I so enjoyed the first installment of the “O.J. Simpson Made in America” series.
That dude had some wheels. The one thing I didn’t like was the short shrift they gave his NFL career. They made a big deal out of his 2003 rushing yards in 1973 because of the Jets. Imagine, ESPN so loves the Jets they made them part of a story where they should have been just a prop. His best year was probably the 1817 rushing yard season in 1975. He scored 23 TD’S that season. In four seasons in the middle of his career, he probably amassed some of the best seasons for a running back ever. Keep in mind those were 14-game seasons. Of course, that would have glorified the Juice, which is definitely not the goal of the series. The goal is to show the Juice was abusive to Nicole Brown and was guilty as hell of murdering her and Ron Goldman.
We at BSP already knew Juice murdered the two people. We do want to see if the series shows how Juice was made in America. Orenthal James Simpson came to believe he was his character, “The Juice.” He thought he was beyond reproach due to his image; his celebrity. We at BSP have seen thinking this way is a mistake, almost always. We have seen image overwhelm negative content only a couple of times before. This wasn’t one of those times. You can’t kill people and expect to remain free.
Sexual assault is a different story; only 13 of every 1,000 sexual assaults even goes to trial.
Anyway, Juice was also a noted SPAMMer for Hertz and Chevrolet, among others. In selling products, he presented himself as different. Non-threatening. The guy who could live next door to you.
O.J. Simpson clearly wasn’t race conscious, except in the fact he didn’t want to be considered “black.” It was bad for his image. He wasn’t until he murdered the two people. Then he became black in a hurry.
Understand this: everyone knew Juice was guilty as hell. Who else would have murdered his ex-wife? Johnnie Cochran knew Juice was guilty as hell. But Juice had become black to white persons who considered him non-threatening before, and black to black people who had been beaten down by the system for one reason or another.
You need to know this: While the jury took the blame for not convicting Juice, four persons were responsible for him walking: Barry Schenk, who made conclusive DNA evidence appear questionable – DNA showed Juice was the only person who ever lived who could have been involved with the crimes. Mark Fuhrman, a detective who lied on the stand about himself not being a racist, impeaching his testimony. Prosecutor Chris Darden, although being a fine lawyer, had Juice try on the gloves in the worst mistake of the trial. Finally, the cop who stopped Johnnie Cochran – then the Assistant DA for L.A. County – for “driving while black” with his daughters in the car. That unnecessary harrassment germinated a desire to embarrass the LAPD.
Juice beating the system became a victory for those black people whom he showed little interest in supporting. Meanwhile, Juice became AIDS to those white people who had put him up on a pedestal. He had betrayed them by defeating the system. He was going to pay one day, no matter what.
