Black athletes who qualify to take part within the Olympics are sometimes challenged with coping with points past their athletic expertise.
For example, tennis star Naomi Osaka confronted appreciable backlash for taking a psychological well being break. Within the Nineteen Sixties, Muhammad Ali threw his Olympic gold medal into the Ohio River in disgust after being refused service at a restaurant. And historical past put a stain on the heroic acts of Tommie Smith and John Carlos who raised their fists as a human rights image through the Olympic video games in 1968 however had been ostracized for his or her efforts. Colin Kaepernick and so many Black athletes have turn out to be notorious merely for preventing for justice.
A forthcoming ebook, Say Their Names: How Black Lives Got here to Matter in America (Grand Central Publishing, $25.49) supplies a gripping, thought-provoking survey of the forces that pushed our unjust system to its breaking level following the homicide of George Floyd. Penned by a powerhouse of 5 knowledgeable Black journalists, Say Their Names is a deep dive exploration of the historic context behind America’s unique sin.
By inspecting how inequality was propagated by means of historical past, the authors, Michael H. Cottman, Patrice Gaines, Nick Charles, Keith Harriston and Curtis Bunn, spotlight the disparities that for thus lengthy have characterised the hazards of being Black in America.
(Picture courtesy of Grand Central Publishing)
Bunn is an award-winning journalist at NBC Information BLK who has written about race and sports activities and social and political points for greater than 30 years in Washington, D.C., New York, and Atlanta. Moreover, he’s a best-selling creator of 19 novels that heart on Black life in America.
In a single chapter written by Bunn that examines Black athletes who’ve additionally served as activists, the ebook touches on Osaka’s bravery for utilizing her platform to confront societal prejudices whereas being an advocate for fallen Black folks.
“Naomi Osaka, the ladies’s tennis phenomenon born to a Haitian father and a Japanese mom, wore seven completely different masks to her matches on the 2020 U.S. Open, every bearing the identify of an unarmed Black individual killed by legislation enforcement. It was a powerful show of assist of Black Lives Matter—and a sign that the motion spilled into the sports activities world.
It was an audacious transfer by Osaka. She took BLM’s considerations to the predominantly white, prosperous, pretentious tennis world—the place Black gamers are scarce—and its huge worldwide tv viewers. She received the key match and received a legion of followers that will not have recognized her as a star, however recognized her as brave after her two-week stand.
Requested after she took the title what she needed to get out of displaying the names of unnecessarily fallen Black folks, Osaka was unflappable: ‘Properly, what was the message that you just obtained was extra the query. I really feel like the purpose is to make folks begin speaking.’ “
An extra excerpt from Say Their Names factors to the longstanding wrestle of Black athletes to mix sports activities with utilizing their public platforms to make an announcement.
“To carry consideration within the hope for change in America in 1968, U.S. sprinters Tommie Smith and John Carlos raised their black-gloved fists and bowed their heads on the Olympic podium in Mexico Metropolis throughout ‘The Star-Spangled Banner’ after profitable gold and bronze medals, respectively, within the 200 meters. Their Black Energy salute is among the many most iconic photos in sports activities historical past.”
Bunn additionally touches on Colin Kaepernick’s activism and the audacity of the previous NFL quarterback to sacrifice his profession by kneeling through the nationwide anthem to carry consideration to police brutality.
Bunn spoke to BLACK ENTERPRISE and shared his ideas on why it was necessary to have a hand on this compelling challenge.
“There was not a lot contemplation for me when this ebook concept was offered,” Bunn says. “A social justice motion and a pandemic had been working concurrently. As journalists, our accountability is to chronicle occasions, information. My co-authors and I knew immediately that we had been engaged on a challenge that might be historic in nature. So we dug in, understanding it was necessary that we craft a ebook that might be among the many first to look at not solely what occurred in 2020–and bled into 2021–however how we obtained there within the first place.”
Bunn additionally informed BLACK ENTERPRISE that the ebook additionally seems at “the historical past of white supremacy, the way it created mass incarceration that eviscerated Black households” and extra.
“So, the ebook is necessary–and can stand the take a look at of time as a reference supply to seize the heartbeat of Black America throughout an unprecedented time in historical past,” Bunn mentioned.
Say Their Names addresses a myriad of points by 5 knowledgeable Black journalists akin to:
HOW BLACK LIVES CAME TO MATTER & THE BLACK WOMEN BEHIND IT: A complete breakdown of the historical past of racism in America, the quite a few forces main as much as the explosion of the Black Lives Matter motion, and the highly effective affect of Black girls main it.
RACIAL DISCRIMINATION IN HEALTHCARE: A research on the lengthy and sophisticated historical past behind systemic racism in healthcare, from the indoctrinated biases of medical professionals, to the elements behind COVID-19’s disproportionate ravages inside the Black neighborhood.
POLICING OF BLACK LIVES: Context behind why tales akin to Breonna Taylor’s and Michael Brown’s are tragically widespread in a rustic the place a Black individual is fatally shot by legislation enforcement practically on daily basis—but justice and reform proceed to stay out of attain.
MASS INCARCERATION OF BLACK LIVES: An exploration of the disproportionately excessive share of incarcerated Black individuals who, in comparison with incarcerated whites, face larger charges of unemployment following launch, life sentences with out parole, and what lawyer Ben Crump refers to because the “two justice techniques in America. One for Black America, and one for white America.”
THE BLACK CHURCH IN THE AGE OF BLM: A neighborhood traditionally credited as a sanctuary and supply of highly effective affect for Black actions now faces the challenges of its place in a brand new age.
BLACK INFLUENCE IN POLITICS: An examination of Black political lineage from Adam Clayton Powell to Barack Obama to Stacey Abrams, the ability of the Black vote, and the pressing want for honest laws to guard the Black neighborhood.
Click on right here to study extra about Say Their Names: How Black Lives Got here to Matter in America. The ebook, set to be launched October 5, may be preordered now.
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