The Dolphins Make Me Cry.com - Forums

http://miamiherald.typepad.com/dolphins_in_depth/2013/11/richie-incognito-considered-black-in-dolphins-locker-room.html

Excerpt:

Well, I've spoken to multiple people today about this and the explanation from all of them is that in the Dolphins locker room, Richie Incognito was considered a black guy. He was accepted by the black players. He was an honorary black man.

And Jonathan Martin, who is bi-racial, was not. Indeed, Martin was considered less black than Incognito.

"Richie is honarary," one player who left the Dolphins this offseason told me today. "I don't expect you to understand because you're not black. But being a black guy, being a brother is more than just about skin color. It's about how you carry yourself. How you play. Where you come from. What you've experienced. A lot of things."

Another former Dolphins employee told me Martin is considered "soft" by his teammates and that's a reason he's not readily accepted by some of the players, particularly the black players. His background -- Stanford educated and the son of highly educated people -- was not necessarily seen as a strength or a positive by some players and it perpetuated in the way Martin carried himself.

And so -- agree with it or not, comprehend it or not -- this is a reason the Dolphins haven't turned on Incognito as a racist.

Wow.  Just wow.  This reeks of the RG3 situation where he isn't black enough for some people.

Yep, I certainly don't understand.

I don't know what's so hard to understand. Many people see beyond white and black. Many other's simply can't. This again I think goes back to playing organized sports. Your team mates are more than just people you play a game with. They are your family away from your family. Even within a family there are those who have your back no matter what and there are those that when the going gets tough, they get "going". This is not a race thing, it's a who was considered a team guy and who wasn't thing. Who was counted on to pick you up when things weren't going well and who couldn't be counted on. I know that I'm blaming the victim, but there ARE times when the victim COULD have done more. I'm not blaming them for being a victim, I'm simply saying that there is a difference between being a victim and acting like a victim. You can't do anything about being a victim, but I believe you can do something about acting like a victim. Horrible to say, but I believe it's the truth. The truth is sometimes very ugly.

No, it is specifically a race thing.

To the players in question, educated people from prestigious universities are not black enough.  Players without tattoos who aren't thugs are not black enough.  And I don't mean this to sound like a criticism of the Dolphins' players; this is something that happens in the greater black community.  As mentioned, it happened to RG3.

urban = black

if they do not give off the urban vibe many blacks do not consider them "black" enough

I agree with Papi. When it comes to teams, respect is everything. Its something that is earned, not a given. It supersedes race. To the "educated" world, respect should be a given. Look at what was being said about Incognito in that report again. Look at how the team rallied around Incognito. In the outside world, if something racial is brought up, lines are drawn. In that locket room, they looked beyond that. In the outside world, the bullshit argument of urban=black matters only to those who want to keep the division going. On both sides. In that locker room it matters if you can play.

For whatever reason Martin didn't have their respect. I can speculate as to that he couldn't play up to his expected level. The RG3 thing was started by the media. Not his teammates. Much like this story. Started by the media, as a way to question why the black players are rallying behind Incognito. Why? Because he earned their respect. Respect isn't a black/white thing. Its a TEAM thing.

http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/eye-on-football/24219594/appalled-stephen-ross-meeting-with-jonathan-martin-wednesday

Shannon Sharpe's reaction on the CBS panel about halfway through in the video link reflects what I think and feel - it's probably better than anything I can come up with as a written answer, and more appropriate.