them to be part of the interviewing process. Give them an opportunity to prove to the management people that they are qualified. If you don't ask them the question, they can't give you the answer. (Applause.) MR. LEY: Vince Dooley, in Division One college football, over half the players are African American, 93 percent of the head coaches are white and 94 percent of the time in the last three years, the job has been filled from a white coach to a white coach. Are those numbers -- can you explain them and are they defensible? MR. DOOLEY: Well, before speaking about the numbers -- and I will answer that question -- I would like to make this comment to the President, because as some point in time in his life, the history will be written about his administration and there will be two sides to that history. But I think that one focus that will be true of any historian that will write about the President, that this initiative, this particular initiative of getting people to talk about race relations and about diversity, is going to be the most positive thing that ever happened. (Applause.) THE PRESIDENT: Thank you. MR. DOOLEY: And I say that because I see it around the country and I see it in my hometown of Athens, Georgia, where the University of Georgia is. My wife has a radio call-in show and she now has a series on race relations where leaders of black in the community, and in the white community, and the Asian community now come together and discuss this. In college football we've made a lot of strides -- we've made a lot of strides in inter-collegiate athletics. What we need more of is the John Thompsons, we need more of the Tubby Smiths in the world. When you have a Tubby Smith -- he came with us only two years, but we can at least brag that he got some of his last training before he went to Kentucky to win the national championship. (Laughter.) But when we have those -- and we have a lot in basketball and I think that a Tubby Smith in the south has done more for sports and the opportunities than a lot of things that have happened recently. What we need is more success in college football. Dennis Green was a very successful college football coach, but he left us. And what we need is more Dennis Greens, and when we have that, that's going to help our situation. MR. LEY: MR. LOPEZ: Well, for myself, I don't really think so. I think that I got the help that I really needed within the people around me. I've been fortunate to know a lot of great people within the basketball area, and those have been some of the things that have helped me be the person that I am. And I think the opportunity that people could get by just being in such a different racial community is that you can get so much out of -- from so much different people. And that definitely you can --- * Origin: Kraut Haus * Rochester, New York (USA) (1:2613/404) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 122 WHITE HOUSE Ref: F5G00167 Date: 04/17/98 From: DAVID MOUFARREGE Time: 11:51am \/To: ALL (Read 0 times) Subj: 03:1998-04-14 ESPN Live Town Hall Meetin11:51:0004/17/98 learn from anything that the race can bring to you. And I've just been fortunate, because of what I have learned from other people. MR. LEY: Well, Jackie, let me ask you, in East St. Louis, so involved with the kids, and also on the flip side now, the business world -- where do you think it's easier to talk about it, among kids -- among suits? MS. JOYNER-KERSEE: Well, personally, I think having the dialogue, it starts there, but we can talk and we can talk, but people need to listen and people need to do something about it. And for me, even working with kids, we talk about diversity, a melting pot, you're hearing from great players, coaches, owners, and you're talking about also that setting an example -- and you wonder why kids don't want to be in administration or why they don't strive to want to be a major league owner, or NBA owner -- because they don't see that. But then you see, we come together and we talk about this race initiative, this program that we're trying to do and trying to not just reach kids or reach the suits. For me, as a woman, there are things that we have to deal with, just being a woman in general. It's obvious the color that I am; that should not be an issue. It should be that if the person is qualified, that person is qualified. But then you talk about the networking. If we don't have the opportunity to be in that environment, to be a part of that network, I don't see how you're going to get to that next level. Even with myself, with trying to run a foundation, and you bring in people to set up -- to ask questions. They ask questions that's not really related to what you're trying to do. They don't even share your vision, so that automatically eliminates somebody that might be qualified because they did not ask the right question, or they're on a quota or point system and those points don't add up. So it's subtle racism, it's hidden racism. There's hidden agendas and there are things that we as people have to deal with. But also we as people have to be listening and want to deal with it, and not just brush things under the table and say, oh, well, when the next person comes along -- because it's going to be the next person, the next person after that. (Applause.) MR. LEY: Well, we are talking about it tonight. We are going to step aside for a commercial break, and as we continue we'll look at the issue of stereotypes in sports -- images such as Cordell Stewart quarterbacking for the Steelers; or Keith Van Horn taking it to the hole for the New Jersey Nets. Things that people think about and sometimes talk about, as we continue live from Houston. * * * * * MR. LEY: Let me ask Keyshawn this. You've got Rich Chrebet on your team -- Wayne Chrebet, excuse me -- and you've got Jason Seahorn who plays in the same stadium, a white cornerback that has been talked about in stereotypes. We talked to some NFL players who line up against Seahorn and they told as black players, I can take this guy. Do you think that there is a subtle point even in a professional athlete's mind about the stereotyping by position, by appearance? MR. JOHNSON: I think so because it comes, first of all, it comes from the media. I think that's where it starts, because back a while ago, the media points and targets certain athletes at certain positions. Most runningbacks are African American; most quarterbacks are white; most cornerbacks are African American except for Jason. I played with Jason in college; I line up across from Jason -- I don't even look at him like that, I look at him as a cornerback. Then on the flip side, you walk back and somebody says, well, a white dude, he beat you up. (Laughter.) Afterwards, he's done a great job, then the media takes it and turns it into wanting to make him into the next great white corner. I don't know what cornerback was a good white cornerback in the day from -- (laughter.) MR. LEY: Do you think it is the media, the media is the reason, or there are other reasons why he is the only white cornerback in the National Football League? MR. JOHNSON: I think so. I think there's a reason why he's one of the only white cornerbacks. It has to do with the people upstairs and some of the coaches. They go out and they time these players and in that position you have to run a certain time, you have to be fast, you have to be aggressive. And a lot of times, because of the stereotypes, white athletes they feel are not aggressive enough to play that position to stop individuals like myself or individuals like Jerry Rice, big receivers. So a lot of time you don't find an athlete -- Jason Seahorn's bigger than me. He stands about 6'4", about 220 pounds, and can probably run like sub-4-3, which is on the board, on paper, is like a superstar athlete. I guess in so many words, certain white athletes, you just don't find that. They say that you find the smart quarterback that can make the quick decisions, when an African American quarterback can't make that quick decision. MR. LEY: Let's go outside for our first question, and we'll get back to the panel. Let's go over to microphone B here for a question. Q Good evening. My name is Michael Waters. I'm 18 years old and student vice president at my high school. Mr. Brown, I've heard that many people believe that blacks are physically equipped better to play sports than many whites. Do you feel that this statement is a form of discrimination against whites, and more in particular, white athletes? MR. BROWN: I think the lack of education -- I think these stereotypes that we're talking about, these cliches that we're using up here is really not getting to the point. If I might make this one point -- Keyshawn, I understand what you say, but in the '60s and the '50s we dealt with discrimination. No one up here has made an important point about economics. We have -- (applause.) We have athletes and coaches that are black that are making millions of dollars. You have not brought that subject up. You have not said to them, why don't you hire black lawyers, agents and managers? (Applause.) Those black lawyers, agents and managers would be handling those investment dollars. Right now the black investment dollars go into other neighborhoods. (Applause.) We stood up and we talk about one more black coach. One more black coach is a symbolic situation. Those investment dollars are the way to rebuild communities, show people that we can have racial unity, and that we understand the principles of economics. So I'd like to see someone address that and get away from these simplistic stereotypes. I don't particularly care about what anybody thinks about -- (applause.) MR. JOHNSON: I have an African American attorney. (Laughter.) But I didn't hire him because he was African American, I gave him the opportunity for the application, to fill it out, to inquire, but I wanted to know if he could handle the job. I interviewed many whites, all across the board, some of the top agents in the business -- as well as my investment financial people happen to be black. But they fit the mold of things that I want to do. I want to get back into my community, put the dollars in industry -- (applause.) MR. LEY: Well, Jackie, you're an agent now. How important is that to you to have African American clients and to begin to do what Jim talked about? MS. JOYNER-KERSEE: Well, for me personally, when I brought up the issue about time to find an executive director for my foundation, and working with a board, but I also having them to understand, too, that if I don't give this person an opportunity, who will? And I'm in a position where I can do that. And this is just working from the community base, but also trying to be an agent, trying to work with other just young athletes. Because I find that sometimes athletes take for granted that they're just going to get certain things, and you have to make sure that you put them in a position or they're in a position where they can take care of their business, and can take care of their finances, but also trying to help you along the way, too. But I think there's a fine line there, that as an agent, I have responsibilities, too, but also as I've tried to go after student athletes, I want to make sure that they not only represent themselves in a good way, but also represent and stand for some of the same things that I stand for. MR. LEY: Let me ask John Thompson, if I could -- just quickly, John, what went through your mind when you heard Jim Brown talk about the need to have African American attorneys? You have David Faulk, one of the most powerful legends in sports. MR. THOMPSON: I can't use profanity on the show. MR. LEY: Well, we're cable, John. MR. THOMPSON: No, well, I think that's the struggle that we're in in society. I probably receive a lot of criticism because of my outspokenness about racial issues, and David Faulk represents a lot of my players. Unfortunately, I find it very difficult to fire David because he's white when I started out as a young coach at Georgetown and no African American wanted to help me, but David did. And David took the time to work and be concerned about players that weren't superstars. Now that John Thompson is successful and has successful players, I find it very difficult to fire David Faulk because the pigmentation in his skin is white, besides the fact that he is competent and he's my friend. (Applause.) But let me caution you about that statement. It pulls at me and it also hurts me because I am also very sympathetic with what has occurred in our society, and I am very sensitive to the fact of what Jim is saying and what she is saying. But how far do you go? Do I pick a black dentist, do I pick a black lawyer, do I pick a black -- society has caused that. I didn't cause that. Society made us racial -- I hate to use the word "racist" because we all get very nervous when people start talking about racism. But society has made us racial. But you have to constantly be in that struggle of being able to deal with that. I had a young man that happened to be white, was the only young man that wanted to do the broadcasting at Georgetown when I started off. We couldn't get on television, we couldn't get on radio. A young white kid --- * Origin: Kraut Haus * Rochester, New York (USA) (1:2613/404) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 122 WHITE HOUSE Ref: F5G00168 Date: 04/17/98 From: DAVID MOUFARREGE Time: 11:51am \/To: ALL (Read 0 times) Subj: 04:1998-04-14 ESPN Live Town Hall Meetin11:51:0004/17/98 came up to me at a game one time and said, if you let me do it, I'll go out and sell the advertisement. I let him go out and sell the advertisement, and once he sold the advertisement and put us on the air, some blacks came to me and said, you're an Uncle Tom because you got that white boy. That's the struggle that society has caused, and that's why these kinds of conversations are extremely important. The racial composition of my team -- whites will come to you and say, because my team is predominantly black that you're a racist. Well, I'm an Uncle Tom to blacks; I'm a racist -- (laughter) -- and I'm going to tell you something. I don't give a damn what either side says. (Laughter and applause.) MR. LEY: You want to win, right? You want to win. MR. THOMPSON: What is very, very important for a John Thompson is consciously in my mind to know that I am doing what is best. But society created that problem. I have to question myself in everything that I do. Let me just say one thing to speak on what Mr. Dooley said. You know what I have a problem with? I have a problem with the John Thompsons and the Tubby Smiths of society. I'm sick of it. I'm sick of it. And I'm going to why I'm sick of them. It's simply because there are a whole lot of white coaches who aren't successful. Blacks don't have to win the national championship to get an opportunity to coach. (Applause.) And you hear that in relation to education, you hear that in relation to professors. You ask, why don't you have more black professors. I will take a black if he's competent. Well, hell, there's hell of a lot of white failing. (Laughter.) All we want is an opportunity to get out there and to try and a right to fail also. And respectfully I am saying that to you. (Applause.) I'm sick of us having to be perfect to get the job. (Laughter.) I don't want to be perfect to get the job. (Applause.) MR. LEY: Having said that, Vince, when you hired Tubby Smith several years ago you were quoted as saying, he's the only guy I wanted, I went after him, he was the only guy I interviewed. And I know a columnist in Atlanta raised the question, could you, would you have been able to say that about a white coach -- the flip side of the coin? Could you have said that or would you have been under such political correctness pressure to say, no, we canvassed and this is my coach? Tubby Smith, African American, that was your hire. MR. DOOLEY: Yes, I could have said that if I knew in my mind who I wanted and that person, white or black, was the one I wanted, then he would be the only one that I would interview -- that's right. I think I would do that, because, going with what John said, I believe that I'm doing what I believe is right, regardless of whether -- MR. LEY: Don't you acknowledge, though, the reality in 1998 that if an athletic director said, I've got -- especially in college basketball, where you have such a majority African American composition of athletes, you have to give at least the appearance of a fair and open search, but that to take a Tubby Smith, who had been trumpeted in the media and is African American, that's a politically safe choice. It's a good choice, but it's politically safe. MR. DOOLEY: Well, when one searches, one does not necessarily have to interview. If you look -- that the interview might be the least most important thing of all the things that you'd like to find. The history of success -- and we do want to hire good coaches. I mean, as an athletic director I'm not just looking to hire coaches, I want to hire good coaches, the best coach that I can hire. But it may not necessarily be that I interview that individual. Certainly the history of success of that individual goes a long ways and rates much higher than how someone can be able to give just an interview. MR. LEY: We've covered a lot of ground. Mr. President, I'd just like to get your impressions of the last 15 minutes at this point -- kind of a mid-point. THE PRESIDENT: Well, first of all, I appreciate the honesty of the interchange and that shows basically the -- actually the progress that's been made on this issue in athletics. Why? Because I basically -- I agree with the point Jim Brown made, but I respect what John Thompson said. That is, if you have personal experiences with people who have helped you to achieve your goals, even if they're of different races, and you're not going to turn around and abandon your friends or abandon people who are doing a good job for you. And that's good. The point Jim is making, however, is a different one and I'd just like to sort of -- because when we get to the last section, there's another issue I want us to get to, which is related to this -- but what he's pointing out, there's still a huge opportunity gap in our society by race in terms of economic standing. That's the only point he was making -- and that if we want a stable society, we want large middle classes among African Americans, large middle classes among Hispanic Americans, large middle classes among Asian American immigrants -- first generation immigrants. That's the point Jim's making. And that if a group, a certain group within the African American community, let's say, has amassed his wealth and then has to reinvest it, to the extent that they can also help to create this larger middle class while helping themselves and doing something, that's a good thing. I think you can say that and still respect John's decision, which I think we all do, and respect any other individual decisions that would cross racial lines. But the effort to create a middle class, people whose names will never be in the newspaper but who helped to build a big, stable society, I think that's a very important goal for us here. (Applause.) MR. LEY: Do you think athletes have a special responsibility to have a social conscience to act, to be involved in the communities, or is that unfair? THE PRESIDENT: No, I don't think it's unfair. I think, first of all, I think anybody with a special gift has a special responsibility. And if you've got a special gift, whatever the gift is -- if you're a great singer, if you're great at making money, if you're a brilliant scientist -- I think if you have a special gift, if God gave you something that other people don't normally have, and no matter how hard they work they can't get there, then you owe more back. That's what I believe. So, yes, I believe that. (Applause.) MR. LEY: We're going to step aside for just a moment. We'll continue -- Felipe will get to that point -- as we take a commercial break and we'll be back in Houston in just a moment, continuing with our town meeting, live on ESPN. * * * * * MR. LEY: Welcome back to Houston as we continue live with the President and our panel here in Houston. Denny Green, I know you wanted to jump in. You talked in your book about a scenario that you'd like to buy an NFL team, a specific team at the time. You've also been outspoken in trying to help assistant coaches learn how to interview. How do you see the access to the power structure? MR. GREEN: I think the access has to be improved greatly. I think there's some attempts to get there, but we have a long way to go. I remember on March 20th, last month, screaming headlines in The New York Times, "give us a chance to compete." That was not by a coach to the National Football League or any other special interest group, it was by the CEOs, chief executive officers, of the banking, insurance and the security business. Why? Because everybody wants to have a chance to compete on the level playing field. The President is going to have his hands full because they have taken matters into their own hands. What we want as coaches is a criteria that will give us a chance to compete in the National Football League. And what I said in my book, "No Room for Cry-Babies," was the National Football League has a new way to pick its players. This is not the '60s or the '70s, '80s, and '90s, a level playing field for the players, but it's still using the same old system of picking its coaches. (Applause.) MR. LEY: What about picking its owners? If you had a group together with $300 million in credit and somebody with a heck of a lot of money -- you talked about it and it stirred up a hornet's nest -- about buying the team. Could you buy a team? MR. GREEN: Well, you can buy the team because no one puts their own money into buying the team. They borrow the money from the banks. And I think -- (laughter) -- as long as you can service the loan, you can buy the team. (Laughter and applause.) MR. LEY: But how do you explain the fact throughout all of major professional sports there's not one top guy of color? MR. GREEN: Well, first off, you have to have focus, you have to have opportunity. And I think that's what it comes down to. I never had an opportunity to buy a team in the National Football League and I know of only a few African Americans that have had a chance -- or basically even people of color who have had a chance to be involved in the ownership level. I think it's a process. We all were players; at one point you become coaches, managers. At one point, if ownership is going to be there, it comes from the same idea of equal access, equal opportunity, looking at me as a man first, and not a black man. (Applause.) MR. LEY: Jim, go ahead. MR. BROWN: It isn't a matter of a chance of acquiring a team. It's a matter of amassing the amount of dollars. And I'm sure that any African American group today that raised enough money could purchase a team. In my mind, there's no doubt about. I'm sorry, sir, in that sense. We talk about chance and opportunity and being allowed, yet our economic dollars are never pooled in a manner to give us that kind of power. If you talk about access to a major corporation, you talk about Michael Jordan, you talk about Tiger Woods -- they're with Nike, right? They have the ear of Phil Knight. On a massive scale, from the standpoint of delivering black folks into any arena, what are they doing? That's all I'm saying. (Applause.) MR. LEY: John Thompson, you're on Nike's board of directors -- (laughter) -- I'm sorry, but let me ask you first the question as a --- * Origin: Kraut Haus * Rochester, New York (USA) (1:2613/404)