On a Rainy Day

[H2O Man]

36. Ha!

I have no problem talking about my friendship with Robert, though we have certainly parted ways in recent years. He was, in fact, the environmental attorney that stood out in two ways -- he won the largest, most important legal cases holding corporate polluters responsible for clean-ups, and won more cases for Native Americans in North, Central, and South America than any lawyer. I recognize that pales in comparison to your accomplishments. But that's not really brought us closer together. Let me explain, and perhaps you will get it, or perhaps not. You seem in a crusty mood today but maybe in the future it will make sense.

In the spring of 1998, two of my nephews were on a b-ball team that won two titles in NYS. One would double the school's rebounding record, the other would triple the scoring record. But, because they are black, not everybody liked them. And they resented all the press they got as scholar/athletes, literally in every newspaper in the state. Now, you have never walked the dirt roads of rural, upstate NY, so this may come as a surprise to you. But a racist hate gang from a different town started dogging the older nephew at a canoe regatta in yet a third town. My nephew asked a village cop on duty to tell the 17 racists to leave him alone ..... but as it turned out, that fellow with a gun and a badge was related to one of the 17, and did steroids and weight-lifted with them in their town.

When my nephew went to get his car in a dark field, the gang of 17 racists attacked. One lady who witnessed it -- before driving away -- later told police it was like a pack of wolves attacking prey. One hit him from behind, with either a rock or a bottle, knocking him unconscious. As he lay on the ground out cold, with his hands in his pockets, they took turns kicking and punching him, before leaving him for dead. But he was found before sun-up, and rushed to a hospital. The doctor said if his muscles were not so powerful -- he was 6'3" and 250 lbs, with a scholarship to play both foot- and basketball at a good university -- he would have died. He recovered from some of the injuries, and still suffers from others.

Three of the 17 were arrested. The gang leader admitted to punching and kicking my nephew a dozen times. At 6'5", he was the smallest of the three arrested. The judge said, in open court, that it was his opinion that the gang members calling my nephew a "dumb ni__er" suggested that race was a factor in the assault. Thus he gave the gang leader a $20 fine for having an open beer at the time he was kicking my nephew. That was it.

The case, of course, was in the regional news from the day after the assault until after the last court date. Two branches of the NAACP showed up every week for the court hearings. The president of one branch and I wee the spokespersons for the TV, radio,and newspaper reporters. The lawyer for the thug leader was considered the top in our region -- as was his father before him -- and he recognized the media reports reached a very large audience. This red-haired Irishman thought he could debate me before the reporters, including television. Being capable of annoying such fools, I said a few things quietly to him that made him freak out and make a complete ass of himself. I enjoyed it, though he also acted like he had dined on grumpy dog food for a couple of years. But our friendship eventually repaired, as he learned his lesson.

Now, at this time, Robert was providing comfort to my sister, her husband, and the boys. I hope that you have never had to witness the suffering they were going through. Robert's kindness meant a lot to them. He wrote to the state attorney general before the trial, advocating for him to prosecute it as a hate crime. The republican did not, of course. And Robert assisted me in talking with Spoirts Illustrated about the case. They were interested, in part because they had earlier ran a 14 page story about a kid from a private school who had a future. Then, when my nephews played this fully recruited school, my nephew held that kid to two points which obviously helped them win the game.

Now, due to his injuries, my nephew could not take advantage of a great scholarship. But he graduated from the university, and I recently enjoyed watching his daughter dominate on the high school court. He lives a good life, but there are things that one never forgets. That includes my remembering what Robert did for my family back then.

I remember telling the media that because the court failed to address the case seriosly, the gang's violence would spread. Within a year, one member fractured a student from another school's skull with a rock. Another gang member was arrested for shooting a gun into a house where a white girl was dating a black kid. And shortly thereafter, a third gang member was arrested for fracturing the skulls of two Asian-American students at Binghamton University in unprovoked attacks in the dark. He got probation.

If you happen to read this far, I hope that you feel good about yourself. You really got me there!