Tiger's Tepid 'Coming Out Party'

Among the many quirky, independent movie stars and suave
entertainment icons appearing at the pre-inaugural Lincoln Memorial
concert for Barack Obama, Tiger Woods stood out like George Will in New
York's West Village.

Talk about change. Normally, Woods sees the political world the way
Dick Cheney sees the Bill of Rights: frightening and to be avoided at
all costs. He's probably never even been to the nation's capital without
a golf club in hand or a Nike swoosh on his clothing. His presence at the
inauguration--while bracing--was, in a bizarre way, all too fitting.

Barack Obama has been compared to Tiger Woods numerous times. Their
backgrounds as multi-racial men achieving success in predominantly white
fields are far too tempting for lethargic editorial writers to overlook.
During the 2008 general election McCain supporters also embraced the
comparison. In April, former Army staff sergeant David Bellavia told a rally of right-wing veterans, "You can
have your Tiger Woods, we've got Senator McCain." So there Woods was, squaring the circle
and coming to DC to say his piece.

At first, I was glad to see him there. I have been
critical of the superstar, whom many consider history's greatest golfer,
because even though he usually shies away from politics, he has often
callously embraced political imagery when it serves his endorsement
needs. Woods has even occasionally sought to commodify the very civil
rights movement that made it possible for him to waltz through country
club doors as a young man.

Most infamously there were the "I am Tiger Woods"
ads, in which a rainbow coalition of children told the world that
they, too, could be Tiger Woods. This harkened back to the finale of Spike
Lee's film Malcolm X, where black children from both the United States and
Africa stood up and said, "I am Malcolm X." An old Black Panther film
about the police assassination of Fred Hampton, in which one child after
another said, "I am Fred Hampton," inspired that scene. If Woods deems
the black freedom struggle appropriate enough to exploit while selling
Nike products, then he ought to highlight it in more relevant ways as
well. So I was hopeful that Woods would attempt to repay a debt with his
appearance in the shadow of the Great Emancipator.

The press has been rapturous in its reviews of the Woods speech. John
Canzano of The Oregonian wrote:

Gone is the hollow, old Woods who was so concerned with his
marketing capital that he refused to take a stand on women in golf, much
less on race, religion, politics or human rights. He was replaced with a
guy who talked intelligently about Obama, the country's future and his
father's military friends, who Woods said showed dedication and love
for their country.

He then praised the 33-year-old Woods for "coming of age."

But the actual content of the speech was tepid as weak tea, a bland
tribute to standing for the troops that could have been given by any
Republican or Democrat at any point over the last fifty years. He said:

Each day--and particularly on this historic day--we honor
the men and women in uniform who serve our country and protect our
freedom.... Just as they have stood tall for our country, we must always
stand by and support the men and women in uniform and their
families.

To praise this speech as a political coming-out party is to set the
bar so low a ladybug couldn't limbo beneath it.

Woods also spoke about his father, a veteran, who had served two tours in
Vietnam. The irony is that the late Earl Woods returned from Vietnam
with an Asian wife and a dream that his son Eldrick could leverage a
golf career to become the next Gandhi. I don't think Gandhi would have
made the speech that Tiger made.

What was most troubling about Woods's words was that they were an
extended tribute not to the troops but to the military itself. It was
almost a recruitment pitch. Woods said, before introducing the US Naval
Academy glee club, "I am a son of a man who dedicated his life to his
country, his family and the military and I am a better person for it." I
couldn't help think that the Pentagon
announced January 18 that all active-duty and reserve components,
as well as the Army National Guard, met or exceeded
their goals for the first time since 2004. The main reason? The tanking
economy.

At a time when the US is fighting two wars, flirting with another in
Pakistan and indirectly funding the carnage in Gaza, we need to be
building movements against militarism, not cheering on the Pentagon just
because Barack Obama is in charge or because Tiger Woods says so. Let's
save our cheers for those who walk in the path of Muhammad Ali, John Carlos,
Steve Nash,
Etan Thomas and Athletes United
for Peace--all of whom say, without equivocation, "Bring the troops
home."