Why Every Black Athlete Should Aim To Be Like "The Greatest"
"I am America. I am the part you won’t recognize. But get used to me. Black, confident, cocky, my name not yours. My religion, not yours; my goals, my own; get used to me.” -Muhammad Ali
There are some who say sports is just for entertainment and that politics has no place at an occasion where people attend or watch just to see a "sporting event." That is easy to say when your political world or the plight of your people or your neighborhood is not constantly on your mind. Aware and awake athletes know there is no bigger stage in this world to put on display the injustices of others, than a sporting event. This stage allows them to show the hypocrisy that this country is guilty of. To make money off the backs of young black men, but then turn a blind eye to them when they want to use the same stage to show the world what life is like when they leave this court or this field or this arena. They return to just being another black man on the street. A street that most, whom have made money on or viewed from the comfort of their living room or up street tavern- will never know. How can we sit around and not speak up when we have unimaginable violence and injustices in our neighborhoods, in the workforce and an all time low on access to resources? How do we remain silent when the powers that be have closed our schools, and those that remain open have done away with the creative and rejuvenating aspects of the school day? No more gym class, music, art and theater.
Like it or not, sports broadcasts, where millions tune in, are the perfect avenue to inform the world of what is going on because the major news networks won't show it. So black men should aim to be like Ali, and enlighten the world that you are intelligent individuals and want to make better lives for yourselves but the system is set up-intentionally- against you. Educate the world that your people are not lazy, but this is simply a stereotype perpetuated by certain groups to make themselves feel superior. For far too long the black male and female have been at the bottom of this nations proverbial totem pole. It is not unless he/she can entertain the nation does he/she gain some sort of worth in the eyes of many. Whether it be a fist of solidarity, a shirt with a message, or monetary donations to make up for the lack of resources to their neighborhoods, the black man must take the fate of his people into his own hands and encourage his brothers to do the same. If we are waiting on a group of people who see us merely as entertainers, we will never all achieve our full potential. For we are not all entertainers. We are a community of bankers and lawyers, doctors and astronauts, teachers and writers. We are artists and architects. landscapers and carpenters, fitness instructors and chefs. So if they are going to use you and recognize you only when you are entertaining them, then while you have center stage, like Muhammad Ali, give them a show.
"I know I got it made while the masses of black people are catchin’ hell, but as long as they ain’t free, I ain’t free.”
