Yo, is this Racism? – Owen Sinning

Hello, everyone! Today I will be talking about the systemic racial injustice that occurs in professional sports. Being a huge NFL and NBA fan, racial injustice is something that is rarely acknowledged by the sport industries. Racial injustice in the NFL first caught my attention when Collin Kaepernick went from being a starting Super Bowl quarterback, to having teams refuse to sign him because he kneeled during the national anthem. This explosion of media coverage and polarizing discourse about Kaepernick’s “right” to peacefully protest during a sports game shined a light on a grim reality for Black professional athletes: you are expected to provide entertainment, not political commentary. Coupled with this expectation is a lack of representation when it comes to these athletes’ management. In my Diary of Systemic Injustice, I wrote about the lack of diversity in coaches in the NFL, and how it is harder for African-American coaches to obtain and keep their jobs in the NFL. All of these professional sports leagues suffer from effects of the same racial injustice from top to bottom. From players to coaches to front office executives, the lack of support for African-American players, and the lack of diversity in the coaching and front office staff.

On Sept 1, 2016, Collin Kaepernick would take a knee that would change not only his own life, but the sports world as we knew it. Before Collin Kaepernick kneeled during the national anthem, he previously had sat on the bench during its playing, to protest the callous instances of police brutality and racial inequality that many Black people still face today. At first, no one even realized that Kaepernick was sitting during the national anthem, and there was no big deal made about it. Then, Kaepernick decided to take a knee, igniting a heated debate within the NFL fanbase (and eventually many around the world). Rather than view Kaepernick as someone using their First Amendment right to peacefully protest, he was painted by many as disrespectful towards the United States and the military. Taking a knee caused a lot of negative attention and pushback for Kaepernick, and he eventually ended his career in the NFL because of it. Although he was the one who opted out of his contract with the 49ers, the team’s general manager went on to confirm that even if he had not opted out, he would have been cut. Kaepernick was essentially tossed out of the NFL for protesting racial injustice in the United States. The worst part of the situation was the blatant refusal from the many to see the real problem. Collin Kaepernick put his career on the line to protest against police brutality and bring light to the racial discrimination Black people face, but he was portrayed to be someone disrespecting the United States and its armed forces. If Americans had accepted and been more willing to receive Kaepernick’s message, would there have been any police reform, less police brutality today, and would victims of police brutality like George Floyd and Breonna Taylor still be alive? Unfortunately, you cannot change the past, and because of America’s ignorance, police brutality and discrimination is still grossly rampant in the United States.

Minority players are often subject to more scrutiny and harsher criticism. One example of this today is with upcoming 2021 draft picks Justin Fields (Black) and Mac Jones (white). Being an Ohio State football super-fan, I will try to explain this with as little bias as possible. Justin Fields is a much more athletic quarterback and playmaker than Mac Jones, yet supposed character concerns have caused Fields’ stock to fall, all the while Mac Jones draft stock has slowly been rising. The “character flaws” Justin Fields faces are based off rumors about Fields not wanting to be friends with new teammates at Ohio State. Fields, the same guy who has an Instagram account for his dog, has faced much criticism because of supposed callousness, while Mac Jones, who has a DUI, is praised for his knowledge of the game. The inequality in treatment that white and minority players face in the NFL shows systemic racial injustice is present in the NFL. Another example of this is seen with the handling of white NFL quarterback Ben Roethlisberger (accused of two counts of sexual assault) and Antonio Brown (Black, accused of sexual assault). Both players are accused of the same crime, yet only one was released from the team. Can you guess which one? If you guessed Antonio Brown, you are correct.  Brown went from being one of the best wide receivers in the NFL, to struggling to find another team to play for because he was accused of sexual assault. On the other hand, Roethlisberger, who was accused of two sexual assaults, was not released from the team and received no punishment from the NFL. Roethlisberger still has his career and his status, while a Black man who faced the same charge saw his career become derailed.

Another problem with professional sports is the inequality in the amount of minority players and coaches. Below are two pictures displaying the amount of minority players and coaches in major American professional sports leagues.

73.2% of the NFL’s player base are minorities, while only 12.5% of coaches are minorities. What is the cause of this underrepresentation when comparing the players and coaches? One could attempt to argue that it could be due to a lack of available minority coaches in comparison to white coaches, or that less minorities want to coach in the NFL. Unfortunately, this does not seem to be the case. More often than not, less experienced, white coaches are frequently given coaching jobs over more qualified people of color. The problem is simple and the racial inequality is not hard to miss. Many older white owners are seemingly afraid to give the power of their organization over to minorities. They have no problem making millions off the minorities that play in their leagues, but when it comes to handing over authority of their franchise to a minority, that’s where they draw the line. Now, I’m not saying that all team owners are racists, but I do believe that racism plays a huge factor in the amount of minority coaches and General Managers in these leagues. While the NFL has outwardly taken measures to combat this, such as the Rooney Rule (There must be at least one minority interviewed for a vacant head coach or General Manager), the necessary implementation of this rule shows that there is definitely evident prior discrimination in the hiring of General Managers and Head Coaches in the league.

Another league that has high inequality in the amount of minority Head Coaches and players is the NBA, with minority players making up 83.1% of the league and minority coaches only making up 26.6%. While this is better than the NFL, there are still improvements that need to be made when it comes to racial injustice. For example, in 2014, the owner of the Los Angeles Clippers was caught saying racist remarks, and was fined and forced to sell his team. Racism is a huge factor in discrimination against minority Coaches and General Managers. Black players like Lebron James, who consistently speaks out against racial injustice, are met with this response: “Shut up and play.” This gross response show that racial discrimination occurs not only from the owners, but also the fans. Fortunately, the NBA is taking great strides and paving the way on how to handle racism, has taken police brutality and inequality head on, and has outwardly condemned it. A great showcase of this is the use of the NBA bubble that existed for the 2020 NBA Playoffs. Due to the pandemic, it was unsurprisingly that many players were weary about returning and joining the bubble in order to safely compete in the playoff games. However, others took this as a chance to show solidarity with Kaepernick and the Black community. In the opening game of the restart, the Utah Jazz and New Orleans Pelicans connected to make a stand that night, and they all kneeled around the Black Lives Matter wording in the center of the court during the anthem. Along with this, many activists and politicians participated in Zoom conferences and focused on using their influence to advocate for Black Americans like never before seen in a professional sport league.

All in all, it is clear that racism in professional sports is present, and has existed since the founding of these major sports leagues. Despite how embedded in these industries racial injustice may be, many leagues are taking proactive steps to fight against further acts of injustice. With a major league like the NBA leading the way during such an irresolute time, one thing is clear. The players, league executives, and public are becoming less and less tolerant when it comes to racial injustice in these industries. Hopefully, as more players and coaches confront the racial issues present in these professional sports leagues, not only will it change discrimination in their league, but also throughout the country.

Works Cited

Bailey, Analis. “On This Day Four Years Ago, Colin Kaepernick Began His Peaceful Protests during the National Anthem.” USA Today, Gannett Satellite Information Network, 26 Aug. 2020, www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nfl/2020/08/26/colin-kaepernick-started-protesting-day-2016/3440690001/.

Fletchpost. “’Dear Black Athlete’ Examines Issues of Race and Sports in This Moment of Protest.” The Undefeated, The Undefeated, 11 Apr. 2018, theundefeated.com/features/dear-black-athlete-issues-of-race-sports-birmingham/.