REAL-TOO-REAL

I’ve lived more years out of the ‘hood than I ever did in it. I was 14 when moms moved us from South Central Los Angeles to a city 30 minutes east of downtown LA, West Covina. But the more I watch 30for30 and ESPN60, the more I’m reminded that there must be another world that somehow missed the rumblings of inner city life. There is an utter fascination with Benji Wilsons and Len Biases. And I guess this is why I find myself talking about the past more than I ever thought I would.

The older I become, the more introspective I get reflecting on the structures, and impetuses that have shaped my character. People are curious about why you didn’t turn out worse, a strange curiosity if you ask me. As I explain how from 1984-1989 I attended a school more than an hour’s drive away, mouths drop. You talk of neighborhood shootings while wanting to rave about the Chili Fritos you used to eat at South Park during the summer. There was good and bad in the ‘hood.

But there’s an obsession with the extreme, the heinous and the destructive, always has been and I reckon there always will be. I mean, everyone likes a good story as long as they don’t have to live it right? Whatever. Sometimes I feel pretentious about sharing where I’m from – that is until I realize how foreign where I’m from is to many Americans. Fallen stars and risen everyday people alike bear color. I guess it’s somewhat en vogue now, the medium of reality that has become theater. I suppose there’s more harm in real stories not being told. #espn #livedocumentaries #realtalk #keepit100