"But for me, I’m continuing to be an advocate for [racial equality] and to receive the amount of pushback I got over the years, it was a lot.""
Did Don expect being an advocate was easy? Poor guy, it isnt.
I applaud Don for what he has done but he is learning a hard life lesson in all this. I am pretty sure in his growing up he didn't get much pushback on anything. Came from substantial money, private schools, always the star. I can't imagine he heard the word "no" much other than from like mom and dad, and I also imagine he had quite the following. He is a charismatic dude and very likeable, I can imagine he had people hanging on everything he did in school, following his trends, saying what he said, backing his every thought and opinion. His passive-aggressive style kind of speaks to that as well, as in my experience people who are not used to conflict or defending their position tend to be more passive-aggressive. Anyway, now he is a very public figure, and in the world there are PLENTY of people to disagree and try to tear you down. He is learning that. I do think a lower-diversity situation in a place like Utah was difficult to deal with when he wasn't really prepared for it, and being as vocal as he is about social issues that carry some level of controversy will inevitably lead to some rough interactions, to put it lightly. Imagine the pushback he would have run into in places where the BLM things devolved into full-on riots, like my daughter and her friends nearly got caught up in here in the LA area, whereas in Utah they were barely blips on the radar relatively speaking. He is obviously young and doesn't have a lot of experience in the world and my bet is he will reach a point where he looks back and says something like "wow, Utah wasn't too bad actually. Not a lot of black people, but pretty calm and quiet for the most part". He is taking on a difficult stance that is very laudable given his notoriety and the accompanying voice it gives him, and it will test his mettle no doubt, and he will learn a lot if he plans on carrying that flag high and proud for his whole life. He just needs to look at people like MLK and the like that even gave their lives for the cause, and he shouldn't be too surprised that a largely clueless white-majority populace in a place like Utah just couldn't really comprehend the issues, let alone support and champion them.
My bet is this partly explains the difference between his experience in Utah and the other black players who have lived there and love the state and city and even choose to stay, like Thurl. They have a broader experience base to draw from. If the worst thing he can point out is that a cop stopped him unnecessarily and then let him go when he saw he was famous, then that is really pretty minor, all things considered.
This does not mean I am downplaying his experience or his perception of it. Our perception is all we have, and it is very real and needs to be at least acknowledged. A 5-year-old's grief over losing his favorite toy is not any less real than an adult who has lost a close loved one, and cannot be discounted just because he hasn't had the life experiences yet that will change that perspective, and down playing someone's perceptions of a situation and the resulting emotional turmoil is just callous and cruel. I have been through some very heavy medical issues, but it gives me sympathy for others going through things that I might even view as minor by comparison, because it is NOT A ****ING CONTEST. It isn't about who has the best or worse situations, or who is "winning" in things like this. It is about coming together and doing the best we can to alleviate each other's burdens and help us all get through this ****ed-up life with some semblance of peace and happiness, and maybe even some comfort and success.
So I applaud Donovan's self-imposed mission and support it. But at the same time I can see how he could have a different experience and different perceptions than others might, even in similar situations.
By the way, I can be fully on his side in his championing of BLM and still feel he is less than genuine in other aspects of his life. We can agree in some areas, and even applaud and support, while disagreeing in others and even disliking someone that we acknowledge is doing good. Everything in life isn't, and doesn't have to be, all or nothing, black or white (no pun intended), yes or no. Life is mostly gray area with some black and white on the fringes.