The controversial Reggie White

If you are Christian or if you are Republican, certain media outlets are incapable of speaking nicely about you without a not so subtle jab, even in death. Take as examples the following jabs in pieces on the passing of Reggie White:

New York Times Obituary:

White created a stir in March 1998 with a speech to the Wisconsin State Assembly. In it, he referred to homosexuality as "one of the biggest sins in the Bible" and used ethnic stereotypes for blacks and whites.

AP (via St. Pete Times):

White worked tirelessly with disadvantaged youths. But his image was tarnished when he gave a speech in which he denounced homosexuality and used ethnic stereotypes. White later apologized.

First and foremost, how necessary were these comments? What purpose do they serve besides tossing some tar and feathers on a dead man? Secondly, I'm willing to bet that neither source ever read or listened to White's comments. I viewed White as a man who had the faith of child, which is high compliment to a Christian. I also viewed him as a man who was able to maintain or re-discover a certain amount of his innocence. In that context, his comments were not malicious. In fact, his comments that included stereotypes were actually meant as complimentary. When he said that Latinos were able to fit a lot of people into a house, he was not making a joke of it, he was saying that the Latino heritage was blessed with a strong family ethic. When he said that Native Americans were good at sneaking up on people, he was trying very clumsily to say that this was why they were not enslaved by whites. What White was attempting to do in that speech was show that all people bring very different gifts to the larger table of humanity, and thereby reflecting the face of God. Did he do it clumsily? Yes. Did it have malign intent? Certainly not. As someone who could possibly be offended by part of White's comments, I found them baffling at first, but certainly not offensive or mean spirited.

In regards to White's opinion on homosexuality, again, White did not do anything more than make what is a statement of fact to most Christians. White has every right to disagree with any lifestyle he chooses, as long as he does nothing to harm people. He didn't. In fact, he was willing to reach his hand out to homosexuals:

Now, I believe that one of the reasons that Jesus was accused of being a homosexual is because he spent time with homosexuals. I've often had people ask me, would you allow a homosexual to be your friend. Yes, I will. And the reason I will is because I know that that person has problems, and if I can minister to those problems, I will.

If a homosexual did not choose to accept Reggie's outstretched hand, that was that person's choice.

I'm going to do something I rarely do. I'm going to agree, in part, with Eugene Kane of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. In a column on White, Kane had this to say:

As Packers fans mourn White's death, it's best to keep him in perspective. He was a great athlete who wanted to have a positive influence beyond the gridiron, and he did.

Sometimes he might have promised us a bit too much. But let's admit it - it was the promise of Reggie White that always captivated us.

I think that's what we will miss most.

Kane pretty much hit the nail on the head with those words. White was a very good person. He was also human. He made mistakes, as we all do. I'll give an example. When White's church burned down, Wisconsin Packer fans donate $250,000 to rebuild it. It was never rebuilt, and White would not comment on where the money went. A lot of people in Wisconsin began to grumble, especially as evidence mounted that the Pastor of the church had a drug problem. It was a story that WTMJ 620 AM was still following up leads on. On the day of Reggie's passing, WTMJ Sports host Bill Michaels was sent an email, instructing him to watch the episode of "Behind the Glory" on Reggie White. In the episode, White discusses how he had become aware of corruption and addiction issues with the Pastor of the church, and how instead of funneling money back into that problem, instead used it as loan money to help rebuild infrastructure in inner cities. Reggie's mistake? He did not tell the people of Wisconsin about all of this, the people who donated the money. People became concerned with what Reggie had done with the money they had donated, and Reggie's respect for the privacy of and love for a very troubled Pastor kept him from doing so. But was there any ill intent on White's part? No.

My point? Read White's speech below. Then tell me that what White said was so bad that major media outlets need to snarkily jab at him and his family in his death.

More sources of information:
Michelle Malkin
Focus on the Family
White's Comments to the Wisconsin State Assembly in 1998 (recommended reading)

Update
Philly.com writes a respectable obituary for the Minister of Defense.