Ethnicity in Sports
This paper asks two main questions: Is sport relatively free of prejudice and discrimination found in other aspects of society? Is it a way toward upward mobility for underrepresented groups? The common belief these days is that the sporting world is integrated very well, and that athletes and people that work with them have put their prejudice aside. When African-Americans of a lower social class see the success of black athletes they think of it as a way of self-improvement and upward mobility in society. However, a closer look at the sports world shows that these beliefs may be false. Historically, there are many examples of prejudice and discrimination in sport. There were very few non-whites in the major sport organizations before 1950. Blacks played sports but they played on their own teams, and in their own baseball and basketball leagues. When they did excel in sports, it was either ignored, minimized, or attributed to their "animal cunning." According to experts, "seeing blacks as subhuman made it easier for whites to explain how and why blacks could defeat whites in contests of physical skill. After all, the argument went, blacks were mo
Sometimes these opinions are prejudiced. These numbers are not very promising for anyone whose goal is to attain a better position in life through professional sports. Some blacks have made it in sport, and others will make it in the future, but the role of sports in the lives of blacks has been blown out of proportion. NFL (1998-99) Black White Other* (%) (%) (%)Total Players 67 31 2Offense Quarterback 8 81 11Running back 87 13 0Wide receiver 92 8 0Center 17 83 0Guard 29 67 2Tight end 42 55 2Tackle 55 39 6Defense Cornerback 99 1 0Safety 91 9 0Linebacker 75 24 1Defensive end 79 19 2Defensive tackle 63 31 6 From the above discussion, it appears that prejudice and discrimination are still common in sports today. What is stacking? It is the practice of placing players in certain positions based on their ethnicity. As stated earlier, low income blacks have excelled in sports that require little and inexpensive equipment and training. " (Figler and Whitaker, 1994: 301) Another explanation for stacking is sociological. These sports make the most money out of all the other sports that are going on today. Some researchers feel that blacks are more likely to be seduced by sports opportunities because they " perceive more barriers to achievement in other activities. Secondly, money influences the players as well as the owners and coaches. As shown in the movie very few young athletes make it to college level competition. Dodgers, was asked about blacks being managers of a team.
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