Maurice Allen (YouTube)
June 9, 2020 — World Long Drive Champion Maurice Allen does not hold his tongue when it comes to speaking out on issues that he is passionate about, nonetheless when it comes to sharing his personal experiences and voicing his opinion on the issue of racism. As an African American man in golf, Allen reached out to Golf Digest asking for a platform to speak and to share his experience. Here is Allen’s words:
I am a golfer, just like you. But I’ve been the person on the side of the road, pulled over with a gun to my head for something I didn’t do. I’m guessing that is what makes us different.
But you don’t want to hear about that, right? We’re here to talk about golf. So let me tell you what it’s like being black in a white sport.
In my part of the game, the long-drive arena, we’re supposed to be flashy, to be entertainers. Except white long drivers are praised for being colorful and flamboyant, while I’m called a showboat. Well, “showboat” is putting it nicely. Just yesterday I received hate mail, accusing me of race-mingling, calling me “Django,” that I’m as worthless as our previous president, “Obama Bin Laden.” That’s just from, ahem, “fans.”
Maurice Allen is a World Long Drive Competitor, currently ranked No. 2 in the world.
Often I’m the only black man in a competition. That puts me in spots and places I don’t want to be. I’ve had competitors and their families straight up rain n-words and racial slurs on me without remorse. Last year a rival’s father went on social media saying I had been arrested, that I was a criminal. I have never spent a night in jail, so I fired back, “Show me the mugshot and I’ll quit on the spot.” And guess what? My sponsors are mad at me for trying to defend my honor. Did my rival receive any backlash for the racist conduct of his father? You already know the answer.
I wear my blackness with pride, the same way an Alabama or LSU fan cheers on their team. That rubs people the wrong way. Like, I’m a nice story to tell— “Hey, an African-American in our sport, look how good we are doing!”—unless I’m the one telling it. Case in point: A few years back, I was in a televised event, and they had interviews with each contestant. When I was asked what drove me, I repeated what I repeat to myself every day: “I am the prayers of slaves who worked in the field, to know that people have been beaten, raped and killed for me to have this opportunity that they knew they’d never get for themselves.” I’m the only one whose intro didn’t make its way on air. I get it. Too many confuse being pro-black as anti-white.
I understand some want to help the racial inequality that permeates golf. Or, at least they tell me they do. Let me tell you how it works. I get invited to do a talk at a conference or participate in some type of roundtable about diversity in the sport. After I’m done, people get emotional, come up to me and say thank you, and promise me they’re going to help. They talk a great talk. And then, a week later, my phone calls are going unanswered. Or there’s red tape. Or, “You know, we want to help, but now’s not a great time.” Then the same people ask me back the next year to the same conference or show. I’ve realized they don’t care about a cause; they want to check a box. But I still go, hoping my words will reach someone new in the audience.
Read the entire article at GolfDigest.com
