“In life, there is a beginning and an end, the beginning does not matter. The end does not matter. All that matters is what you do in between- whether you are prepared to do what it takes to make change,” said John Carlos, one of the two individuals who believed there was an adjustment that needed happen in the United States. 1968 America, our country, still had much discrimination and segregation, but the ones who got the worst of it, were the African Americans. Two Olympic athletes, Tommie Smith and John Carlos, realized their needed to be a change and what better way to honor their fellow segregated Americans than to show them they are not alone and that change is possible. This event that had happened on the date October 12, 1968 is more commonly known by the photo in which the two athletes are raising their fists in gold and bronze place at the awards ceremony of the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City. The photo is used to represent defiance of old ways, and that transformation was possible, in any aspect. An individual may know the photo itself, but does that person know what the action was made to demonstrate and the consequences Smith and Carlos went through because of that small action, a raised fist? What had happened is during the awards ceremony for the sprinting of 200 meters, Smith in gold, Carlos in …show more content…
At first glance it did seem to not be worth it, a silent protest and then booed away from something they enjoyed so much, but it did spark a hope in their fellow African Americans. Millions around the globe were more than thrilled at the amazing sight of two men standing wholeheartedly before the world, not afraid, voicing their disappointment with the nation they called their home that often fell short of its
Malcome X once said “Clay is the finest Negro athlete I have ever know, the man who will mean more to his people than any athlete before him. He is more than Jackie Robinson was, because Robinson is the white man’s hero.” While Jackie Robinson and Cassius Clay were seen as two different, opposing sides of the Civil Rights Movement, they each used their spotlight and fame as athletes in the public eye to make their political stance during this time. Malcolm X makes a bold statement with his ideas, but Jackie Robinson made just as much if not more of a political statement that impacted America during this time even more than Muhammad Ali. Branch Rickey’s great experiment, Jackie Robinson
It was a remarkable articulation of the Black people voice living in the United States of America at that point of time because Black people were going through too much humiliation on physical and moral levels (Andrews, 1991, p.46). In order to get to the gist of the speech and reveal the emotional resonance it creates, a historical background timeline needs to be sketched. The period of the 1850s in the USA was especially tough for slaves due to several significant events that happened within this period of time. First of all, there was the Nashville Convention held on June 3, 1850, the goal of which was to protect the rights of slaveholders and extend the dividing line northwards. September 18 of the same year brought the Fugitive Slave Act, according to which the slave who managed to escape from his owner to the free state was to be caught and later returned back with all the consequences to follow.... ...
saw the fear and the hurt in the eyes of the Blacks when he came to
Theme: Many events of The Nazi Olympics surround this sporting festival to make it one of the controversial events in sport history. Not only does Mandell cover the 1936 Olympic Games themselves but he gives insight to the history of the modern games, participation by the United States, the role of the games in the Nazi propaganda efforts and portrays heroes and key figures. Mandell wrote about the intersection of sport and politics and how world leaders set the agenda, not the athletes. The Nazi’s used the 1936 Olympic Games as a way to reinforce their political and racial goals. Although they were founded as part of a vision of world peace, the 1936 games became a stage for political disputes. The Nazi Olympics takes an in depth look at the efforts the Germans made to show the rest of the world that they had again become a powerful nation under the leader of Adolf Hitler. The events that followed the games in Germany, mainly the Holocaust and World War II overshadowed the Berlin games. However, it is very important to note that a world gathering like the Olympics took place in a country that was in the process of eliminating an entire race of people. The games were a huge success in regards to the Nazi regime, they were able to fool the world and prove to Germany that they were a peaceful and stable nation.
Issues of racial injustices have been a problem in the United States throughout generations. Athletes have always had their opinions on racial issues and have never seemed to hesitate to speak their mind. Recently Colin Kaepernick has been sitting out of the National Anthem to protest for “black lives matter.” The representation of race in the Article, Tommie Smith, iconic 1968 Olympics activist, defends Colin Kaepernick’s protest, by Nancy Armour, is a modern way to protest the racial injustices our country has been facing. Colin Kaepernick is simply standing up for what he believes in. It’s easy to say that he’s even following in the shoes of Muhammad Ali, Jackie Robinson, Smith, and Carlos in their stances on racial issues. Critics of Colin
One hundred years after the Emancipation Proclamation was written, African Americans were still fighting for equal rights in every day life. The first real success of this movement did not come until the Brown vs. Board of Education decision in 1954 which was followed by many boycotts and protests. The largest of these protests, the March on Washington, was held on August 28, 1963 “for jobs and freedom” (March on Washington 11). An incredible amount of preparation went into the event to accommodate the hundreds of thousands of people attending from around the nation and to deal with any potential incidents.
The “friendly Games” as they were referred to, the 1956 Melbourne Olympics was the event that made Melbourne the sporting capital of Australia. They were the first country to hold an Olympics outside Europe or Northern America and this was the way they were going to prove they were capable of holding the name of the sporting capital of Australia.
As a son of a sharecropper and grandson of a slave, Jesse Owens created History in 1936 when he achieved what no athlete had done before: four Olympic Gold Medals. (jesseowens.com). During this era, the United States had limited civil rights and was approaching a World War with Hitler rising into power in Germany. Although Owens was victorious on the track, because of the color of his skin, He was looked down upon and unrecognized by even his own country. Through the excessive racism, one may ask how Owens moved forward and dealt with such negativity in a situation that should have been celebrated.
Wilma went to physical therapy with her mom two times a week at a black hospital. It was hard to get to because it was 50 miles away and Wilma and her mom had to take a bus to get there. Wilma’s family never stopped encouraging her to do her exercises to help her walk. Wilma’s teacher also encouraged her. She said “Don’t dream about it. Wilma, I want you to do it” (Schraff 18). Wilma’s teacher was teaching her to never give up. Wima remembered this for the rest of her life. When her coach put her on the bench she never gave up. On the bench she would study the game and winning plays. Then she started racing. After losing one race Wilma said “Nobody goes undefeated all the time. If you can pick up after a crushing defeat, and go on to win again, you are going to be a champion someday” (Sherrow 24). Wilma realized that an important quality is being able to pick yourself up after a defeat. Wilma’s mother encouraged her to be a good runner in order to get a college scholarship. Later Wilma met the famous baseball player Jackie Robinson. He complimented her on her athletic abilities and said “Don’t let anything, or anybody, keep you from running“ (Sherrow 26). This meant a lot to her. She later wrote “For the first time in my life, I had a black person I could look up to as a real hero” (Sherrow 26). Jackie Robinson was Wilma’s first black
John Wesley Carlos was born in Harlem, New York on June 5, 1945(Provence 1).At the age of twelve, Carlos had decided that we was going to be an Olympic swimmer. Unfortunately, he was told by his own father that it would never happen because of the color of his skin. Soon after, Carlos decided on Golden Gloves Boxing instead, but was told to quit because his mother was tired of seeing him covered in bruises. Carlos was determined to make it to the Olympics and decided that running was the way to go. From running in the poor streets of Harlem to running at the University of East Texas State, his dream was coming to life when he competed at the 1968 Olympic Games with his good friend and teammate, Tommie Smith. Carlos’ dream was coming to life when he had his chance to stand on the Olympic podium to accept his award with a large crowd cheering and watching. When Carlos’ protesting began at Zucotti Park, in New York, following the Olympic Games, Carlos had stated that, “If I don’t stand and fight for change then I’m a part of the tyranny that’s taking place. I refuse to succumb to become a second class citizen…You can’t whitewash what God has planned for me in my life” (Kohls 1). When Carlos said this he had imbedded the meaning that he will just not stand around and do nothing while people are being persecuted based on their race. Despite the effects of the 1968 black power salute. John Carlos is seen as a symbol for civil rights due to his bravery when he Stood on the podium with no shoes on, with tall black socks, with gloves on his hands and beads around his neck, and for helping found the Olympic Project for Human Rights.
The 1972 Olympics were held in the summer in city of Munich, Germany. Munich is a city in the Southern region of what was then West Germany. They were “The Games of Peace and Joy” and they were going to be the biggest and most expensive Olympic Games ever. The Olympic Games in Munich were supposed to have more athletes representing more countries than at any previous sporting event. During the 1972 Munich Olympics, 10,490 athletes were present. Bavarian officials hoped that the 1972 Munich Olympics would confirm Germany’s rehabilitation as a civilized society. Germany was trying to expunge memories of the Second World War and the infamous 1936 Olympics in Berlin, Germany. At the 1936 Olympics in Berlin, the German dictator Adolf Hitler had recently risen to power. Hitler tried to use the Olympics to showcase his belief that German whites were a superior people. There was no greater confirmation of Germany’s rehabilitation than the presence at the games of a delegation from Israel. Many of the families of the Israeli Olympic Athletes had been victims of German Dictator Adolf Hitler. The organizers of the 1972 Munich Olympics worked hard in order to not remind the world of what the Nazis had done. The organizers even refused to let security guards carry weapons, because they were worried that they would invoke memories of the heavily armed Nazi soldiers. They invited massed ranks of the media, a greater concentration than ever before to witness the festival of sport and the redevelopment of West Germany. At least four thousand newspaper, magazine, and radio journalists travelled to the Bavarian capital along with another two thousand television journalists, announcers, and crews. They had a television audience of nearly one billio...
As stated above the political statement was bigger than just the two athletes. In a 1968 New York Times article it is stated that “Both appeared for the presentation ceremony wearing black stockings and carrying white-soled track shoes. The two had said they would make a token gesture here to protest racial discrimination in the United States” . Not only had John Carlos and Tommie Smith done the action, but they made it known prior that it was going to happen showing the significance of their movement. It is also important to consider the impact that these two individuals had, because they become role models for future athletes wanting to raise awareness for a cause. One important thing to note is the construction of a statue on San José States Campus. Although the statue is of Tommie Smith and John Carlos, the meaning of why it is constructed is unknown. On one hand it could be students (not even alive during 1968) thanking them for their actions during the Olympics, but on the other it could be seen as a way (and it
Whenever people discuss race relations today and the effect of the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960s, they remember the work of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. He was and continues to be one of the most i...
Colin kaepernick wasn't the first athlete to protest.At a sports awards show in July, basketball players Carmelo Anthony, LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Paul took the stage together. They urged their fellow athletes to become more socially involved.They want more athletes for more fans to get their message.Most athletes get in trouble for their opinions. In 1968, African-American runners Tommie Smith and John Carlos led the black power salutes, a political demonstration at the Summer Olympics in Mexico City, Mexico.Their fans realize they can't take a simple stand without
...ners they continued to fight. As more and more African American students were admitted into white Southern schools, segregationist continued to retaliate and defend their schools against them. No matter how difficult the situation turned out for some of them, and without much help from the government, African Americans did everything they possibly could to protect their educational rights for the sake of their future and success, and in the hope of promoting equality for all African American people of the United States. These students became the symbol of freedom and opened up the window of opportunity for all black people, for their ancestors, and for the future generations to come.