Al Sharpton Injects Race Into Arenas Mess

It’s what he does best. Sigh: “Sharpton, who spoke with Stern by phone Monday and hopes to meet with him later this week, was not in a laughing mood. ‘The NBA needs to stand up and send a strong message by dealing with this situation,’ Sharpton told the Daily News. He also chided black leadership groups for not speaking out about the ‘culture of violence being perpetuated in professional sports.’ Sharpton cited former Giant Plaxico Burress as an example of professional athletes run amok … Sharpton believes the reaction over reports that Arenas allegedly drew a gun on teammate Javaris Crittenton on Dec. 21 has been tempered because the players involved are black. ‘If it had been a white player pointing a gun at a black player, there would have been much more of an uproar,’ he said. ‘It’s almost as if people are saying, ‘Well, we don’t expect anything better from our black athletes.’ Sharpton also scolded White House security in an attempt at humor. ‘This all happened in the Verizon Center?’ Sharpton said. ‘This is the same place where the Obamas watched a Wizards game (on Feb. 27, 2009). You telling me that he had guns in the locker room when Obama went to the game?”‘