John Carlos and Tommie Smith: Underrated and Unwritten Black History Heroes
“The land of the free and home of the brave,” the infamous line from America’s national anthem, Star-Spangled Banner, but how much did this ring truth for African-Americans in the Civil Rights Era? On October 16, 1968, gold medalist Tommie Smith and bronze medalist John Carlos challenged “the false vision of what it meant to be black in America.” (Pg. 108, John Carlos story) Although John Carlos and Tommie Smith ridiculed and ostracized because of their defiant act, which respectfully recognized as an iconic, powerful image labeled as the “black power salute” in the summer Olympics of 1968 in Mexico City. Carlos and Smith used the Olympics’ medal ceremony stage to challenge and bring recognition to the racism within sports and the United States in a silent gesture. This significant moment of their act of bravery, courage and willingness to sacrifice their sport careers and life to call attention to the segregation, racism and white supremacy back home for those who did not have a platform. “Smith and Carlos opened a unique symbolic space for dialogue and debate about these issues.” (Pg. 26, Douglas Hartmann) Without saying a single word, they captured the nation’s attention.
Only a year apart, Tommie Smith and John Carlos grew up living two distinctly different lives. Each had experienced some form of racism growing up. Their upbringing and experiences played an enormous part in their ideas and principles that took fruition on October 16. Prior to the most iconic sport moment in history, their upbringing and experiences were stepping-stones for something greater than they were.
Tommie Smith was born on June 6, 1944 in Clarksville, Texas to Richard and...
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...o far ahead that people don’t realize what you’re doing until years later.” (page 46, Carlos) Now 45 years later, have people finally realized what John Carlos and Tommie Smith were doing October 16? Neither Carlos nor Smith regrets their decision to this day. Despite the challenges and obstacles they faced, Carlos believed what they did was far more important than their lives and could live with the history he created. In contrast to their iconic peers, such as Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, and Malcolm X to name a few, Carlos and Smith stood in unison in their demonstration. The significance of the fist-raised is a power beckon of strength for everyone to take with them in any given situation. The entire world has broadcasted their rebellious image and has interpreted their own meanings about the most historic moment in sports and the broader community.
“The 1910 Jeffries-Johnson Fight and Its Impact” was by far my favorite reading from the text this semester, which is the main reason for my choosing of this topic. Throughout this article, I found it to be incredibly intriguing how detailed it was on the struggles that Johnson went through. Discussing the difficult experiences he had as a rising black athlete and then to end up with a white woman who, to many, could or could not have been considered a prostitute. All of the events during Johnson’s life make him such an amazing person and a very interesting athlete to learn more about.
Then, the speaker of this letter is Jackie Robinson, the first black baseball player in America. However, without Robinson as the speaker this text wouldn’t be preserved as it is today, specifically if the speaker was a little known person of color or even a white person speaking on the behalf of the black community. The audience includes President Lyndon B. Johnson directly; then Vice President Hubert H. Humphrey and Governor Nelson A. Rockefeller of New York; and lastly the people of America, the black community, and those fighting for civil rights. This audience is important because if Robinson hadn’t written to the President, and indirectly to the others, then, similarly with the speaker, the text might not be as preserved or well-known nor carry the same influence it has. The subject, as mentioned before for the text’s purpose, is the Civil Rights Movement and the President’s involvement in it during the Vietnam War, which is affects the text as Robinson is a
Currently in the United States of America, there is a wave a patriotism sweeping across this great land: a feeling of pride in being an American and in being able to call this nation home. The United States is the land of the free and the home of the brave; however, for the African-American citizens of the United States, from the inception of this country to midway through the twentieth century, there was no such thing as freedom, especially in the Deep South. Nowhere is that more evident than in Stories of Scottsboro, an account of the Scottsboro trials of 1931-1937, where nine African-American teenage boys were falsely accused of raping two white girls in Scottsboro, Alabama and no matter how much proof was brought forth proving there innocence, they were always guilty. This was a period of racism and bigotry in our country that is deeply and vividly portrayed though different points of view through author James E. Goodman.
One of the major stands that were made during a black athlete’s tenure during his or her sport were their statements on racism. Racism in America was an ongoing situation in the 1900’s that seemed to have no resolve before black athletes took a stand. One prime example can be Jackie Robinson who became the first African-American athlete to play baseball in the modern era. Jackie grew up in one of the most racist towns in Pasadena, California and came from a poor family as his parents were sharecroppers and...
... period of time (1968) in which there was no race cohesion and blacks were not viewed positively by some Americans. Also, the place was likely not the proper location for such a “demonstration.” Again, people had different reactions and to some, Carlos and Smith were heroes. This can be considered “labeling theory” which focuses on “how people define deviance – what is or is not ‘normal’-which is a core issue” (Ballantine/Roberts 175). In the end, those that thought he was a hero were helpful to John Carlos and with his book, society accepts him for his efforts and if there are individuals that still do not, they are the minority in society.
The documentary, “Unforgivable Blackness” directed by Ken Burns casts light on the extraordinary life story of legendary boxer Jack Johnson. The documentary is about the barriers Jack Johnson had to overcome to satisfy his hunger for becoming the best and living “The American Dream.” Johnson had humble beginnings in Galveston, Texas and it was in those beginnings that glimpses of his bright future were slowly but surely beginning to show. Through out his life, he showed independence, relentlessness, ability to improvise, call attention to himself and get around rules meaning to tie him down. Jack Johnson was a self made man who had the drive to go forward and achieve what he wanted to achieve through hard work, patience and all the skills he was blessed with.
As stated above the political statement was bigger than just the two athletes. In a 1968 New York Times article it is stated that “Both appeared for the presentation ceremony wearing black stockings and carrying white-soled track shoes. The two had said they would make a token gesture here to protest racial discrimination in the United States” . Not only had John Carlos and Tommie Smith done the action, but they made it known prior that it was going to happen showing the significance of their movement. It is also important to consider the impact that these two individuals had, because they become role models for future athletes wanting to raise awareness for a cause. One important thing to note is the construction of a statue on San José States Campus. Although the statue is of Tommie Smith and John Carlos, the meaning of why it is constructed is unknown. On one hand it could be students (not even alive during 1968) thanking them for their actions during the Olympics, but on the other it could be seen as a way (and it
The book, “My Soul Is Rested” by Howell Raines is a remarkable history of the civil rights movement. It details the story of sacrifice and audacity that led to the changes needed. The book described many immeasurable moments of the leaders that drove the civil rights movement. This book is a wonderful compilation of first-hand accounts of the struggles to desegregate the American South from 1955 through 1968. In the civil rights movement, there are the leaders and followers who became astonishing in the face of chaos and violence. The people who struggled for the movement are as follows: Hosea Williams, Rosa Parks, Ralph Abernathy, and others; both black and white people, who contributed in demonstrations for freedom rides, voter drives, and
Malcome X once said “Clay is the finest Negro athlete I have ever know, the man who will mean more to his people than any athlete before him. He is more than Jackie Robinson was, because Robinson is the white man’s hero.” While Jackie Robinson and Cassius Clay were seen as two different, opposing sides of the Civil Rights Movement, they each used their spotlight and fame as athletes in the public eye to make their political stance during this time. Malcolm X makes a bold statement with his ideas, but Jackie Robinson made just as much if not more of a political statement that impacted America during this time even more than Muhammad Ali. Branch Rickey’s great experiment, Jackie Robinson
The history of the African-American struggle against the forces of racism and oppression is a long and complex one. It dates back to when the first groups of Africans were forced to the Americas against their will. A tragedy most aptly described when Malcolm X proclaimed, “We didn’t land on Plymouth Rock; the rock was landed on us (X, Malcolm). Since that point in history, over four hundred years ago, Black people in the United States have been fighting to escape the holds of White supremacy. Leaders such as Frederick Douglas, W. E. B. Du Bois, Marcus Garvey, and many others each fought to win back the dignity and pride that had been stripped of their black brothers and sisters at the hands of racial inequality. This fight has continued on for centuries, and has employed many different methods in the quest for equality. One method in particular, stands alone as notorious in its advocacy for Black pride and power: Black Nationalism.
Smith , Earl. Race, Sport and the American Dream. Durham, North Carolina: Carolina Academic Press, 2007.
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...
Miller, Patrick B. Wiggins, David K. Sport and the color line: Black athletes and Race relations in Twentieth-century America. 2004. The Journal of Southern History 70 (4) (Nov 2004): 990.
Diversity, we define this term today as one of our nation’s most dynamic characteristics in American history. The United States thrives through the means of diversity. However, diversity has not always been a positive component in America; in fact, it took many years for our nation to become accustomed to this broad variety of mixed cultures and social groups. One of the leading groups that were most commonly affected by this, were African American citizens, who were victimized because of their color and race. It wasn’t easy being an African American, back then they had to fight in order to achieve where they are today, from slavery and discrimination, there was a very slim chance of hope for freedom or even citizenship. This longing for hope began to shift around the 1950’s during the Civil Rights Movement, where discrimination still took place yet, it is the time when African Americans started to defend their rights and honor to become freemen like every other citizen of the United States. African Americans were beginning to gain recognition after the 14th Amendment was ratified in 1868, which declared all people born natural in the United States and included the slaves that were previously declared free. However, this didn’t prevent the people from disputing against the constitutional law, especially the people in the South who continued to retaliate against African Americans and the idea of integration in white schools. Integration in white schools played a major role in the battle for Civil Rights in the South, upon the coming of independence for all African American people in the United States after a series of tribulations and loss of hope.
Massive protests against racial segregation and discrimination broke out in the southern United States that came to national attention during the middle of the 1950’s. This movement started in centuries-long attempts by African slaves to resist slavery. After the Civil War American slaves were given basic civil rights. However, even though these rights were guaranteed under the Fourteenth Amendment they were not federally enforced. The struggle these African-Americans faced to have their rights ...