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Chumash Casino pulls sponsorship of LA Clippers

May 1, 2014

sterlingThe Chumash Casino Board announced Monday it is pulling its sponsorship of the Los Angeles Clippers basketball team following racist comments attributed to the team’s owner Donald Sterling.

Sterling is alleged to have made negative comments about African Americans while speaking with his bi-racial girlfriend. Portions of that conversation were played over the weekend on TMZ and Deadspin, leading multiple sponsors to pull their support.

The Chumash released the following statement:

“We’ve always been proud supporters of the Los Angeles Clippers, however, the recent statements attributed to the Clippers’ owner have forced us to reconsider our relationship.

“We remain supportive of the members of the team and we wish them the very best going forward. As a group that has long been marginalized itself, the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians and the Chumash Casino Resort are especially sensitive to maintaining the dignity of all people. We cannot ignore any statement that causes harm or hurts any group. As a result, we’re withdrawing our sponsorship of the Clippers organization.”


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He is a racist throwback to an age better forgotten, that being said; it’s obvious Magic Johnson got the girlfriend to illegally record the rantings of a senile old man in order to force the sale of his franchise. The only problem is that maybe Oprah might out bid him.


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Ah the lives of the rich and infamous.


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So if he has a history like this, WHY is it only now being set up with a recorder? Because it looks to be a timed shake-down by a regime of wealthy owners and wanna-be owners, players, etc.


It’s called a race-hustling “shake down”. Shake down because it’s taking property with guilt or pressure, and race-hustling because it is using race as a vehicle. You can see big basketball names hovering around to take this team, forced from the man for private, if stupid and hurtful, speech.


Besides, did anybody really LISTEN to his tape? He’s more about his friends calling him due to the paid squeeze getting close to players/ex-players, and less direct about black people.

Commissioner Silver is a wimp and a tool of this shakedown. The lifetime ban is an insult to all concept of justice, and a crime or malfeasance matching the penalty.


I would think seriously about making this into a fight. Sterling can afford it. Walk into his freaking game in his freaking leased stadium, let the jokers and losers play their shake-down.


Sterling should walk into the next game with a phalanx of beefy security types, issue a MAJOR apology for being a stupid hurtful old billionaire, and then sit down and enjoy the team he funded, built and shepherded from the cellar to the playoffs.


Let the fans in attendance catcall until they are hoarse. Or as Hunter Thompson once said, “tear the stadium apart”. Let the millionaire players reject his apology and walk off the court. Sterling should not sit still for this modern day lynching.


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I suspect that you have had limited exposure to this story and the history behind it.


Point 1: Owning an NBA team also involves being a partner in the operations of the entire sport along with the other owners. I don’t know the exact terms of that agreement but I think that the other owners and Silver (acting on their behalf) believe that he has violated it. Just as with any other partnership agreement, if you violate terms to which you agree as part of the agreement, you should expect to be penalized. Given Sterling’s history of battling any and everyone who crosses him in court, I will bet that we will eventually find out whether they are right or not.


Point 2: I tried to listen to the tapes and read the transcripts. His comments seemed to indicate that he was uncomfortable with being socially associated with black people unless it was necessary for business. It even seemed that he was more concerned about the public perception of such an association as far as his girlfriend was concerned than about the fact of it. That is not the most racist attitude I have encountered but it is still sufficiently racist to hold against someone who is part of the face of an organization (the NBA) — particularly one with a high percentage of black people in it.


Point 3: The NBA should have addressed this previously under former Commissioner Stern. Why they didn’t when Sterling was fined massively for discrimination in his rental housing empire, I do not know. Perhaps, he had previously done as you suggested and both apologized and made an attempt to make up for his actions. The NAACP was about to award him for some financial contributions he made when this story broke. They supposedly thought that he had “reformed.” Obviously, he was just paying out for an image change given the comments — a luxury that billionaires can afford.


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I definitely agree that he was set up. Who knows what the woman said to him before he started his rant (not that this excuses his words) He should gift his wife all of his interest in the team. I am sure he has an amazing home theatre in his house, he can watch the games from his reclining chair. Maybe look into buying a hockey team, and spend more time with his wife


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Here’s whats BS about this little crap storm. #1, his comments were made in his private home in front of nobody but his wife or whatever she is. Where do we draw the line. Any of you ever said anything inappropriate by today’s politically correct pussification of america standards behind closed doors? How about we take your home away, your job and ruin your because its not OK. #2 There wanna take away his property, the Clippers again where does it stop with personal loss for expressing ones right to free speech, behind closed doors no less. If his players don’t like him, quit and move on like one would any other job.

#3. Id like to see/hear any of our media sources post up Mr top selling rapper, $135 million of worth, Snoop doggy dogs response to Sterlings words. But I guess that’s acceptable because??? Give some legitimate answers and why isnt that of XXXX isnt getting banned from his record label or having his worth taken away? Nothing like a dual standard, Bullshit I say.


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Doesn’t work, doggin. If by “taking my home away,” you mean requiring me to sell it at a price that is many, many times the value I paid for it, then that works. Similarly, no is proposing that his “property” be confiscated–even in eminent domain, you get the fair market value. As would he.


Players don’t get to “quit” if they don’t like it. They’re under contract. That’s not like “any other job.” Free speech, under the 1st Amendment, just means he can’t be arrested for what he said. He can still lose his job, which is what happens, for example, if you call your boss an a-hole. In this case, he has called out the majority of his employees, denigrating their race, disgracing the “brand” of the sport. And, guess what? A McDonald’s franchise owner can be disciplined by big McDonald’s Central for embarrassing the company, for hurting the brand.


That’s the nature of private industry, buddy boy. Capitalism, in full flower. And I don’t know what Snoop’s comments have to do with it… He, as an African-American, is a member of the class of individuals that Sterling insulted. He responded and, I must say, I agree with his response. In fact, I would be comfortable saying it about you.


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There is a very interesting issue with being compelled to sell the team – capital gains tax and it affects Sterling’s wife a lot more than him financially.


He supposedly bought the team for $12M in 1981 and it’s valued around $575M now. That’s over a $500M capital gain that he will realize through a sale at 20% or $100M in taxes.


If he dies owning the team, depending on how it is owned, his wife will get at least a 50% step up and potentially a 100% step up in the cost basis to the date of his death. She could sell the team the next day and pay no taxes and save up to $100M.


If she sued the mistress for 1/2 of her community property that the old fool gave her in gifts, I don’t think she’ll go quietly on this situation.


This is going to be a legal soap opera.Stay tuned.


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What’s that saying…there’s no fool like an old fool.

Mr. Sterling has a long history of making racist remarks. Why would this African American woman want to date such a loathsome individual……money. She got her home, ferrari, range rovers. Must have been time to move on, and find another old fool.


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She also got what she was after most…revenge! She set him up and he took the bait hook, line and sinker. Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.


She may not have the home, ferrari and range rovers after all. The wife is going after it because Sterling was giving away their money with his lavish gifts, which belongs 1/2 to his wife.


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