Black Coaches In Professional Sports example essay topic

Exercise Science: Racial Issues in Sports Are Certain Races Biologically more apt at certain types of sports? Why are there very few African American hockey players in the NHL and why do white males tend to dominate this sport? Why do black males dominate basketball, is it because they can jump higher? What about golf, why don't we see any black males in this sport? Would you consider Tiger woods the first black golf champion in history?

Does racism play a major role in sports? Why does it still exist? According to pro bowl runner Ricky Watters "Race is an issue everywhere and it always will be". There are many questions that need to be answered. Throughout this independent study project each question will be thoroughly discussed, as the reader sits back to learn about racism and how it affects many individuals in professional sports.

Discrimination is an ongoing issue that will be discussed in this independent study specifically on racism in sports and why people believe blacks are better at certain sports than others. I've often marveled at the ability of sports to bring people together. My experience in sports as a child and teenager has been a very positive experience. One of the reason's why is because racial issues were never a problem, it n ever affected me as a player. According to Jean Boler "If you are a young white female or male, you are less likely to be a victim of discrimination, but you " re certainly not immune". Sports teams were a way to meet new people and work hard as a team, gaining leadership, dependability, responsibility and wholesomeness.

In grade seven, I figure skated competitively at the cricket club, about four times a week. There was only one black figure skater, and she skated at the same time as me. Myself, and some other girls always teased her because she was different. This girl was discriminated against, and we didn't even know it was occurring, we didn't know better.

Discrimination is unfair treatment. It is being penalized for characteristics a person was born with or can't change, such as race, gender and ethnic background. The ability of natural talent to overcome racial issues have been celebrated since the integration of baseball, as Denzel's blockbuster hit, "Remember the Titans". The main theme in this movie was "we shall over come". This is referring to the discrimination against blacks and how they will rise above it, and become stronger human beings. Many people have come up with personal theories to prove why blacks are better in certain sports then whites.

Some say genetics plays a role. Some have called into the question of the absence of minority black coaches in professional sports. While the issues surrounding race and sports have long been debated for example; are blacks genetically faster, are whites' better quarterbacks? There has been a changing status of the black athlete over the last fifty years. Since World War (1947) Two the world of sports in the United States has undergone many changes. In the pre-World War Two years, the black athlete was restricted from competition in all professional sports.

The Olympics was the only place where black athletes could participate. White peoples made up myths that blacks suffered from low intelligence, criminal tendencies, and inferior physicality. After the war it uplifted many organizations the National Urban League, the National Association for the advancement of colored people, as well as the congress of Racial Equality. People began to treat black people as equal citizens. Jackie Robinson was signed to the baseball's Brooklyn Dodgers in 1946. Black's were able to enter basketball leagues as well as football leagues.

Both, Tennis and golf are major sports today, but in the period of World War two they had not yet reached the prominence they have gained in recent years. In these two sports the "whites only" policy was the rule. In 1969, one of the first African Americans won a major tournament. Today there are still no more than two black players on the regular tour and three on the senior tour.

These numbers are ridiculously low and it is not caused because of continued discrimination and impoverishment of approximately tow fifths of the black population which makes it impossible for young black men and women to afford the equipment. It is true that black athletes have a very difficult time trying to achieve positions as coach, manager or executive ranks of professional sports as well as college and university ranks. The first black manager in the majors was in 1978. The organization that has done the best hiring of black coaches has been the National Basketball Association.

In the NBA, black players consist of 70% of the majority. The NBA had only five black head coaches. Some people believe that the African American is more naturally "agile" than intelligent in comparison to white people. The myth of black athletic superiority leads scouts and coaches to evaluate black athletes with a higher expectation in there mind. Therefore the black needs to exhibit a higher level of skill or performance to impress. In most films basketball is portrayed as a sport for youth that live in the ghettos.

Black men, like Magic Johnson, Bill Russel and Michel Jordan completely transformed the game of basketball. The athletes income has also changed, in the 1960's and 70's black athletes were financially undervalued. But, in the 80's and 90's the situation of course dramatically changed. In 1990 the twelve highest paid players in National Basketball Association were all black. Through the information just given you can see, the extreme transformation of black throughout the years.

Although, some still say "nothing has changed since slavery". A black political scientist insists that things had gotten no better for black people in this country since 1619. There are twenty seven minority players in the National Hockey league (NHL). Fifteen of them are black.

Five of those play on the same team. The lack of minorities in professional ice hockey can be largely attributed to the expensive start up costs of the sport and the location of ice arenas, making it beyond the reach of many lower income families. Diversity Inc. reports that the NHL is taking steps to increase minority participation in hockey. According to Martin "We are making great strides in making the game more accessible". It is said that there will be many more minorities to be seen in the near future.

In the history of sports we mainly emphasize on male athletes. Women in general are rarely mentioned. But in 1927, there were two events for black women and by the time of the 1948 Olympics a large amount of black women represented the United States. A very famous athlete who Wilma Rudolph won three gold medals and her grace and charm captivated the world.

Her performance influenced many black female teenagers with many taking an interest in track and field. There are many Black hopes that have lived on in history. One to mention is the famous Jackie Robinson. Jackie Robinson once said years ago "I am a black man in a white man's world". African Americans athletes have gained respectability and acceptance since Jackie Robinson first broke the color barrier in 1947 when he joined the Dodgers. Fifty years after he integrated baseball, it is now clear that equality of opportunity in America's top team sports has lead to black supremacy.

Rickey who was the president of Brooklyn Dodgers chose Robinson to integrate baseball. He chose Robinson not only because of his talent but because of his mental toughness. Robinson says "I want to warn the white world that young blacks today are not willing - nor should they be - to endure the humiliations that I did". A random African American is much more likely to reach the NFL and thirty times more likely to make the NBA than a random non black.

The whites then conclude that since blacks are better at sports, then whites must be more intelligent. Blacks just concentrate overwhelmingly on games where they are most apt to possess natural edges. But, the question is, Are blacks the best athletes? Men of the West African descent appear to be stronger performers on average in basketball and football.

But are basketball and football the best tests of athleticism? How can we say that basketball and football are more challenging then the English Channel swimming? If we think the greatest basketball player is the best athlete in the world then why did Jordan not succeed at baseball or golf? It's obvious that there are many skills, and therefore we can not claim that one man is better than another. Why do blacks dominate basketball and football? According to research blacks seem to have a physical advantage in jumping and running.

Dr. Robert Banister says that "Black sprinters and black athletes in general, all seem to have certain natural anatomical advantages". A gold winning swimmer known as Carl Lewis says thinks the reason is clear, he says "Black -physically in many cases-are made better". Blacks generally carry less fat, and there bodies have longer levers. These two things help them sprint. Entine who is a famous scientist quotes that "West Africans, from whom most black Americans can claim their ancestry, have more fast twitch muscles and greater muscle mass. East Africans, have the edge in long distance running because they have greater lung capacity and fewer fast twitch muscles.

In a recent human genome study, the big announcement was race hardly exists beyond the obvious identifying physical characteristics. Genetically speaking, there are greater ranges of differences within races than between races. Some believe that it's the Black's unique history in America, and there exclusion from other occupations have produced the psychic addiction to success in sports and entertainment. Running is the cheapest and most equal opportunity sport. The world also seems to be more interested into watching a majestic black man tomahawking a dunk than by, say a 220 pound white woman swimming the Bering Strait. Pro sports make money largely by furnishing male fans with masculine role models, mighty warrior heroes with whom to identify.

The blacks now average more than twice as much each from endorsements as whites. Why are we not talking about white athletic superiority in winter sports... or in swimming or automobile racing or horseracing or golf or tennis and so forth? Scientists ask do these black advantages originate in culture or in biology? They answer that it could be one hundred percent inheritance or one hundred percent upbringing. Tiger Woods is not "black" - he's 'Cablasian'. He's good not just because he hits the ball far, but because he has worked hard to perfect his swing.

He beats people on the green, that's not physical - that's mental. Not only is he an extraordinary athlete he dedicates a significant portion of his time to recruiting minority and underprivileged kids to his sport. The Tiger Woods Foundation offers clinics across the U.S. A that reach out to the children who might not otherwise have access to golf. Jack Nicklaus is one of the greatest golfers, who played the sport.

He was a very strong component for integrating golf. He has designed many golf courses with the idea that each one must be integrated. Although, Jack Nicklaus says that there are not more African American golfers playing at the highest level in this sport because "Blacks have different muscles that react in different ways". At times people say Nicklaus is racist. But discrimination is not his intention, he's at times blatant to the forms of racism. Nicklaus said after Tiger Woods won the National Amateur Golf Tournament, "One black star or only a few black stars does not mean that African Americans have the correct muscle coordination for the sport".

Again this comment can come across racist. If African Americans were given the opportunity to play at the highest level of golf they would then develop the correct muscle coordination. Tiger Woods is a great example that shows the issue of racism in sports. Tiger Wood's won the 1997 Masters tournament by twelve strokes, this made him a social spokesman fro black athletes. The media obsessively envisions all racial issues as merely black and white. The media focuses on racial issues and it has become bothersome and more tiring everyday.

The media in this case wanted to define Tiger as the first "Black" to win a major championship. Right after he won he as expected to comment on how his accomplishment, as the first black winner of the most Southern of all PGA tournaments. Nike wanted to do what they do best and market him as black jock. Woods now joins Micheal Jordan among the company's most visibly promoted human icons.

Nike paid Jordan more than the annual payroll of its entire Indonesian workforce. Woods has been at fault because he has not been vocal enough about his race. Tiger refused to sell out to Nike because he felt so strongly about his multiracial roots. He thought of himself as a 'Caublinasian'.

Claubinasian is a short form for one quarter black, one eighth Indian and one half East Asian. People then ask because he is multiracial would that make him genetically better than the rest of us? Scientists have replied and said maybe. Many people think that it would be good and useful for Tiger to exert pressure on Nike to clean up its labor practices. But the idea that they have some obligation to do so because of who they are as black individuals, or as Asian American athletic icons is wrong. This status is rewarding, but tiring at the same time.

This shows the media's involvement in racial issues and how it affects the individual. Another recent example of racism in sports, was brought upon the Williams sisters. Williams was in Belgium last week as a top seed in the Antwerp Diamond Games, and admitted there were some areas - such as racism-in sport-where she would have to fight her own battles. Venus and Serena were criticized for things that other players were not she said. "I know I can't change the world" Williams said. So she said she'd just have to win her battles by proving her point on court.

"I'll let my racquet do the talking. If anyone has a problem with me, let's just play a match", she said. Serena continues to say "I just don't understand it. If we are successful, there is a problem, and when we " re not successful, then there is also a problem. It's like we are never able to do things right". This racial issue; expresses that even though we " ve come a long way in equal opportunity in sports, there is still a long way to go.

White and Blacks should be equal in our society. White's should not be categorized as more intelligent, and blacks shouldn't be categorized as more agile. We should remember that it is indeed "The brain, not the heart and lungs", which is the "critical organ" behind every achievement and that tremendous desire and commitment to each success story. We have to accept that African Americans have excelled in all these fields which were open to them, therefore if they were open to every area of society they would excel at all of them. The key idea here is equal opportunity.

Americans should be mindful of the racist attitude that is embodied in most of us. Sometimes, the person doesn't realize that they have a racist view. If we could change our mindful racist attitudes it would bring America closer to achieving equal opportunity and we would see a large amount of African Americans participating in society. If we are able to alter our racial attitudes we can become more powerful, responsible, compassionate and a wiser nation all together.

All Americans should recognize the potential for intelligence, tenacity, and creativity that no longer exists because of racist attitudes toward African Americans. Either white or black it doesn't matter; we need to learn to respect one another, and learn to accept each other in today's society. If this can be done, the discriminative attitudes will disappear and we will live happily among each other.

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