Tony Dungy

One of the first questions put to Tony Dungy was something along the lines of “how does it feel to be the first black coach to win the Super Bowl?” A similar -and equally dumb – question was put to Doug Williams after he became the first black quarterback to win a Super Bowl. Dungy’s answer was measured, playing homage to the other black coaches in the NFL who led the way. If I recall correctly, Williams’ answer was more along the lines of, “well, I’ve always been a black quarterback.”

What strikes me about these kinds of questions, besides the obvious stupidity of them, is a couple of things. First, while there are many folks who say it is blacks that keep the issue of race in front of everybody, the ones who raise these “first black” questions are usually white.

Secondly, this being Black History Month, in 50 years, who will be able to name the first black coach to win a Super Bowl, or the first black coach whose team made it to the Super Bowl? (And no, they aren’t the same person!)

I am reminded of the great Stevie Wonder’s Song “Black Man,” which was on his best-selling album Songs in the Key of Life. How many of these answers do we know?

First man to die
For the flag we now hold high
Was a black man

The ground were we stand
With the flag held in our hand
Was first the redman’s

Guide of a ship
On the first Columbus trip
Was a brown man

The railroads for trains
Came on tracking that was laid
By the yellow man

We pledge allegiance
All our lives
To the magic colors
Red, blue and white
But we all must be given
The liberty that we defend
For with justice not for all men
History will repeat again
It’s time we learned
This World Was Made For All Men

Heart surgery
Was first done successfully
By a black man

Friendly man who died
But helped the pilgrims to survive
Was a redman

Farm workers rights
Were lifted to new heights
By a brown man

Incandescent light
Was invented to give sight
By a white man

We pledge allegiance
All our lives
To the magic colors
Red, blue and white
But we all must be given
The liberty that we defend
For with justice not for all men
History will repeat again
It’s time we learned
This World Was Made For All Men

Here me out…

Now I know the birthday of a nation
Is a time when a country celebrates
But as your hand touches your heart
Remember we all played a part in America
To help that banner wave

First clock to be made
In America was created
By a black man

Scout who used no chart
Helped lead Lewis and Clark
Was a redman

Use of martial arts
In our country got its start
By a yellow man

And the leader with a pen
Signed his name to free all men
Was a white man

We pledge allegiance
All our lives
To the magic colors
Red, blue and white
But we all must be given
The liberty that we defend
For with justice not for all men
History will repeat again
It’s time we learned
This World Was Made For All Men

This world was made for all men
This world was made for all men
This world was made for all men
God saved His world for all men
All people
All babies
All children
All colors
All races
This world’s for you
and me
This world
My world
Your world
Everybody’s world
This world
Their world
Our world
This world was made for all men

Here me out…

Who was the first man to set foot on the North Pole?

Who was the first american to show the Pilgrims at Plymouth the secrets of survival in the new world?

Who was the soldier of Company G who won high honors for his courage and heroism in World War 1?

Who was the leader of united farm workers and helped farm workers maintain dignity and respect?

Who was the founder of blood plasma and the director of the Red Cross blood bank?

Who was the first American heroine who aided the Lewis and Clark expedition?

Who was the famous educator and semanticist who made outstanding contributions to education in America?

Who invented the world’s first stop light and the gas mask?

Who was the American surgeon who was one of the founders of neurosurgery?

Who was the man who helped design the nation’s capitol, made the first clock to give time in America and wrote the first almanac?

Who was the legendary hero who helped establish the League of Iroquois?

Who was the leader of the first microbiotic center in America?

Who was the founder of the city of Chicago in 1772?

Who was one of the organizers of the American Indian Movement?

Who was the Jewish financier who raised founds to sponsor Cristopher Columbus’ voyage to America?

Who was the woman who led countless slaves to freedom on the underground railroad?

(Lyrics, including answers, available here.)

So congratulate Dungy for leading his team to victory. But if you want to talk about race, let’s talk about why he is the first, not that he is the first.

And let’s hope that in the coming years, there will have been so many black coaches winning Super Bowls that such a feat, like black quarterbacks, is no longer remarkable.