Hall of Fame running back Jim Brown ripped Tiger Woods for his lack of social activism in a recent interview on HBO's Real Sports With Bryant Gumbel.
During a profile of Brown and Bill Russell, Brown praised the attitude of the world's No. 1-ranked golfer on the course, but not his work off it.
"You know what's so interesting about Tiger to me?" Brown said, according to an Internet report. "He is a killer, he will run over you, he will kick your ass. But as an individual for social change? Terrible. Terrible. Because he can get away with teaching kids to play golf, and that's his contribution. In the real world, I can't teach kids to play golf and that's my contribution, if I've got that kind of power."
On Tuesday, Woods defended himself at a press conference for the tournament he sponsors, the AT&T National, at Congressional Golf Club in Bethesda, Md. He said the Tiger Woods Foundation has helped about 10 million children, many at his learning center in Anaheim, Calif. He hopes to build another in the Washington, D.C. area.
"I think I do a pretty good job as it is what we're trying to do with the foundation," Woods said, responding to Brown's remarks. "We have this event, the Chevron World Challenge, our Jam in Vegas and our Block Party in Orange County, how many kids we've helped. What we're trying to do not just here in United States, but what my mom's doing in Thailand, all these different things that we've done.
"I want to not just do it, but do it right. And that takes time, and you have to understand, you just don't jump into something. You want to have a plan, and I think what we've done so far has been very good, very efficient and it's helped a lot of kids, and taught a lot of kids how to get back and learn, learn how to lead, learn how to give back. Learn how to teach others, have confidence in themselves to be able to do all these different things, and have these attributes going forward. That takes time. And I think we've done it right."
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And Jim Brown is a pillar of society? Please.
Beating your wife and going to prison really helps the kids, there, Brownie.
Jim Brown is doing his part by giving advice to athletes who lack his unquestionable character. You can't just look at his actions, you have to remember the awesome job that JB did mentoring the likes of M. Clarrett to really put his value to society into perspective. What an awesome role model.
Hey Jimbo..you claim you're trying to make social change, but you actually personify negative stereotypes…angry black man who beats women, goes to prison, quits on his teammates, blames everyone else, and is jealous of guy who is all class. Way to go Jim. Way to break down those stereotypes.
not a Tiger the golfer fan but when you compare him to the likes of a
Jim Brown.
its just laughable to have those 2 names in the same sentence.
Jim Brown attacked him.
Tiger responds with a clear well thought out response chocked full of
little factoids that were probably tough for Jim Brown to comprehend.
"we want to do it right"
thanks Jim for pointing out what Tiger does OFF the course for mankind
its much appreciated
Tiger Woods attended Stanford. Doesn't Jim Brown realize that he's attacking a person who can and will verbally dismantle him? In a war of words, intellect, and providing positive social return, Tiger will best Jim every time. Fortunately for Jim, Tiger has a lot of class and will not subject Jim to the verbal rebuking he deserves.
Dear Jim-
Welcome to the 21st century. While racism is still a problem, it is nowhere near as bad as it was back in the 60's. While most of us have moved on, you seem to still be stuck in an age where the african-american male is treated like a second class citizen. In case you haven't noticed, our President is African-american, thus giving the idea that today's minority athletes really don't have to concentrate on their own race as much as society as a whole. Tiger's response was well put- he does his own thing for everyone, not just a certain group.
Tiger should really takes some notes here … I mean, look what Jim Brown did for Maurice Clarett!
As an African-American, Jim Brown type of commentary is what infuriates me. The real message is, you're not making a public spectacle of yourself in your charitable works, then it doesn't count. If you're not doing photo-ops with Jesse Jackson and Rev Al', then you're not doing it right. Well Jim, clearly you missed the interview on 60 Minutes that most us got to see. OOPS! In the future, before you start spouting off, do your homework, because it really makes the rest of us look bad!
For every pseudo-celeb who grabs the microphone to spout off or to rant about this or that social injustice or to complain about how someone else isn't doing enough about it, there are literally thousands of others who quietly work at actually fixing the problem day after day. I'm really okay with Tiger Woods (and hundreds of other pro athletes) just being among those thousands instead of being the loud guy.