I recently saw the film, "One Night In Miami". While it's not purely a sports film, it provides much-needed insight into modern racial inequities.
The film revolves around discussions between Muhammad Ali (then known as Cassius Clay), Jim Brown, Malcolm X and Sam Cooke surrounding the plights of Black celebrities who use their platforms to speak out. Though the film is a fictional account based in 1964, it speaks to the role of prominent Black figures as activists.
Ali and Brown were ahead of their time as athletes who also served as social activists. Ali declined to fight in the Vietnam War, citing that he didn’t want to fight for a country that didn’t welcome him. The decision led to him losing his heavyweight title and being barred from boxing for three years.
Brown went toe-to-toe with Lester Maddox, a self-proclaimed segregationist, on national television in 1970. Along with defending Ali, Brown also explained to Maddox that Black people are accepted when they remain quiet and humble.
Alongside those two, Boston Celtics center Bill Russell dealt with discrimination, despite being a superstar athlete. He led a boycott in 1961 during an exhibition game to bring attention to the racial discrimination he and his teammates experienced after they were refused service at a coffee shop.
What’s notable about Ali, Brown and Russell fighting against injustice is that these instances occurred in the middle of the Civil Rights Movement (or shortly after, in Brown’s case). They could’ve sat back and tolerated the mistreatment for the sake of their careers, but instead chose to speak out. Their willingness to step outside of their comfort zone added more weight to their actions.
Basketball player Maya Moore has also made her mark as a social activist. In 2019, she sacrificed an entire season of her impressive career to help free Jonathon Irons, a Missouri man who was wrongfully convicted of burglary and assault. Her actions mirrored those made by athletes decades prior and showed how important the fight for justice is.
Sports can serve as an outlet to uplift Black people, even when they used to do the opposite.
Colin Kaepernick’s decision not to stand for the national anthem in 2016 stirred much controversy on social media, with many sports fans claiming that he disrespected the American flag. Though Kaepernick made his position clear that he wanted to condemn the mistreatment of Black people by law enforcement, he was labeled as unpatriotic and still hasn’t returned to the field.
