UAA Conversations About Race and Racism: Gebereal Baitey

February 25, 2021

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Gebereal “G” Baitey is a 2019 graduate of Emory University, where he double-majored in sociology and African-American studies while competing in men’s basketball. He played in 105 games in his four-year career that included four trips to the NCAA Division III Men’s Basketball Championship and two University Athletic Association titles. Baitey earned a master’s degree in childhood, youth, and social policy from Loughborough University in the United Kingdom. He was playing for the Central District Lions of the NBL1 League in Australia when COVID-19 ended his season shortly after he joined the team.

The UAA “Conversations About Race and Racism” series seeks to lift the voices of people of color and recognize the challenges faced in both athletics and academics at the collegiate level. By sharing personal stories, we hope to elevate the conversation about race to raise awareness and bring about change.

Perspective from Morristown

“An integral part of my pathway academically was being around the local (Morristown, New Jersey) high school sports teams. At about age 10 or 11, I was the water boy for the varsity high school football team, which was a real big deal. The best athletes went to school there and I was awestruck by how talented they were,” Baitey recounted. “A lot of players had Division I offers for basketball and football.”

Having older siblings who attended the high school gave him some insight into the bigger picture at the school. “My sisters told me about the struggles those same athletes were having in the classroom. I know there were six or seven guys from my childhood who had D1 scholarship offers on the table, but they didn’t have the grades or had other things holding them back from taking advantage of it,” he remarked. “It really communicated to me that the high school wasn’t doing right by students of color and by people of color in the community. I knew it was not unique to that school. Coaches can be so invested in their athletes’ performance on the field, but not in the areas that were more important.”

Baitey during his time in Australia

Seeing the racial inequity had a profound effect on him and he ended up attending private Newark Academy in Livingston, New Jersey for high school. “From an early age, I was determined I wasn’t going to be ensnared in the system that promoted athletics first. I needed to be focused on what I wanted to be,” he stated.

Multi-Dimensional Individuals and Intersectionality

“I am a basketball player, but that is not all there is to me. I do not identify myself as just a basketball player. A lot of people think my interests don’t extend beyond the court,” he commented. “What happens is that, as a Black athlete, you don’t get the benefit of the doubt. People are quick to assume that we are not well-rounded individuals. People say they are surprised I am so articulate and think I am good at things I am not, like rapping, just because I am Black.”

Read Gebereal’s Blog on Kobe Bryant

Baitey notes that people do not consider that any time they make negative comments about someone who is not a straight, white, male, it impacts underrepresented people as a whole. “People say harmful things without regard to intersectionality. When someone makes a racist, sexist, or homophobic remark, I feel like I am under attack even if I am not the direct target. If someone says something stereotypical in my presence about a woman or gay person or another race, I am affected because as a marginalized person, I know what it is like to face oppressive language and actions,” he articulated. “That is the effect on ethnic minorities when you are in the majority and making harmful assumptions about a person’s race, sexual orientation, gender/gender identity, or ethnicity. When insensitive stereotypical phrases are said around me, I wonder what might be said when I am not around.”

Many people are fearful of saying the wrong thing, but Baitey is far more concerned with things that are voiced. “People may tiptoe around the people who are in the room, but what they say about others extends so far beyond the confines of the room. If someone makes a homophobic remark, I will take offense even though both of us in the conversation are straight. Otherwise, you only care about me to the point of us being in the same room together. I cannot trust that you are not going out into the world and saying harmful things about me and people who look like me,” he expressed.

Challenges at a Predominantly White Institution

“One of my biggest challenges is feeling like I have to be the spokesperson for Black people and Black issues. I do take it on because I feel like people, for the most part, listen when I speak about those subjects. At the same time, it is really exhausting,” he conceded. “I had to deal with people making unfair assumptions about my experiences while I was also confronted with the absence of people on campus who looked like me and came from a similar background.”

While in college, Baitey was always cognizant of the lack of a shared history. “Class background and experience, ethnicity, and culture were all ways I felt distanced from the people around me. I always felt like I was miles away from the people I was around in nearly every way,” he communicated. “That can be tough because you can’t ever let your guard down to really identify with someone. You don’t want to share something personal about your own background because that only serves to further the distance.”

Advice for Other Black Student-Athletes

“I never forgot the advice an assistant coach gave me and that was, ‘Wherever you can, find spaces that remind you of home.’ That can be the company you keep, the Black student body on your campus, and even the food you eat. Get those meals that you had growing up on game day. It is important to surround yourself with people and things that don’t let you forget where you come from and what you stand for,” he described. “It is easy to get swept away in trying to assimilate because it will make your life easier. It is a warring thing that goes on for the entire four years you are on a campus. Find resources that tether you to home, as long as that is a good place for you. I was fortunate to have my family to reach out to. Whenever I got off the phone with them, I felt better about whatever I was experiencing at the time.”

Baitey with then Emory president Dr. Claire E. Sterk

Being on predominantly white teams is an additional challenge for student-athletes of color. “It is a path of least resistance if you assimilate and make things more accessible for yourself. My team was largely white and involved in Greek life on campus. For a long time, they tried to get me to do that. I didn’t even want to go to a frat house because of the violence and harmfulness associated with it,” he elucidated. “People of color are not immune to those realities. It was draining because I loved my guys and my teammates, and I supported them. I just couldn’t join them in fraternities and hope it wouldn’t strain our relationship.”

Role of Allies and Teammates

“It is easy to let things slide, whether it is in the locker room, the frat house, or wherever you are. The key is everyone speaking up. When you see someone engaging in harmful behavior or verbiage against someone of a marginalized group, say something. It helps to know other people are seeing this and not letting it slide, that they don’t want to be complicit in this behavior,” he revealed. “It is extremely important to express concern for marginalized people who aren’t standing in front of you.”

He encourages allies to both seek and use available resources. “It is not hard to make a statement on your social media or to reach out a teammate of color and let them know you are there for them. It was really heartwarming to me this past summer to see my former teammate Beau (Bommarito) posting on his Instagram about the resources he was using to educate himself,” Baitey said. “It doesn’t matter if you are starting from ground zero in informing your thinking about racial issues. If you are donating to causes, do your homework and understand what that organization is doing to fight systemic racism. That goes a long way with those of us who face racism on a daily basis. This isn’t homework you have to do or should do because someone is asking you to. Do it because you want to be part of the change.”

Baitey at a protest in New Jersey this past summer

Baitey sees teams as an important entity in either reinforcing or deconstructing stereotypes. “Teams are integral to positive change. My experience with teams is that every team develops their MO (modus operandi) and becomes known for something. Some kind of culture, positive or negative, becomes visible outside of what you are doing. It is important to pick up on that, acknowledge it, and work toward a positive goal. These things are not born out of thin air,” he explained. “One of the simple things we recognized is that we were tall and often had our gear on, so we were visible on campus. If we go into a dining hall and are rambunctious or don’t clean up after ourselves, people notice and ascribe negative traits to the team.”

“On a more private level at Emory, teams can have a culture that is classist and racist because of the potential for that based on who makes up the team. We all know about toxic masculinity and locker room talk. It is important to have important conversations in those settings where a lot of discriminatory talk happens,” he suggested. “There were a lot of race-baiting events when I was in college from police brutality to pro-Trump chalkings on the Emory sidewalks. We took the time to talk about those things in the locker room instead of brushing it off. If I didn’t speak up, teammates who don’t look like me could think, “That doesn’t affect me or matter to me, plus G seems to be okay so it must not be that bad.’ They don’t want to initiate those tough conversations. Teams have the great potential to be right or wrong. Be intentional about informing, educating, and growing together. As teammates, we have the opportunity to make each other better people.”