# Is it okay for me to wear a black athlete's jersey? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [September 30, 2005, 12:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187 "2005-09-30T12:46:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Jet\_Jaguar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jet_jaguar/32/3562_2.png) [@Jet\_Jaguar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jet_Jaguar)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2005, 12:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187/1 "2005-09-30T12:46:28Z")
There’s really no way for me to ask this without sounding horribly racist, so I’ll be blunt. Is it okay for me, a white guy, to wear the jersey of a black athlete? I mentioned to some coworkers that I was wanting to get a Barry Sanders jersey (sorry, but I grew up in the Detroit area and therefore [obligated to root for the Lions](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=332748)) and one, who is black, commented that it’s strange to see white people wearing a “brother’s” jersey. So, is it okay for me to wear Sanders’ jersey, or am I doomed to a quest for a Bobby Layne throwback? (Because I’m _not_ wearing a Harrington jersey.) ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2005, 12:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187/2 "2005-09-30T12:56:29Z")
> [@Jet Jaguar](#): > > There’s really no way for me to ask this without sounding horribly racist, so I’ll be blunt. Is it okay for me, a white guy, to wear the jersey of a black athlete? I mentioned to some coworkers that I was wanting to get a Barry Sanders jersey (sorry, but I grew up in the Detroit area and therefore [obligated to root for the Lions](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=332748)) and one, who is black, commented that it’s strange to see white people wearing a “brother’s” jersey. > > So, is it okay for me to wear Sanders’ jersey, or am I doomed to a quest for a Bobby Layne throwback? (Because I’m _not_ wearing a Harrington jersey.) Strange? Not at all! MOST of the top athletes in the U.S. have been black men for decades now, and millions of kids have worn their jerseys. Millions of white kids have bought Michael Jordan jerseys. Millions of white kids wear Allan Iverson gear. When I was a kid, every white kid who watched football wanted to be O.J. Simpson (boy, that was a long time ago!). So, it’s not strange or unusual at all to see white kids wear the jerseys of black players. But it would be VERY unusual to see a black kid wearing a white player’s jersey. Lots of white kids idolized Magic Johnson, but VERY few black kids idolized Larry Bird. LOTS of white kids idolized Jerry Rice, but precious few black kids idolized Joe Montana. Here in Texas, loads of white kids wore Emmitt Smith and Michael Irvin jerseys, but I’ve never seen a black kid in a Troy Aikman jersey. ---
**Author:** ![Harriet\_the\_Spry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e56c9b/32.png) [@Harriet\_the\_Spry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harriet_the_Spry)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2005, 12:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187/3 "2005-09-30T12:57:43Z")
This white girl says OK by me. Around here in NC I’m sure we have people of all races wearing Michael Jordan gear. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2005, 1:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187/4 "2005-09-30T13:00:46Z")
When I was a kid on the schoolyard once one kid told me “hey, you’re wearing the numbers of a nigger!” This was a Jr. High in the 80’s, so I hope most adults today these days a little more mature, and at least hide their racism. ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2005, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187/5 "2005-09-30T13:03:53Z")
> [@Jet Jaguar](#): > > There’s really no way for me to ask this without sounding horribly racist, so I’ll be blunt. Is it okay for me, a white guy, to wear the jersey of a black athlete? Who elses jersey are you going to wear? Actual, no. It’s not ok. Not because he’s black but because, depending on your age, you are most likely wearing the jersey of someone who is younger and more successful that you. It’s ok for kids to wear their heros jersey because it’s someone they can aspire to be, if only in theory. A grown man shouldn’t aspire to be like someone significantly younger. ---
**Author:** ![Askia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/96bed5/32.png) [@Askia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askia)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2005, 1:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187/6 "2005-09-30T13:07:00Z")
> [@msmith537](#): > > A grown man shouldn’t aspire to be like someone significantly younger. We who prefer to admire a person’s actions and convictions rather than their chronological duration on Earth thank you for your comment while we chuckle and shake our heads. ---
**Author:** ![Askia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/96bed5/32.png) [@Askia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askia)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2005, 1:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187/7 "2005-09-30T13:10:14Z")
Wearing an athlete’s jersey usually denotes _admiration,_ not _aspiration._ ---
**Author:** ![Neurotik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/91b2a8/32.png) [@Neurotik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Neurotik)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2005, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187/8 "2005-09-30T13:17:04Z")
I’m going to say that it’s not OK for you to get a Sanders jersey. Not because he’s black, but because he’s no longer with the team. If you’re picking a jersey to show support for the team (which it sounds like you’re doing), you need to go with someone who’s actually on the team. My recommendation would be either of the Williams’ receivers or Kevin Jones. Now, if you’re getting it to celebrate the greatness that was Barry Sanders rather than to show support for the Lions, then go for it. ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2005, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187/9 "2005-09-30T13:30:46Z")
> [@Askia](#): > > We who prefer to admire a person’s actions and convictions rather than their chronological duration on Earth thank you for your comment while we chuckle and shake our heads. Can you do that without wearing his jersey like you were his girlfriend? ---
**Author:** ![Askia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/96bed5/32.png) [@Askia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askia)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2005, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187/10 "2005-09-30T13:33:14Z")
I accomplish that by paying for it, retail. ---
**Author:** ![Neurotik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/91b2a8/32.png) [@Neurotik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Neurotik)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2005, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187/11 "2005-09-30T13:48:50Z")
> [@msmith537](#): > > Can you do that without wearing his jersey like you were his girlfriend? OK, what if I skip the jersey, but just wear his class ring as a pendant? ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2005, 1:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187/12 "2005-09-30T13:58:42Z")
I’m as white as people can be, and one of my best friends is an retired New York Jet who happens to be black. If anyone tells me I cannot wear his jersey, I am gonna slug them. ---
**Author:** ![Mdr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c89c15/32.png) [@Mdr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mdr)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2005, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187/13 "2005-09-30T14:09:31Z")
> [@Jet Jaguar](#): > > There’s really no way for me to ask this without sounding horribly racist, so I’ll be blunt. Is it okay for me, a white guy, to wear the jersey of a black athlete? I mentioned to some coworkers that I was wanting to get a Barry Sanders jersey (sorry, but I grew up in the Detroit area and therefore [obligated to root for the Lions](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=332748)) and one, who is black, commented that it’s strange to see white people wearing a “brother’s” jersey. > > So, is it okay for me to wear Sanders’ jersey, or am I doomed to a quest for a Bobby Layne throwback? (Because I’m _not_ wearing a Harrington jersey.) i too am a pained Lions fan, destined to live out my miserable life rooting for that miserable team. But I feel your pain JJ, i’ve tried converting to the Bills and Steelers several times but each time i see a glimmer of Honolulu Blue hope, i come back like a barslut and rejected again and again. I remember Barry, my god what a RB. But a grown man wearing a jersey of another guy w/ his name on it, I don’t know, seems a bit…childish? not saying you are, it’s just my opinion. I think if you got the jersey #20 W/O the name on it, it would be totally cool…everyone knows there was only one real #20 in Lions history (sorry Billy Sims, it’s Barry’s number now) ---
**Author:** ![calm\_kiwi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9fc348/32.png) [@calm\_kiwi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/calm_kiwi)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2005, 2:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187/14 "2005-09-30T14:19:55Z")
> [@Askia](#): > > Wearing an athlete’s jersey usually denotes _admiration,_ not _aspiration._ You want his money but not his colour? ---
**Author:** ![Genghis\_Bob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/45deac/32.png) [@Genghis\_Bob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Genghis_Bob)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2005, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187/15 "2005-09-30T14:28:17Z")
> [@Mdr](#): > > i too am a pained Lions fan. . . Kind of a redundant sentence, isn’t it? Genghis Bob, who used to live three blocks from Altie Taylor ---
**Author:** ![EllisDee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellisdee/32/4531_2.png) [@EllisDee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EllisDee)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2005, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187/16 "2005-09-30T14:56:02Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > I’m as white as people can be, and one of my best friends is an retired New York Jet who happens to be black. If anyone tells me I cannot wear his jersey, I am gonna slug them. Really? As a Jets fan, I’m curious who it is. I wouldn’t hate an email, (in pofile), but I understand if you’d rather not. ---
**Author:** ![EllisDee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellisdee/32/4531_2.png) [@EllisDee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EllisDee)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2005, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187/17 "2005-09-30T14:57:40Z")
> [@Jet Jaguar](#): > > So, is it okay for me to wear Sanders’ jersey, or am I doomed to a quest for a Bobby Layne throwback? (Because I’m _not_ wearing a Harrington jersey.) Jeff Garcia? hehheh. ---
**Author:** ![Mdr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c89c15/32.png) [@Mdr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mdr)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2005, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187/18 "2005-09-30T15:30:26Z")
> [@Ellis Dee](#): > > Jeff Garcia? > > hehheh. you could always stay one step ahead of the game and get a Dan Orlovsky jersey ---
**Author:** ![jackelope](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a6a055/32.png) [@jackelope](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jackelope)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2005, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187/19 "2005-09-30T18:34:16Z")
This reminds me of a comedian I saw once, talking about the phenomenon of wearing an athlete’s jersey: “What, are people supposed to believe for a moment that it’s _really him_? I can hear them now, saying, ‘Hey look! It’s Shaquille O’Neal! Hmm… he looks a lot, um, _blacker_ on TV…’” Sure, go ahead. I’ve got a Michael Vick jersey I wear on important game days (not that it seems to help). ---
**Author:** ![Askia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/96bed5/32.png) [@Askia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askia)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2005, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187/20 "2005-09-30T18:40:45Z")
> [@calm kiwi](#): > > You want his money but not his colour? I suspect in my case it would be redundant. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187.md?page=2)