LaVar vs Trump: America’s Race War Personified

Since assisting in the freeing of LaVar Ball’s son from prison in China, it has been made clear that the president wants his credit for his assistance in the matter.
LaVar on the other hand, has made it clear that he has no intentions of thanking President Trump, and has publicly stated those sentiments on CNN.
President Trump replied to Ball’s refusal to thank him by saying that LaVar is, “very ungrateful” and that [he] should have “left the UCLA players in Chinese jail.”
Regardless of how you feel about President Trump or LaVar Ball, the prospect of the leader of the free world saying that he should have let U.S. citizens rot in Chinese jail because his feelings are hurt is appalling on more levels than one.
“Did you thank the doctor when he brought you into this world?”, LaVar asked the CNN reporter questioning him on national television as to why he refuses to thank the President.
He went on to elaborate by saying that he sees no reason to “go around saying thank you to everybody.”
It can be implied from these statements that LaVar believes the President’s actions, while noble, were not something he believes requires his gratitude.
While the Ball family patriarch may seem at fault in his refusal to thank the man that brought his son back on U.S. soil, his actions may be more strategic than anything else.
In the past year, the Big Baller Brand has gained significant media coverage, and as a product of this, has become somewhat of a household name, along with the Ball family.
It is no secret that the majority of the support that the Ball family business has garnered has come from the African American community, and if the Big Baller Brand was to give any type of endorsement to the Trump Administration, you could almost surely expect the Big Baller Brand to suffer in more ways than one in backlash from the African American community.
While this may seem morally shortsighted by LaVar Ball, there was little else that a man in his position could have done.
The boisterous, alpha-male mentality he has shown the world in the last year has made him a target, along with his family.
However, this issue is far bigger than just LaVar or his family.
Whether he wanted this burden or not, LaVar has become black America’s voice in Donald Trump’s America.
As such, he is expected to be in opposition of the man and all of that which he stands for. At the same time, however, the question must be asked where the line must be drawn.
It can be argued that both men are in the wrong in this instance, and should that be the case, then the battle for America has reached a pivotal point.
If both of the voices of the two halves of warring America are speaking nonsense, then what is truly being accomplished?
These two individuals are perhaps the most outspoken men in America, yet it seems as if they never truly have anything worth hearing to be said.
As Americans, on both sides of this battle for equality, there must be a change. There must be someone with a willingness to stand and speak on the nonsensical status of our country, and its leaders.
There is a right way to achieve peace and equality in this country. That way does not include name-calling or mass marketing through the manipulation of a struggling middle class.
This way requires someone with a platform that is willing to speak and actually has something to say.
Regardless of which side of the political and social spectrum that you fall on, it seems that such a leader has yet to make themselves known, and until this happens, this nation will continue to spiral in the abyss until the people choose to stand for themselves and make a change happen.