Standing in the Need of Forgiveness

Ohtani in 2019   (Photo by Erik Drost)

There’s an African American spiritual called “Standing in the Need” which emphasizes that “It’s me…” who needs prayer.  “Not my brother, not my sister, but it’s me, oh Lord…”

Stephen A. Smith admirably took responsibility for his cutting words about baseball’s Shohei Ohtani.  After insulting Ohtani’s lack of English fluency, Smith made some sincere public apologies.  He specifically explained that this rant was entirely his own and did not stem from Max Kellerman, ESPN or anyone else.

This differs from many another apology in which the speaker merely recites a politically-correct speech.  Smith seems to have actually reflected upon the “stereotyping” nature of his words and how they’ve offended the “Asian community.”

Resources

https://people.com/sports/stephen-a-smith-apologizes-for-comments-on-mlb-star-shohei-ohtani/

Copyright July 14, 2021 by Linda Van Slyke   All Rights Reserved