Rebounder with a cause -- A conversation with Etan Thomas

By David Zirin Sports Central Columnist

Etan Thomas plays center/power forward for the NBA's Washington Wizards. He came to the Wizards after being drafted in the first-round of the 2000 NBA draft by the Dallas Mavericks following an All-American career at Syracuse. Since overcoming injuries early in his career, Thomas has been a force, leading the team in rebounding.

But Thomas is as tenacious between his ears as he is under the glass. He has developed a reputation for writing political poetry and arriving unannounced at Washington D.C. open-mike readings to share his thoughts.

Unlike many pro athletes who would sooner try to dunk on Shaq than voice their politics, Thomas has spoken out publicly on issues ranging from the death penalty to affirmative action.

Here, Thomas speaks to Prince George's Post News Editor and Sports Central columnist Dave Zirin about his defining experiences off the hardwood.

Question: What was it like growing up in Oklahoma?

Etan Thomas: It was definitely an eye-opening experience that has shaped how I look at the world. Oklahoma is the south even though a lot of people don't think of it that way. It was very segregated. I grew up in a single-parent home in Tulsa. My mother was, and still is, a schoolteacher. Being aware of my surroundings opened me up to what it was about the world that I wanted to change.

Q: What were the experiences that shaped you politically?

ET: My mother was definitely a political person. She had a library of books about the civil rights movement, politics, the 1960s -- everything you can imagine. One time when I was in seventh grade, I pulled the autobiography of Malcolm X off of her shelf and read it cover to cover. That really changed a lot of the way I was looking at the world. He was able to pull himself out of prison and a tough life through politics and ideas. That affected me.

Then, right at the same time, the Rodney King verdict went down [the 1992 Rodney King verdict in Simi Valley California that lead to the L.A. riots - ed] and I saw that something was very wrong with the world and felt like I had to do something. I got involved with the Tulsa chapter of the NAACP. I gave a speech for them and honestly it made some people [in the NAACP chapter] uncomfortable because they said it was too radical ... so that didn't quite work out.

Q: Is this when you started writing poetry?

ET: Actually, before I wrote any poetry, I was doing speech and doing debate straight through high school. It goes back to the autobiography of Malcolm X. I wanted to be able to express myself the way he expressed himself -- through training myself to speak and argue in front of an audience.

Q: Why do you think poetry is a way to express your politics?

ET: It is just another way to open people's minds up. I go to poetry slams in season, out of season. It is another way to get ideas across.

Q You have written poetry on the death penalty.

ET: Most definitely. I don't see how politicians can have the right to kill. And it blows my mind to see these Republicans talk on and on about pro-life and anti-abortion and then they are pro-death penalty. How can that principle not apply to both? That makes no sense to me. The death penalty is just wrong. When the ACLU contacted me about reading some of my poetry at a demonstration, I was more than willing to do it.

Q You have also written about affirmative action.

ET: That's right. What makes me shake my head is not only whites against affirmative action, but also blacks, saying we are all equal now and we shouldn't have affirmative action because getting rid of it is part of being in a color blind society. That's outrageous. You can't look at these standardized tests that are so biased, or the conditions of these inner city schools, and tell me we are all on equal footing.

Q: You clearly have no problem expressing your views. What do you think about people who say athletes are to be seen and not heard?

ET: That just makes me shake my head, it's just so wrong to me. Seen and not heard? No way. I really believe that people who say that really do not see the athletes as real people who have opinions and ideas. They think that they are just athletes and that's all. Not to say that being an athlete isn't a great thing in itself, but the black man has always been admired for his athletic ability, but when it comes to his mind, that's a whole other matter. I would like to be seen ... seen in the tradition of Bill Russell, of Muhammad Ali, or Jim Brown -- athletes who used their position to be able to speak out on issues and make a difference.

Q: We just passed the 35th anniversary of Smith and Carlos' black power salute at the 1968 Mexico City Olympics. What are your thoughts on their actions?

ET: It makes me proud to think of what they did and what they withstood. I have a poster of them on the medal stand in my basement. Back then they took a lot of heat for what they did, but now we should all see that they were brave to make that stand. Fantastic.

Q: Last question. You once said that you like Washington D.C. because it was a political town. I assume you are not talking about Capital Hill...

ET: That's right.

Q: A lot of people say that there are two cities, Washington and D.C., the capital and everywhere else. Do you agree with that?

ET: Oh, most definitely Like you said, there are two Washington D.C.'s. There is the capital and there are the people in the city who care very deeply about a host of issues and ideas. When I first moved here, I was told that it was the crime capital of the country and I thought, "How can this be the capital and still have these problems?"

And now when I am on U Street, because that is where a lot of the poetry readings are, it is like being in another world from Capital Hill. But I have met people on protests, I have met people on demonstrations, and the people in this city really care about politics and issues. That's the kind of people I want to be around. That's the kind of place I want to be.

David Zirin and Sports Central thanks Etan Thomas for taking the time to talk with us!

Article courtesy of Sports Central.