The Olympic Games are upon us once again — so a perfect time to reflect upon African American athletic achievements and protests in the world’s biggest arena. As always, we invite you to share this post with students, colleagues, and anyone else who is interested in the legacies of slavery. A link here does not imply agreement or endorsement by the Council of Independent Colleges.
The Olympic Games:
- Nadra Kareem Nittle, “Why Black American Athletes Raised Their Fists at the 1968 Olympics,” History (May 25, 2021): LINK. “Using the Olympic medal ceremony to show solidarity with oppressed Black people worldwide impacted both the professional and the personal lives of Smith and Carlos for years afterward. Widely deemed a ‘Black Power salute,’ the men’s gesture at the podium was by no means a random act. Instead, historians say, it was a direct outgrowth of the political climate in the late 1960s.”
- Marie Schulte-Bockum, “The First African Americans to Win Olympic Medals,” History (February 2, 2022): LINK. Six American athletes who shattered records on their way to the medals podium: John Baxter Taylor, Alice Coachman, Wilma Rudolph, Debi Thomas, Vonetta Flowers, and Shani Davis,
- “Buffalo Soldiers and the Olympics,” National Park Service (2024): LINK. Since the third modern Olympic Games were held in St. Louis in 1904, African Americans have competed and won various medals. Several Black Olympians later joined the U.S. Army and were assigned to historic Buffalo Soldier regiments.
- “Black History Exhibit: A Closer Look,” The United States Olympic & Paralympic Museum (first published in 2020): LINK. “From George Poage, the first Black American to win an Olympic medal, to Leroy Walker, the first black American to coach a U.S. Olympic team, here is a closer look at some … stories featured in the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Museum.”
- “The Strength of Perseverance: Recognising the Determination of Black Athletes over the past century on Juneteenth,” Olympics (June 19, 2023): LINK. From the official site of the International Olympic Committee, a look at some of the extraordinary African American athletes who have competed in the Games: LeBron James, Simone Biles, Jesse Owens, Muhammad Ali, et al.
- “African Americans at the Olympic Games,” Smithsonian National Museum of African American History & Culture (first published in 2022): LINK. A small sample of the Olympics-related artifacts held by the museum.
And a book recommendation:
From the publisher: “In the modern Olympic Games, from 1896 through the present, African American athletes have sought to honor themselves, their race, and their nation on the global stage. But even as these incredible athletes have served to promote visions of racial harmony in the supposedly-apolitical Olympic setting, many have also bravely used the games as a means to bring attention to racial disparities in their country and around the world.”
Other Recent Links:
- Annie Lowrey, “Poor Black Kids Are Doing Better. Poor White Kids Are Doing Worse.” The Atlantic (July 25, 2024): LINK. A major new study reveals a persistent gap between the mobility of white children and Black children — but that gap is narrowing: “The findings are not entirely comforting. Inequality narrowed not just because poor Black kids have grown up to earn more as adults but also because poor white kids are earning less.”
- “No Time to Grieve,” WHYY (July 24, 2024): LINK. In this audio story, a Black Philadelphian, recently released from prison, draws a personal connection to an artifact on display at a local museum — shackles worn by abolitionist John Brown while he was imprisoned. “[B]eing in prison, you see a lot of similarities of slavery. Not just the lack of freedom, but the impact that it has on everyone else around you.”
- Lois Elfman, “Advancing Social Justice Through Scholarly Work,” Diverse: Issues in Higher Education (July 24, 2024): LINK. The Dr. N. Joyce Payne Center for Social Justice was launched by the Thurgood Marshall College Fund in 2021 to advance social justice for Black Americans. The Center has two primary goals: translate research (especially research conducted at HBCUs) to inform public and social policy and to convene scholars who can “marry research to real life questions.”
- Jeff Amy, “Georgia denies state funding to teach AP Black studies classes,” AP News (July 23, 2024): LINK. Georgia state official refused to provide public funding for the new AP African American Studies course — but then reversed the decision in less than a day.
- Russ Bynum, “Judge approves referendum sought by slave descendants to challenge rezoning of island community,” ABC News (July 23, 2024): LINK. Also from Georgia: “A judge on Tuesday [July 23] approved a referendum sought by residents of one of the South’s last remaining Gullah-Geechee communities of slave descendants, ordering an Oct. 1 special election on whether to overturn zoning changes that Black residents see as a threat to an island enclave founded by enslaved ancestors.”
- Taryn White, “This Little-Known Civil Rights Activist Refused to Give Up His Bus Seat Four Years Before Rosa Parks Did,” Smithsonian Magazine (July 23, 2024): LINK. “William ‘W.R.’ Saxon filed a lawsuit against the company that forced him to move to the back of the bus, seeking damages for the discrimination and mental anguish he’d faced — a full four years before Rosa Parks’ more famous act of civil disobedience.”
- Jasper Smith, “Black Colleges Are Owed $12 Billion, the Feds Say. Their States Aren’t So Sure.” Chronicle of Higher Education (July 17, 2024): LINK. The U.S. Department of Education says historically Black colleges are owed $12 billion by states, but many are skeptical. Advocates argue that underfunding has hindered public HBCUs from competing with predominantly white institutions. (The article focuses on public HBCUs, but private HBCUs — many of which are CIC members — also experience systematic underfunding.)
An Update from the CIC Network:
- Mel Thibeault, “Co-Lab Convenes Public Humanities Practitioners to Share Research, Stories About Race and Place,” Roger Williams University (July 22, 2024): LINK. CIC member Roger Williams University hosted a public humanities gathering, (Re)Telling: Crafting New Stories of Race and Place in Southern New England, which brought together more than 40 organizations, groups, and institutions engaged in researching, crafting, and sharing stories about race and place in the region.