Today marks the 50th anniversary of the famous Black Power salute at the 1968 Summer Olympics. After Americans Tommie Smith and John Carlos won the gold and bronze medals, respectively, in the men's 200 meter dash track-and-field event, Smith and Carlos each raised a black-gloved fist while the U.S. national anthem played. The silver medalist, Australian Peter Norman, was a critic of Australia's former anti-immigrant White Australia policy, and, along with Smith and Carlos, wore an Olympic Project for Human Rights badge during the medal ceremony. In many ways, the Black Power salute of 1968 mirrors the recent and current actions of black athletes, and even some non-black athletes, in regards to President Donald Trump and racism against black Americans, such as kneeling during the playing of the U.S. national anthem before sporting events and refusing to accept invitations for traditional White House visits by champion sports teams. The athletes of today who are protesting are...
Sports and politics from a progressive perspective