The Importance Of Prejudice And Racism In Sports

Register to read the introduction… Athletes such as Jim Hines, Tommie Smith, John Carlos?and other black Americans decided to displays signs of black power in different forms. The first to do so, Jim Hines, said that he did not wish to accept his gold medal from Avery Brundage, the president of the International Olympic Committee. In the ceremony for the 200-meter dash, runners Jones and Carlos came out to accept their awards displaying signs and clothing depicting black power. They were reprimanded, but other athletes followed suit at these games (Hoffmann, PhD. And Bailey, MA, 1991, pp 59-61). Collectively, society has taken steps towards less racism in sports based on color. There is no longer a ban keeping athletes out of sports such as baseball due to color. Stereotypes and racial thoughts still exist today, but they are improving with time. W.E.B. Du Bois wrote in his book, The Souls of Black Folk, that blacks in this country have always felt a sense of being ?an American, a Negro; two souls, two thoughts, two unreconciled strivings, two warring ideals in one dark body whose dogged strength alone keeps it from being torn asunder? The history of the American Negro is the history of this strife.? (Du Bois, 1961, p. 17) As long as this type of feeling is predominant in society, racism will be an issue. Society needs to move away from the belief that white-skinned people are intellectually superior, while those who have colored skin are inferior in that aspect. People are people no matter the color of skin, whether it is white, black, brown, red, or yellow; if cut they all …show more content…
This can be broadened out to encompass so much more. Their ideologies are prevalent, and can be seen in sports, and aspects of sports such as government control. ?Sports may be used as a resource by which the powerful attempt to dominate others. The forgers of the Soviet state were all aware of its potential. To them, sport was a tool for socializing the population into the newly established system of values. It could encourage compliance and co-operation in both work and politics, and be used as a way to combat ?unhealthy, deviant, anti-social behavior? such as drunkenness, delinquency, prostitution, religiosity, and intellectual dissidence. Also, if deployed skillfully, it could unite wider sections of the population than any other social activity, transcending differences of nationality, sex, age, social position, geographical location, and political attitudes.? (MacClancy, 1996, pp. 10-11) While the Soviet Union was in power, they used their political backing to submit their ideologies on their people. They were, in a sense, forced to like what their government liked. Those who had athletic abilities were not given the choice to play the sports of their choice, they were told what they could play, and everything was dictated to them. Here in America it was not to that extent, but there were other barriers keeping athletes out of certain