Do All Black Men Want White Women? (Tiger’s Jungle Fever)

Week before last, I finally buckled under the pressure and wrote a blog about Tiger Woods. I don’t know about y’all, but I’m tired of waking up to more “shocking scandal” about the former all-American golfer. Yet, like a train wreck, I sometimes find myself unable to look away.

Still, my plan was to walk away from the topic for the foreseeable future, but then I received an email from one of my new readers.

Hey, NWSO, I stumbled upon a status update on FaceBook yesterday that read: ‘FRIEND’S NAME is disappointed at the way the media, golfers, and random people are approaching Tiger Wood’s situation.’ 

I had thoughts but none were definitive enough to add my two cents, so I said nothing. I shrugged my shoulders and carried on with my own business. During my digression from my finals work, I stumbled upon a Tiger Woods article where someone’s response surprisingly moved me; I usually eschew this type of rhetoric altogether for fear of becoming the “angry Black woman.” I gave her a chance, though, and I’m glad I did. Here’s what she wrote: 

“Whenever a professional man, Black or White falls, no Black woman is ever behind it but whenever a professional Black man falls, check out who is normally behind it. Always White women.

Look what marrying one did to O.J.—jail. Look how sex with one for one night told lies on Kobe and almost sent him to jail. [NFL player] Steve McNair never lived to tell his tales because she wiped out his tail. Now who was swinging the famous golf club that has put Tiger’s life that his Black dad built in this mess? A White woman who Tiger gave a life, a name and face. Tell me that his dad is not turning in his grave to see his son give up what made him for a White woman?

Lionel Richie cheated on his Black wife with a White woman and married her. He had to give up his career because of her jealous insecurities. He was miserable and went back to what made him—singing. She left him because she could not stand what she did to a Black woman happening to her.

Elin cheated with Tiger on his ex so it is karma. White women are aggressive ‘knicker swingers’ and controlling! Was anyone crying poor Mrs. McNair? Nope! The Kardashians will be doing a take two—more idiots down soon. NFL player [Richard] Jefferson from the Nets made the wisest decision of his life. So did Will Smith, Denzel, Obama, Sam Jackson and few others.”

I didn’t care much for the comment until the commenter wrote: “Was anyone crying poor Mrs. McNair? Nope!” It made me think about Michael Jordan’s wife, and even Shaq’s wife (Okay, so Shaq doesn’t have a squeaky clean image but you get my drift). Does anyone cry for Black women? The only concrete thing that came to my mind was: Could it be that this whole Tiger Woods media tirade is because he cheated on a **insert dramatic pause** White woman? It’s like, How dare Tiger cheat on an educated White woman?!!! 

Sorry this is so long but I had to share with someone I thought could actually deliver some type of meaningful insight. 

Oh, boy, where do I begin?

I kind of see what the commenter was trying to say, but I feel like she was way off base with her initial argument. First, the claim that every tragedy to befall successful Black men is the fault of White women is preposterous. I have two words to dead that argument—Robin Givens.

I don’t know the sister personally or the dynamics of her bedroom, but I’ll be damned if Robin didn’t appear that she ran Mike Tyson through the wringer. Sure he had/has a whole bunch of personal issues that can’t be blamed solely on Robin, but it didn’t look like this Black woman helped raise him up.

Secondly, maybe I’m just overly sensitive but the whole marrying “one” reeks of a racist undertone to me. Actually O.J.’s incarceration had nothing to do with his marriage to Nicole Brown-Simpson or her murder (I won’t even get into the if he did it conundrum), he went to jail for stealing football memorabilia years after his former White wife had passed. Sure, some could argue it was payback for him getting acquitted for Nicole’s murder, but that’s a very weak argument.

As for Kobe, he wanted to do it in the butt with a sidepiece that just happened to be White. Shoot, you don’t think if a 6’6” basketball player tried to ram it up your rear uninvited a Black woman wouldn’t rat him out because of some unspoken cultural bond? GTFOH!

Steve McNair just happened to be dealing with a psycho chick that shot him in his sleep, I doubt her skin color had anything to do with her mental state and whatever lies he was feeding her. Besides that, the chick’s name was Sahel Kazemi, which sounds more Middle Eastern than “White” to me. (I tried to confirm her ethnicity but got tired of devoting energy to uncovering something that in the end won’t really matter because they’re both dead).

In regards to the “point” about Tiger; once again, I see no merit as to what race has to do with Elin swinging a club at her cheating husband. In case you missed it, the man has over a dozen mistresses; I think a Black woman, or any woman for that matter, would swing a lot more than a gulf club at his head. Also, if I’m not mistaken, Elin actually had a modeling career before getting with Tiger, so not is sure that he gave her a “life, name and face.” And last I checked, (Okay, I didn’t check) Tiger’s father was alive and kicking so I doubt he’s doing any rolling around in graves any time soon. Not to mention Tiger’s pops is an African

American/Native American/Chinese man that married a Thai/Dutch/Chinese woman, so I doubt he’d be that upset about his son getting with a White woman.

SMH
I won’t even waste any more time poking holes in the comment, but I will say this: Yes, we (Americans) live in a society that revolves around race; but damn, does everything have to be about Black and White?
Yeah, Tiger cheated and all of the women were Caucasian, but would things be drastically different if there were a few, or all, chocolate bunnies in the mix? I doubt it. He’d still be an undiagnosed sex addict (seriously, it sounds like dude is a sexaholic) that stepped out on his wife. I don’t see how the skin color of the women changes anything, like if he was being a whore with Black women that would make things better.
Pffft!

Seriously, people, race is only as big as you make it. With that said, the reader who pulled this quote does did raise an interesting point in that the media probably wouldn’t be in such an uproar if the powerful Black man wasn’t “ruining” a precious White woman. Throughout American history, White women have traditionally been put up on a pedestal, while Black women were pushed to the side—only to be secretly lusted after in the shadows.
I have no problem with the idea of Black love, just like I have no problem with White, Yellow, Green love. I don’t care if the world’s greatest golfer or Tyrone from down the block fell in love with a White woman or not—truthfully, it’s none of my business—as long as they honor each other and their vows I’m with it. The problem here is Tiger did none of that.

What did you think about the quote the reader pulled and the views expressed in it? Do you think that every time a Black man goes down it’s the fault of a White woman? Do you feel that some Black women always want to blame their man troubles on women of different races? Ladies, do you take it as a personal insult when a successful Black man marries/dates outside the race? Why? Do some of you really feel that Black men view White women as the ultimate trophy and the sisters are consolation prizes? Why do you think American culture is so focused on race? At the end of the day, shouldn’t people be more outraged about Tiger’s cheating than by the color of the women he cheated with and married?

Speak your piece…