# 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:** 2
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2005, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187/21 "2005-09-30T19:12:06Z")
If it’s not, I’d better tell my sister not to wear her Bettis jersey for the next Steelers game. I’ve never heard such a thing! How ridiculous! ---
**Author:** ![beergeek279](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7ea924/32.png) [@beergeek279](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beergeek279)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2005, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187/22 "2005-09-30T22:06:26Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#): > > If it’s not, I’d better tell my sister not to wear her Bettis jersey for the next Steelers game. > > I’ve never heard such a thing! How ridiculous! Well, I hadn’t heard about it either in the Stillers Nation, but maybe that’s because I wear Hines Ward and he’s bi-racial, so they let me slide a bit. ---
**Author:** ![Casey1505](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dc4da7/32.png) [@Casey1505](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Casey1505)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2005, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187/23 "2005-09-30T22:21:01Z")
Unless you are wearing that jersey in a weak ID theft plot, wear whatever you want. Unless it’s an actual authentic jersey, cut really extra roomy in the shoulders to accomodate the lineman’s pads. There was a guy here at work who wore a jersey like that from the local arena football team. It looked totally ridiculous with the flappy shoulders, like he had wings or something. ---
**Author:** ![duffer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duffer/32/1026_2.png) [@duffer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/duffer)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2005, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187/24 "2005-09-30T22:47:44Z")
> [@Jet Jaguar](#): > > commented that it’s strange to see white people wearing a “brother’s” jersey. Holy shit, since it’s his brother you should be able to get it autographed! 🙂 I alternate between my Favre and Gbaja-Biamila jerseys. Never occured to me that wearing the 94 was somehow strange. Maybe according to your coworker I should stick to my own kind when buying gear? If it were another forum I’d post my assumption of said coworker. But I’m sure you can figure it out on your own. BTW Lion’s fans, you still have a win over the defending division champs to hang onto. Meanwhile I have to try to scare up a goat, a chicken and some pig’s blood before 7pm CDT Monday to work my magic. :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Anastasaeon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/73ab20/32.png) [@Anastasaeon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anastasaeon)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2005, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187/25 "2005-09-30T23:01:18Z")
I would rather buy team jerseys with no one’s name on the back. I have favourite players, but it feels weird to wear someone else’s name on my shirt. However, being female, there might be even more weird customs involved I am unaware of. My Chelsea jersey is blank. However, I did once ask my husband to get me an Ichiro jersey after watching a Mariners game at Safeco Field. I don’t know if I’d wear it to anywhere but that stadium, though. And what happens if he gets traded in a few years? I don’t know. Sometimes I wear my husband’s John Elway jersey. I wonder if people see me from behind and briefly think “Wow! It’s John Elway! Boy, he sure is short!” Or maybe they’d say that if they could see the name under John’s luxurious long red hair. [sub] I don’t like wearing it other than as a work shirt anyway, if I’m going to be cleaning or weeding - I’m a Seahawks fan, after all. Most times if people see me in that jersey, I’ll start saying “Hi, I’m John Elway. I’ve had enough chalky tabs to line a field with.”[/sub] ---
**Author:** ![Cardinal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cardinal/32/4000_2.png) [@Cardinal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cardinal)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2005, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187/26 "2005-10-01T00:06:42Z")
I sure hope it’s OK. I’m English/Danish/German, and I had my genuine Cardinals jersey made up to be from Lou Brock, who’s not only a black guy, but a pretty dark one. It never crossed my mind that it would be a problem. He was the MAN in St. Louis when I was a kid, and that kind of divide was never mentioned to me. ---
**Author:** ![Cardinal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cardinal/32/4000_2.png) [@Cardinal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cardinal)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2005, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187/27 "2005-10-01T00:12:30Z")
I sure hope it’s OK. I’m English/Danish/German, and I had my genuine Cardinals jersey made up to be from Lou Brock, who’s not only a black guy, but a pretty dark one. It never crossed my mind that it would be a problem. He was the MAN in St. Louis when I was a kid, and that kind of divide was never mentioned to me. ---
**Author:** ![NinjaChick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/71c47a/32.png) [@NinjaChick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NinjaChick)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2005, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187/28 "2005-10-01T00:48:09Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > \ > When I was a kid, every white kid who watched football wanted to be O.J. Simpson (boy, that was a long time ago!). Heh. To someone born in '86, this just sounds _weird_, as most of my generation is aware of him as “That dude who may or may not have killed his wife”. ---
**Author:** ![Hung\_Mung](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a88e4f/32.png) [@Hung\_Mung](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hung_Mung)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2005, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187/29 "2005-10-01T02:55:31Z")
> [@NinjaChick](#): > > Heh. To someone born in '86, this just sounds _weird_, as most of my generation is aware of him as “That dude who may or may not have killed his wife”. That’s okay. I was born in '82 and I was briefly aware of him as only “That black guy in the Leslie Nielsen movies.” I wear my U of Tennessee #21 jersey with pride. Last year it was running back Ced Houston’s number (I loved watching him run…mostly). It’s now been passed on to Gerald Riggs and is thus still relevant. Long story short: black athletes, white guy in their jersey. Who cares? I’m sporting my colors and it makes me happy. Wear your Barry Sanders jersey and keep your head up. Your co-worker’s the one with issues. ---
**Author:** ![Yookeroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yookeroo/32/323_2.png) [@Yookeroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yookeroo)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2005, 4:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187/30 "2005-10-01T04:20:53Z")
It never even occurred to me that this would be thought of as wrong. What a bizarre notion. To be honest, I couldn’t tell you with 100% certainty that I have seen this, but that’s because I’ve never even thought to match the color of the player to the color of the wearer. Of course, now I will. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2005, 6:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187/31 "2005-10-01T06:09:04Z")
Well, as long as you buy it from him and not steal it out of his locker… ---
**Author:** ![MEBuckner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mebuckner/32/2896_2.png) [@MEBuckner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MEBuckner)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2005, 7:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187/32 "2005-10-01T07:19:33Z")
Or you could toss him an ice cold Coke! ---
**Author:** ![Stratocaster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stratocaster/32/16393_2.png) [@Stratocaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stratocaster)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2005, 11:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187/33 "2005-10-01T11:10:41Z")
> [@Cardinal](#): > > I sure hope it’s OK. I’m English/Danish/German, and I had my genuine Cardinals jersey made up to be from Lou Brock, who’s not only a black guy, but a pretty dark one. It never crossed my mind that it would be a problem. He was the MAN in St. Louis when I was a kid, and that kind of divide was never mentioned to me. It absolutely is OK. I can’t believe this is a real concern in this day and age. Sad if it is. At Eagles games, the stadium is festooned with whites (and blacks) wearing jerseys of blacks (and whites)–and vice versa too, I guess. I have never, not once, looked at one of the thousand guys the camera shows wearing a Donovan jersey and thought, “Hmm, funny, why would that white guy be wearing the jersey of a–gasp!–_black man_?” I happen to be white and have a Donovan jersey and a TO jersey, which I alternate wearing during games. I have received nary a comment on the mind-boggling contradiction. Sheesh. ---
**Author:** ![SnakesCatLady](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4af34b/32.png) [@SnakesCatLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SnakesCatLady)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2005, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187/34 "2005-10-01T12:59:29Z")
> [@msmith537](#): > > Can you do that without wearing his jersey like you were his girlfriend? That’s a rather strange comment. I wear my game-worn hockey jerseys with pride, and I’m old enough to be the mother of most of these kids. That doesn’t have anything to do with supporting the team. ---
**Author:** ![Casey1505](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dc4da7/32.png) [@Casey1505](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Casey1505)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2005, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187/35 "2005-10-01T13:44:58Z")
It’s one thing for a white guy such as yourself to wear a Barry Sanders replica jersey to a game. Security should be stopping you at the gate, however, if you wore a Serena Williams replica tennis skirt to a match. ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2005, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187/36 "2005-10-01T14:32:17Z")
> [@Snakescatlady](#): > > That’s a rather strange comment. I wear my game-worn hockey jerseys with pride, and I’m old enough to be the mother of most of these kids. That doesn’t have anything to do with supporting the team. I just think it’s wierd for a grown man to wear some guys jersey. It’s ok to support the team with a generic team jersey, but to single out a specific guy seems odd. ---
**Author:** ![SteveG1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bb73d2/32.png) [@SteveG1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SteveG1)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2005, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187/37 "2005-10-01T15:41:59Z")
> [@jackelope](#): > > “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…’” Or even better, some simpleton who says “I always thought you were taller” 😃 ---
**Author:** ![dinahmoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/8797f3/32.png) [@dinahmoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dinahmoe)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2005, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187/38 "2005-10-01T16:13:32Z")
Since there are no 35 year old Irish girls currently playing for the Red Sox, I guess I’ll have to stick with my Ortiz jersey and hope that no one gets the two of us confused, since my ability to knock one out in clutch situations is a bit short of Papi’s. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2005, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187/39 "2005-10-01T16:44:27Z")
> [@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.) Next time, just say, “It’s not a ‘brother’s’ jersey. It’s a _Lions_ jersey.” Like I’d say, “Dammit, he’s THE BUS!!!” ---
**Author:** ![Neurotik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/91b2a8/32.png) [@Neurotik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Neurotik)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2005, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187/40 "2005-10-01T17:23:07Z")
> [@msmith537](#): > > I just think it’s wierd for a grown man to wear some guys jersey. It’s ok to support the team with a generic team jersey, but to single out a specific guy seems odd. I don’t think you can get generic team jerseys for most teams. If you’ve gotta have a name on your back, may as well make it your favorite player. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-okay-for-me-to-wear-a-black-athletes-jersey/324187.md?page=3)