Social Justice and Sport: A Crucial Intersection for a Vehicle of Change

Throughout Fall 2023, I will be reporting on the intersection of sport and social justice around Ithaca and Tompkins County. As I begin to cover this crucial intersection, I wanted to highlight the long history of sport being used as a vehicle for change and the power that comes from athletes and advocates speaking truth to power.

In 1968, at the Mexico Olympics, Tommie Smith and John Carlos raised their fist atop the Olympic podium in solidarity with the civil rights movement in protest of the brutality against Black and Brown folks across America. Under the leadership of Dr. Harry Edwards and the Olympic Project for Human Rights, Smith and Carlos used their platform in sport, on national television, to fight for racial justice.

In 2012 and 2014, in the wake of the respective murders of Trayvon Martin and Eric Garner, players in the National Basketball Association wore hoodies to bring attention to the injustices with the message of "I Can't Breathe" the last words Eric Garner spoke before being murdered by the NYPD. Once again, on national television, these athletes used their platform to spread a message and speak up against police brutality.

In Fall of 2016, Colin Kaepernick infamously kneeled during the national anthem in support of the Black Lives Matter movement after the murders of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile. Kneeling to protest the history of anti-Black violence in the United States, Kaepernick also inspired athletes across sport, notably Megan Rapinoe, to take a knee during a USWNT soccer match a couple weeks after Kaepernick,

In 2020, the Womens National Basketball Association wore shirts in support of Rev. Warnock ahead of the 2020 election. Former senator and Atlanta Dream owner Kelly Loeffler was openly against the Black Lives Matter movement, and the players took a stand not only against her but took a stand for her opponent. The WNBA also dedicated the 2020 season to Breonna Taylor, a Black woman murdered by police, and the #SayHerName campaign.

From racial justice to gender equity and LGBTQ+ rights,, athletes continue to take political stances both on social media and on the field to bring awareness to the issues they care about today. Using the platform that sport provides is a powerful form of storytelling and allows the intersection of sport and social justice to be a place for meaningful and necessary conversation.

I would love to hear your thoughts on these displays of athlete activism and where you believe sport can continue to grow to be an agent of change.