It#039;s more PC to support a team than not

Published 12:00 am Tuesday, November 29, 2005

I've never been one to be the most politically correct person on the planet, but I have been known to bite my tongue when needed.

A good example of taking political correctness too far is when I hear that certain businesses around town will not support one school over the other for the fear of showing partiality.

Somehow that idea never seemed to be in the minds of others years back when Greenville teams like Greenville Academy, Fort Dale and Greenville were all in the football playoffs.

Email newsletter signup

I was told,by people who grew up here, that their windows would be painted to show support for one team if not all three. And it didn't seem to bother anyone. Sure there may have been a whisper here or there and maybe a raised eyebrow, but nothing detrimental to a business.

Fort Dale Academy is the only team in town that is still alive in the playoffs and stands just a win away from playing for the Alabama Independent School Association Class AAA championship.

Yet there are some businesses that are adamant about not showing support for the school because they may have ties with the public school system.

At this point of the football season, it really shouldn't matter who goes where or with whom.

Fort Dale, like any team in our readership that makes it into the playoffs, deserves our utmost support. A majority these kids who play in the postseason may never get this far again. Most of these players are donning the pads for the very last time in their athletic careers.

Yet just because they are apart of a private school, they shouldn't be given the support they deserve?

It doesn't make sense.

This is where I obviously failed my political correctness class in college.

I happened to notice one business along Fort Dale Road that had its windows painted to show support for Fort Dale.

There should be many more.

Just because the city is split along the school lines, it doesn't mean the city should be split when it comes to the support of our young men.

Maybe it's time to forget about being politically correct for a day or two to show the Fort Dale football team our support.

Kevin Taylor is sports editor of The Greenville Advocate. E-mail him at kevin.taylor@greenvilleadvocate.com or call (334) 382-3111 ext. 122.