W.E. A.L.L. B.E. Special: From THE PlaINs To THE Super Bowl To THE WhITe House While HElpINg Jim Brown & Muhammad Ali Too: 2016 W.E. A.L.L. B.E. Artivist LIFetiME AchieveMEnt HonoREe Dr. Curtis R McClinton Tells His Story

   

 

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Disclaimer: The views expressed in this show are not the official views, opinions, beliefs or perspectives of  W.E. A.L.L. B.E. News or The W.E. A.L.L. B.E. Group Inc....W.E. A.L.L. B.E. News is an organization that thoroughly believes in supplementing the information narrative that is usually supplied by the corporate news entities with those viewpoints/expressions which may be marginalized or ignored for a plethora of reasons...We are about informing the general public on alternative perspectives as it relates to news and information and letting the general public be the ultimate judge in deciding on how to use said information...Informed citizens are responsible citizens...Thank you for your support!!!

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W.E. A.L.L. B.E. Special: From THE PlaINs To THE Super Bowl To THE WhITe House While HElpINg Jim Brown & Muhammad Ali Too: 2016 W.E. A.L.L. B.E. Artivist LIFetiME AchieveMEnt HonoREe Dr. Curtis R McClinton Tells His Story

Football Season Is HERE & I Had THE Good Fortune REcently To VisIT Gridiron GREat Dr. McClINton IN K.C. To PREsent Him WITh His WEll Earned Award & To Get SoME Of His AmazINg Story To ShaRE WITh THE People...Check Out THE LINks BElow For THE INterview & REad THE OTHEr Stuff BElow For MOOR Background About This True Classic Man...Thanks Sis. Margo McClinton & Your Wonderful Mom Dr. Devonne For GivINg ME THE Access...WE  U All Madly!!!

W.E. A.L.L. B.E. TV: From THE Super Bowl To THE WhITe House WITh Jim Brown & Muhammad Ali: Curtis McClINton Speaks!
WATCH NOW:

https://youtu.be/ILqwqrFG4H0

W.E. A.L.L. B.E. TV: THE Glove FITtINg On THE Hand: KC Chiefs Football GREat Curtis McClINton On O.J. Simpson
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https://youtu.be/qv1JbKGO0pc

W.E. A.L.L. B.E. TV: Football GREat Curtis McClINton On 'THE HamMEr,' THE GREatest Player, Coach, Quarterback & Team
WATCH NOW:

https://youtu.be/2ejF5nL2qtg

W.E. A.L.L. B.E. TV: Football GREat Curtis McClINton On Should Top Black Athletes Go To Play For HBCUs & Get Paid
WATCH NOW:

https://youtu.be/twi0bbMkCa0

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August 2013 Was THE 1st TiME I MEt Kansas CITy Chiefs Football GREat & 2016 W.E. A.L.L. B.E. Artivist LIFetiME AchieveMEnt Award HonoREe Bro. Curtis R McClinton & His BE-YOU-TOO-FULL WIFe Dr. Devonne...THE McClINtons Took ME 2 World Famous Gates BBQ For SoME Good EatINg & THEre HE Was TREated Like True Royalty...As Soon As WE Sat Down A LINe Of Former NFL Players CaME 2 GREet US & TREated Bro. Curtis Like A KINg HoldIN Court...HE Is Very Much BEloved & REspected IN Kansas CITy For All THE Right REasons...IT Was An AmusINg & HumblINg Experience...

Bro. Curtis McClINton, Jr. Was Born 6/25/1939, IN Muskogee, Oklahoma...His FaTHEr & NaMEsake Was THE First Black Elected To THE Kansas State Senate & Was A WEll REspected Civil Rights Pioneer & Activist...Bro. Curtis RusHEd For 1,377 Yards As A College Halfback At THE UNiversITy Of Kansas...HE Was Selected As A FutuRE Choice By THE Dallas Texans (Now Known As THE Kansas CITy Chiefs) IN THE 14th Round Of THE 1961 AFL Draft...HE WoRE NumBEr 32...Bro. Curtis Was One Of THE Early Stars Of THE AMErican Football League (Now THE AFC Of THE NFL), Had 762 RushINg Attempts For 3,124 Yards And 18 Touchdowns...Also Caught 154 Passes For 1,945 Yards And 14 Touchdowns...HE Played IN THE 1st Super Bowl & Was THE First AMErican Football League Player To Catch A Touchdown IN Super Bowl History...HE Is Also A Super Bowl IV Champion...HE Is THE 6th-LeadINg Rusher IN KC Chiefs' Franchise History...Played IN ThREe AFL All-Star GaMEs, FollowINg THE 1962 And 1966-67 Seasons And Was NaMEd THE OutstandINg Player Of THE 1962 GaME..Was A MEmBEr Of Both Chiefs Super Bowl Teams And All ThREe AFL TITle Clubs...Was NaMEd THE AFL Rookie Of THE Year IN 1962, WHEn HE RusHEd For 604 Yards And Caught 29 Passes For 333 Yards...

 


Like His Idol Paul RoBEson, Bro. Curtis Is A True REnaissance Man, IN AddITion To Football HE Is An Accomplished Opera SINger, Did Economic Justice & Civil Rights Work WITh Football GOD Jim Brown As THE National PREsident Of THE Black Economic UNion (Later HE BEcaME Founder & PREsident Of THE Kansas CITy Black Economic UNion), Stood WITh & BEhINd Muhammad Ali WHEn HE REfused To JoIN THE U.S. Vietnam War Draft, Graduated From Harvard UNiversITy's Kennedy School Of GovernMEnt, Served As Deputy Mayor For Economic DevelopMEnt IN WashINgton, D.C., As WEll As Served IN THE REagan & Bush 41 WhITe Houses As Deputy DiREctor Of THE Economic DevelopMEnt AdmINistration (EDA) IN THE DepartMEnt Of ComMErce....HE Now Owns McClINton DevelopMEnt Company, A Kansas CITy-Based Construction Contractor...CHEck Out His Official WEbsITe For MOOR INfo:
http://www.curtismcclinton.com

<3 14="" 14th="" 154="" 18="" 1961="" 1962="" 1966-67="" 1="" 1st="" 2013="" 2016="" 29="" 2="" 32...bro.="" 333="" 3="" 41="" 604="" 6="" 6th-leading="" 762="" a.l.l.="" a="" accomplished="" achievement="" activist...bro.="" addition="" administration="" afc="" afl="" ali:="" ali="" all-star="" all="" also="" american="" amusing="" an="" and="" artivist="" as="" at="" ater="" athletes="" attempts="" august="" award="" b.e.="" bbq="" be-you-too-full="" became="" behind="" beloved="" black="" born="" both="" bowl="" bro.="" brown="" bush="" by="" came="" catch="" caught="" champion...he="" chiefs="" choice="" city-based="" city="" civil="" clubs...was="" coach="" college="" commerce....he="" company="" construction="" contractor...check="" court...he="" curtis="" d.c.="" dallas="" department="" deputy="" development="" devonne...the="" did="" director="" div="" down="" dr.="" draft...he="" draft="" early="" eating="" economic="" ejf5nl2qtg="" elected="" experience...="" famous="" father="" first="" fitting="" following="" football="" for="" former="" founder="" franchise="" from="" future="" game..was="" games="" gates="" get="" glove="" go="" god="" good="" government="" graduated="" great="" greatest="" greet="" had="" halfback="" hammer="" hand:="" harvard="" hbcus="" he="" his="" history...he="" history...played="" holdin="" honoree="" house="" houses="" http:="" https:="" humbling="" i="" idol="" in="" info:="" is="" iv="" jim="" join="" jr.="" justice="" kansas...he="" kansas="" kc="" kennedy="" king="" known="" league="" lifetime="" like="" line="" madly="" man="" mayor="" mcclinton="" mcclintons="" me="" member="" met="" moor="" much="" muhammad="" muskogee="" named="" namesake="" national="" nfl="" now:="" now="" number="" o.j.="" of="" official="" oklahoma...his="" on="" one="" opera="" out="" outstanding="" ow="" owns="" paid="" passes="" paul="" pioneer="" play="" played="" player="" players="" president="" quarterback="" qv1jbkgo0pc="" qwqrfg4h0="" r="" reagan="" reasons...it="" refused="" renaissance="" respected="" right="" rights="" robeson="" rookie="" round="" royalty...as="" rushed="" rusher="" rushing="" s="" sat="" school="" seasons="" selected="" senate="" served="" should="" simpson="" singer="" some="" soon="" speaks="" stars="" state="" stood="" style="text-align: center;" super="" team="" teams="" texans="" the="" there="" three="" time="" title="" to="" took="" top="" touchdown="" touchdowns...also="" touchdowns...he="" treated="" true="" tv:="" twi0bbmkca0="" u.s.="" u="" union="" university="" us="" very="" vietnam="" w.e.="" war="" was="" washington="" watch="" we="" website="" well="" when="" white="" wife="" with="" wore="" work="" world="" www.curtismcclinton.com="" yards...="" yards="" year="" youtu.be="">

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Rashard Mendenhall: Why I Retired At 26

 Rashard Mendenhall: Why I Retired At 26

I decided not to hold a press conference because I didn't want to have to say things that were cliché. I've done enough of that since I've been playing football. I actually didn't really plan on saying anything about my retirement at all. I just kind of wanted to disappear. The fact that I was done playing would've been clear once some time had passed, and I hadn't signed back with the Cardinals or any other team. Maybe people would've thought I couldn't get another job. Either way, I was okay with the idea of fading to black, and my legacy becoming "What ever happened to that dude Rashard Mendenhall? He was pretty good for a few years, then he just vanished."

The truth is, I don't really think my walking away is that big of deal. For me it's saying, "Football was pretty cool, but I don't want to play anymore. I want to travel the world and write!" However as I told the people around me that I wasn't planning on signing again, there was a surprising amount of shock and bewilderment.

"Why would you stop now? You're only 26 years old! You're just going to walk away from millions of dollars? Is your knee fully healed? You had a pretty good year last year," etc. After the initial shock response and realization that I'm not kidding, the question that would continue to arise is: Why?

"Why do you want to stop playing football at 26?"

Honestly, I've really enjoyed my time in the NFL and have had tons of fun.

I feel like I've done it all. I've been to two Super Bowls; made a bunch of money; had a lot of success; traveled all over the country and overseas; met some really cool people; made lasting relationships; had the opportunity to give back to causes close to my heart; and have been able to share my experiences and wisdom with friends, family and people all over the world. Not to mention all the fun I had goofing around at work day after day with my teammates! I'm thankful that I can walk away at this time and smile over my six years in the NFL, and 17 total seasons of football -- dating back to when I started pee-wee ball at Niles West in 1997, when I was 10. These experiences are all a part of me, and will remain in my heart no matter what I do, or where I go.

Along with the joyful experiences I had, came many trials. In my last piece, "The Vision," I wrote about traversing through dark and dangerous waters, working to attain peace and refuge. That intense journey described my personal life in the NFL. Journeying through those waters symbolized living a private life in the public eye. Imagine having a job where you're always on duty, and can never fully relax or you just may drown. Having to fight through waves and currents of praise and criticism, but mostly hate. I can't even count how many times I've been called a 'dumb nigger'. There is a bold coarseness you receive from non-supporters that seems to only exist on the Internet. However, even if you try to avoid these things completely -- because I've tried -- somehow they still reach you. If not first-hand, then through friends and loved ones who take to heart all that they read and hear. I'm not a terribly sensitive person, so this stuff never really bothered me. That was until I realized that it actually had an impact my career. Over my career, I would learn that everything people say behind these computer and smartphones actually shape the perception of you -- the brand, the athlete and the person. Go figure!

What was more difficult for me to grasp was the way that the business of entertainment had really shifted the game and the sport of football in the NFL. The culture of football now is very different from the one I grew up with. When I came up, teammates fought together for wins and got respect for the fight. The player who gave the ball to the referee after a touchdown was commended; the one who played through injury was tough; the role of the blocking tight end was acknowledged; running backs who picked up blitzing linebackers showed heart; and the story of the game was told through the tape, and not the stats alone. That was my model of football.

Today, game-day cameras follow the most popular players on teams; guys who dance after touchdowns are extolled on Dancing With the Starters; games are analyzed and brought to fans without any use of coaches tape; practice non-participants are reported throughout the week for predicted fantasy value; and success and failure for skill players is measured solely in stats and fantasy points. This is a very different model of football than the one I grew up with. My older brother coaches football at the high-school and youth level. One day he called me and said, "These kids don't want to work hard. All they wanna do is look cool, celebrate after plays, and get more followers on Instagram!" I told him that they might actually have it figured out.

Over my career, because of my interests in dance, art and literature, my very calm demeanor, and my apparent lack of interest in sporting events on my Twitter page, people in the sporting world have sometimes questioned whether or not I love the game of football. I do. I always have. I am an athlete and a competitor. The only people who question that are the people who do not see how hard I work and how diligently I prepare to be great -- week after week, season after season. I take those things very seriously. I've always been a professional. But I am not an entertainer. I never have been. Playing that role was never easy for me. The box deemed for professional athletes is a very small box. My wings spread a lot further than the acceptable athletic stereotypes and conformity was never a strong point of mine. My focus has always been on becoming a better me, not a second-rate somebody else. Sometimes I would suffer because of it, but every time I learned a lesson from it. And I'll carry those lessons with me for the rest of my life.

So when they ask me why I want to leave the NFL at the age of 26, I tell them that I've greatly enjoyed my time, but I no longer wish to put my body at risk for the sake of entertainment. I think about the rest of my life and I want to live it with much quality. And physically, I am grateful that I can walk away feeling as good as I did when I stepped into it.

As for the question of what will I do now, with an entire life in front of me? I say to that, I will LIVE! I plan to live in a way that I never have before, and that is freely, able to fully be me, without the expectation of representing any league, club, shield or city. I do have a plan going forward, but I will admit that I do not know how things will totally shape out. That is the beauty of it! I look forward to chasing my desires and passions without restriction, and to sharing them with anyone who wants to come along with me! And I'll start with writing!

Follow Rashard Mendenhall on Twitter: www.twitter.com/R_Mendenhall