Whitney Tilson Strokes It To A Different Drummond

Arnold Jackson, and his older brother Willis, were poor boys of color that lived in Harlem. One day, their mother died and in her will she bequeathed them to a rich white man on Park Ave, her former employer Phillip Drummond. Funny how at no time did she consider family for the boys to live with. She knew that only a rich white man could do good by her boys. Sound familiar? Think about it for a minute.

Now yes, I know Diff'rent Strokes was a TV show, and in reality it was the producers and creators that assumed only a rich white man could save boys of color. I remember a friend of mine claiming that Diff'rent Strokes was one of the more racist, if not insensitive shows on TV due to this sterotype of a rich white man as the "Great White Hope" being the only one who knew what was best for two African-American boys from the hood. But fiction has met reality.

Whitney Tilson is today's Mr Drummond. As discussed on these pages in the past, in which it was questioned whether or not Whitney is a true racist, Whitney is yet again showing his true colors (pardon the pun) and believing that he is the Great White Hope and knows what is best for boys and girls of color.

Whitney has yet again shared how wonderful he believes he is by sharing with us mere mortals that he has signed up through iMentor to mentor a teenage boy of color from KIPP NYC College Prep. Aside from the perversity and the weirdness I yet again, through authorization of the crack team here at SBSB, call bullocks on Whitney.

It's really nice of Whitney to show, or act that he cares. But I doubt his sincerity. This is just another way for Whitney to make Whitney look good. Look, the kid is already in KIPP, he is already one of the creamed. He has advantages, though perhaps not economically at the time. What is Whitney going to do? Beat the color out of him and bring him into Whitney's own little world of chilled salad forks, the Hamptons, and of course the sub par ethics of hedge fund managers. Of course we all know that if the kid is ever allowed to come to Stately Tilson Manor on 5th Ave the kid would probably be told to use the servant's entrance and if anyone sees him to just say that he is the help.

Why Whitney are you being a mentor at KIPP? Why not come into the real innards of the Bronx and truly help those that desperately need it? Come mentor and influence someone who is running with the Crips, Bloods, or Latin Kings? How about mentoring someone whose parents are not there emotionally and physically and show the pitfalls of being in 5th grade and panhandling for money at the Pathmark on 204th St in Inwood? How about visiting a homeless shelter where there are many students and helping them their families find a home? How about coaching a basketball team, or more realistic for Whitney, perhaps a crew team? But it won't happen. Why? Because Whitney doesn't want any surprises. Whitney wants a KIPP kid that he feels comes with some built in standards, some already packaged success. A kid from the innards of the Bronx is just too much of a variable to make Whitney look good.

But why does this mentor have to be Whitney? Surely, Whitney knows professionals of color. Why not encourage these people to join iMentor and do the right thing? What these kids need to see is doctors, lawyers, judges, business people that they can identify with. Whitney, is nothing more than the plantation boss. Once his back is turned, or he loses interest his mentee will no longer benefit.