In 1983, my second year of law school, I became the only WHITE player in the Ogden PARK Basketball LEAGUE at 65th and Racine. My teammates joked that I integrated the league, which I guess is true. They weren't so much focused on INTEGRATION as on winning, and they knew you can't teach height. 'He can't jump, but he sure is tall.'
Ours was a very PROGRESSIVE Protestant family, but my parents were God-loving rather than God-fearing. We went to CHURCH, and I STILL GO with my mum and dad when I return home - it's a family thing. I played flute in my dad's marching band, but I had an integrated upbringing. We had a lot of CATHOLIC friends.