{"id":1017,"date":"2016-09-22T08:30:44","date_gmt":"2016-09-22T13:30:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thesocietypages.org\/trot\/?p=1017"},"modified":"2016-09-21T11:30:57","modified_gmt":"2016-09-21T16:30:57","slug":"punters-and-protesters","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thesocietypages.org\/trot\/2016\/09\/22\/punters-and-protesters\/","title":{"rendered":"Punters and Protesters"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"San<\/a>
San Francisco 49ers’ Colin Kaepernick and Eric Reid kneel during the national anthem. Mike McCarn, Associated Press.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

More and more athletes are joining the San Francisco 49ers’ Colin Kaepernick in kneeling<\/a> during the \u201cStar Spangled Banner\u201d at the beginning of sporting events. Though this phenomenon has spurred controversy and heated exchanges, sports stars using their celebrity for civic action is not entirely new. After the police shootings of Eric Gardner, Michael Brown, Tamir Rice, and other unarmed black people, numerous members of the NBA and NFL wore hoodies that read\u00a0\u201cI Can\u2019t Breathe,\u201d (Eric Gardner\u2019s last words); others entered the game while making the \u201cHands Up, Don\u2019t Shoot!\u201d gesture championed by #BlackLivesMatter. Indeed, today\u00a0we are witnessing a resurgence of athlete advocacy<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

A common criticism of these athletes is that \u201cthey should just stick to sports!\u201d or that \u201cthey aren\u2019t supposed to talk about politics!\u201d In reality, however, athletes have been at the forefront of protests and civic action\u00a0for some time now, particularly in the 1960s. TSP Editor Doug Hartmann\u2019s popular book describes how the Civil Rights Movement provided the context for athletes to begin using their celebrity for greater causes. Similarly, Ben Carrington describes how racism has\u00a0shaped the <\/span>international <\/span><\/i>black-athlete-experience. Colonialism\u00a0and\u00a0contemporary globalization have made sports a site where racism is enacted and solidified, meaning athletes have had to think about these concepts–and fight against them–for a <\/span>long<\/span> time.<\/span><\/h5>\n