As the United States of America celebrated its 250th anniversary last Saturday, one thing is clear: you cannot tell the story of sports in the country without Black athletes. And sports and culture are inseparably connected.
From Jesse Owens and Paul Robeson in the first third of the 20th century to Black competitors who persevere on the court while facing racism and other forms of discrimination off the field, the story is one of persistence. Nicknamed “the Greatest” for his performances inside the boxing ring, Cassius Clay, who later changed his name to Muhammad Ali, inspired hundreds of millions worldwide through his acts of resistance. In 1967, Ali, a Muslim, refused to join the United States Armed Forces based on religious faith as the Vietnam War was raging. As a result, he was charged and convicted of draft evasion, a case ultimately overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court. But it halted his boxing career at the age of 25. When his career resumed three years later, he fought until just shy of his 40th birthday. In his mid-50s, Ali would again inspire people of all ages, ethnicities, and religions by lighting the ceremonial torch at the opening ceremonies of the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta. By then, Parkinson’s disease had severely impacted his mobility, but Ali, himself a 1960 gold medalist, proudly lit the flame to the Olympic cauldron. There may not be a better example of an athlete who was both fearless inside and outside of the sports arena than Ali. Like Ali, Harlem’s own Lew Alcindor, who converted to Islam and changed his name to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, stood in solidarity with many of his fellow athletes by boycotting the 1968 Mexico City Olympics in protest of the oppressive racial conditions of the day. Abdul-Jabbar remains a powerful intellectual voice as an advocate for social justice through writing books, penning guest columns, and offering commentary on various television and streaming platforms. Unlike Abdul-Jabbar, track and field athletes Tommie Smith and John Carlos decided to participate in the 1968 Olympics. After winning gold and bronze respectively in the 200 meters, Smith and Carlos decided to display the Black Power salute — a raised fist — on the podium while accepting their medals in front of the world. Their actions inspired Colin Kaepernick and Eric Reid, who, nearly five decades later, kneeled during the national anthem in a demonstration of their rejection of racial injustice and police brutality. It has been nearly 80 years since Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier in Major League Baseball in 1947. Robinson, who played for the Brooklyn Dodgers, inspired Black Americans across the country to watch and — for those who did not have televisions — listen to his heroics on the baseball field. The current climate in America is one of political and social divisiveness, and Black athletes continue a long tradition of being part of the fabric of the fight for equity and equality.
