"Someplace along the line you have to come to an understanding with yourself, and I had reached mine a long time before, when I was still on my death bed. Either you overcome or let it consume you.” Davis had once said days before his death. Ernie Davis had to overcome obstacles, at a young age he had to deal with a stuttering problem, he never really took care of it, he, just kept living his life. Those difficult and early stages of his life helped him learn many things. Nothing was ever handed to Ernie. Ernie Davis led Syracuse University to the national championship as a sophomore. Ernie Davis was the first African-American man to win the Heisman Trophy, and to be picked first overall in the NFL draft, but he never ever played a pro game and passed away at the young age of 23 after contracting leukemia. Davis was a great athlete but an even better person, even when he became popular, he remained humbled and didn’t allow the many racial and disrespecting comments bother him for being a black athlete in the south, during a time where African Americans were looked down upon and wasn’t treated fairly. Ernie Davis matters, because he fought through major adversities and also broke down many barriers on his quest to becoming the first black player to win the Heisman Trophy. So, the movie The Express, takes you on a dramatized story about a great man who’s life wasn’t easy but had great personal qualities, on his quest to an NFL career. Is the movie historically accurate or not?
Ernie Davis was an American football player and the first black college football player to win the Heisman trophy while playing at Syracuse University. He was also drafted by the Washington Redskins in the first round but then traded to the Cleveland Browns t...
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...ball and to be treated the same as all the other athletes. Ernie having a rough childhood made him become the man and athlete he was, he was taught at an early age that family is everything and that you should do everything the right way. Ernie had early success in sports and his attitude was what got him to play and be a star at Syracuse University. Ernie was a great athlete and a great leader, leading his team to a National Championship his sophomore year. Ernie became a star, but remained the same guy that played small fry football back in Elmira, New York; going on to win the Heisman Trophy opened up many doors for generations of African-American athletes in college football. In his short time on this earth, Ernie touched and motivated many others to do the right thing and that you shouldn’t judge others, just because their skin tone is different from yours.
African-American players are often negatively affected due to the prevalence of racism in the town. Ivory Christian, for instance, is a born-again Christian with aspirations to be a famous evangelist, but he is unable to pursue his dream due to his commitment to the football team. Because of this, the townspeople have unrealistic expectations of him and assume that he will put all his time and energy into football. Furthermore, there is a greater pressure on him to succeed...
...eaven for many blacks as their performances proved they are no different from their white counterparts. Not only did they rally white troops from their athletic performances, they were able to do so from their voices and personal life. They began to voice their displeasure through various media outlets. Their public outcry to end social injustice and race based discrimination came started to become a popular topic of discussion all over the country. They took a stand and were rewarded for their actions as race based discrimination is abolished and blacks have the same status as whites. Black athletes are becoming more and more recognizable all over the world as some become the faces of their sports. Sports came as a form of entertainment for many, but for black athletes it ended up being the most treasured source to reconstructing their race’s lives in America.
Jackie Robinson’s ability to successfully integrate his sport set the stage for many others to advocate for an end to segregation in their respective environments. His period of trials and triumphs were significant to changing American perception of the Civil Rights revolution. By becoming the first African-American baseball player to play in the major leagues, he brought down an old misconception that black athletes were inferior to white athletes. Successively, his example would inspire those advocating for their civil rights, he lived out a message of nonviolence similar to the one Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. lived out. Despite the constant prejudice he faced in his sport, he was able to keep himself composed and never retaliate.
Angela Davis grew up surrounded by politically opinionated, educated, and successful family members who influenced her ideals and encouraged her development and ambition. Her father attended St Augustine’s College, a historically black school in North Carolina (Davis 20). Her brother, Ben Davis, was a successful football player who was a member of teams such as the Cleveland Browns and the Detroit Lions (Davis 23). Her mother, Sallye Davis, was substantially involved in the civil rights movement and was a member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (Davis 42). In addition, her mother joined the Southern Negro Youth Congress which had strong ties to the Communist Party. This involvement greatly influenced Davis as she had many associations with members of the party which later shaped her political views (“Complexity, Activism, Optimism: An Interview with Angela Y. Davis”).
The question for my report is, What impact has Eddie George had on sports. Eddie George played a big role in the world of football. He and Steve McNair led the Tennessee Titans to the Superbowl, but they lost. Eddie George was 8, just another young kid on the neighborhood playground who fantasized about winning the Heisman Trophy, when his mother, Donna, began to get his life in the order she wants him to grow up in. "Eddie would never stop," said Donna's mother, Jean McCarthy, whose yard in suburban Abington Township, served as one of her grandson's playgrounds. "His friends would be saying, come on, Eddie, we gotta rest, we gotta rest, but Eddie would say, no, no, we gotta play, we gotta play. "He was always running," Jean McCarthy said. "No surprise to me he turned out to be a running back."(7)
The Baltimore Ravens is the first National Football League (NFL) team to step inside Washington D.C.’s National Museum of African American History and Culture. It is quite apparent that this visit has sparked a new respect and understanding for the significance of African-American culture. The players were silent as they passed the casket of a 14-year-old African-American boy which reminded the visitors of the violent history of the country 60 years ago.
Wiggins, David Kenneth, and Patrick B. Miller. 2003. The unlevel playing field: a documentary history of the African American experience in sport. Urbana: University of Illinois Press
The first African American to play Major League baseball once said, “a life is not important, except in the impact it has on other lives”; this was, of course, Jackie Robinson. Similar to Muhammad Ali, he faced problems head on a...
Angela Davis is an international activist/ organizer, author, professor, and scholar who defends any form of oppression. She was born January 26, 1944 in Birmingham, AL to Frank and Sally Davie. Both of her parents are graduates of historically black colleges. Her father attended St. Augustine’s College in Raleigh, North Carolina and became a high school teacher. Sally Davis attended Mile College in Birmingham, AL and became an elementary school teacher. Angela Davis’ mother was heavily involved in civil rights movement in the 1960s and was a leading organizer of the Southern Negro Congress, an organization influenced by the Communist Party. Growing up around the ideas and theories ...
This film was about the way civil rights have affected school teams during the times of desegregation. It was the early 1970’s where two schools in Alexandria Virginia integrated to form T.C. Williams High school. The head coach was then replaced by an African American coach which started disputes between the groups. This film reminded me of the discussions we had in class about schools integrating to solve disputes among communities. The tensions between the races grew bigger since two players from each group were forced to play football together during the games. As the season progresses the teams have decided to get along and succeed together as a big group and accomplish teamwork. From this movie education played a role because at the
Ernie grew up playing with his older uncles. They spent a large amount of time together and he learned many great lessons about sports from them. When Ernie prepared to enter high school, his mother asked him to return to her. Ernie had a hard time ...
“In life, there is a beginning and an end, the beginning does not matter. The end does not matter. All that matters is what you do in between- whether you are prepared to do what it takes to make change,” said John Carlos, one of the two individuals who believed there was an adjustment that needed happen in the United States. 1968 America, our country, still had much discrimination and segregation, but the ones who got the worst of it, were the African Americans. Two Olympic athletes, Tommie Smith and John Carlos, realized their needed to be a change and what better way to honor their fellow segregated Americans than to show them they are not alone and that change is possible.
Wilma went to physical therapy with her mom two times a week at a black hospital. It was hard to get to because it was 50 miles away and Wilma and her mom had to take a bus to get there. Wilma’s family never stopped encouraging her to do her exercises to help her walk. Wilma’s teacher also encouraged her. She said “Don’t dream about it. Wilma, I want you to do it” (Schraff 18). Wilma’s teacher was teaching her to never give up. Wima remembered this for the rest of her life. When her coach put her on the bench she never gave up. On the bench she would study the game and winning plays. Then she started racing. After losing one race Wilma said “Nobody goes undefeated all the time. If you can pick up after a crushing defeat, and go on to win again, you are going to be a champion someday” (Sherrow 24). Wilma realized that an important quality is being able to pick yourself up after a defeat. Wilma’s mother encouraged her to be a good runner in order to get a college scholarship. Later Wilma met the famous baseball player Jackie Robinson. He complimented her on her athletic abilities and said “Don’t let anything, or anybody, keep you from running“ (Sherrow 26). This meant a lot to her. She later wrote “For the first time in my life, I had a black person I could look up to as a real hero” (Sherrow 26). Jackie Robinson was Wilma’s first black
The scholars expounds that Black athletes were commodities on the playing field to help win games and bring in revenue to their respected schools. However, the schools were just as eager and willing to leave their Black players behind and dishonoring the player as a part of the team. Therefore, not compromising the team’s winning and bring in profits for the school. Sadly, Black athletes at predominately White institutions (PWIs) who believed that they were bettering the live of themselves and their families members by going to college and playing collegiate sports to increase their post secondary careers. However, these athletes were only “show ponies” for their schools. Unfortunately, Black athletes had allegiance to their school; however, the school turned their backs on the athletes to protect the profit and notoriety of the school and the programs. Money and respect from White fans and spectators were more important to the PWIs than standing up for the respect of their Black players. Racial bigotry in sports was rampant and it was only going to get worse.
Whitaker, Matthew C.. African American icons of sport: triumph, courage, and excellence. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 2008.