I can safely say today that I’m not a fan of athletes getting political. In today’s permanently connected world, where tidbits of news become fully blown debates about society or politics within hours of going viral, the sneaky power that once was an athlete’s ability to make a stark political or social statement is completely lost. When Tommie Smith and John Carlos stood on the podium at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City with heads down and a fist, covered by a black glove, clenched and raised to the sky, it sent a clear, and powerful message. There was something drastically wrong with our society and it had been so for far, far too long.
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| Slightly more powerful than a Facebook post |
When Muhammed Ali refused to join the U.S. Army in protest of the Vietnam War, it was a big deal. Not just for society, but for Ali himself. He was arrested and stripped of his heavyweight title. Athletes are uniquely positioned in society to make powerful statements about serious things. This is so because sports tend to transcend the socio-political consciousness of individuals. We care about what happens on the field of play, about raw athletic ability, keenness of mind, and the truly fantastic combination of the two. Because fondness of a team, of a player transcends the other divisions we have amongst ourselves, when that moment happens where the apolitical becomes political, shockwaves are sent throughout the system.
However, for me the progression of time and the nature of our instantly viral world have tarnished an athlete’s ability to go political. What Smith and Carlos did over 50 years ago was subtle in its implementation, but profound in its setting. On a world stage, they made a powerful statement about race in the United States with a simple gesture. Perhaps because we have progressed from those days, there are just fewer opportunities.
Former slugging first baseman Carlos Delgado refused to stand during a singing of “God Bless America” some years ago to protest the Iraq War. It was effective in so far as everyone noticed it, but it required far too much explanation. Maybe Carlos didn’t think it through too well. In the end, it seemed like more people were offended by it because the singing of “God Bless America” in the middle of the 8th inning during Major League Baseball games was adopted in the fallout of 9/11. As a member of the New York Mets, that just didn’t go over so well.
During the stretch run of the 2004 season, former Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Curt Schilling started spouting political and publicly endorsed, if you can even call it that, the reelection bid for George W. Bush. Now, not only was he doing so in a decidedly blue state but in an election year where the challenger was a Senator from that very state. But because most Red Sox fans wanted a World Series more than they wanted George Bush out of office (and if any of them ever try to dissuade you otherwise, they’re flat out lying), the reaction was basically to pretend not to register. Like when someone says something really awkward that silences the room and before it becomes way too awkward someone else jump starts a conversation about what a nice day it was yesterday.
Of course, not all athletic acts of politics have been ineffectual. When the Phoenix Suns wore “Los Suns” jerseys as a way of protesting a recent Arizona state immigration law, it invoked images of a subtle but still in your face way of making a political statement. When hockey player Sean Avery publicly made statements in support of gay marriage, it sent multiple shockwaves. On the one hand, it’s a particularly divisive issue in our society today. On the other, many people who loved to hate Sean Avery for everything he’s done on the ice were forced to respect, or at least level with the guy for doing something seemingly so unlike his on ice persona.
Some of that was done away when he utilized an opportunity earlier this year to reopen his thoughts on homophobia. But he did so in an inexplicable fashion. In the aftermath of Wayne Simmonds, a black man and current member of the Philadelphia Flyers, dealing with having a banana thrown at him on the ice, Avery went to the press and said that Simmonds had launched homophobic slurs at him on the ice in the past. Somehow apologizing to the media for saying words that just come out in the heat of the moment became part of Simmonds having to deal with an incredibly ridiculous and offensive incident. Really Sean Avery? I’m not entirely sure defending some racist Detroit Red Wings fan (two really awful things if you ask me) is an effective way of communicating your views on homophobia.
So when I heard about Boston Bruins goaltender Tim Thomas refusing to attend the traditional champions visit at the White House, I expected there to be a juicy story behind it. At the very least, Thomas would release some treatise on the Obama administration or the national debt, something along these lines. Only to find out that he chose not to attend because he’s one of those odd anti-government anarchist types. As far as political statements go, I am the least bit impressed. First of all, I’ve never been able to understand this view. The government started growing beyond its constitutional conception as early as 1803 when Thomas Jefferson made the Louisiana Purchase. That was 16 years after the Constitution was signed. I mean, even engaging in this argument means operating under the assumption that a bunch of dudes in the 1780s knew what society would be like some 230 years later.
Thomas’ statement doesn’t just transcend sports; it transcends reason, but before I get too political myself, let’s just leave it on a joke about how goalies are always crazy. At the end of the day, what I care about most is what happens on, well in this case, the ice. I’m more concerned about whether Timmy can replicate his historic 2010 season and lead the Bruins to another Stanley Cup. I respect the fact that he has some deep personal beliefs and beyond what was required of him because it became news, he seems to not really want to talk about it. It’s the opposite of Sean Avery – he’s not going to utilize talking about a bad call or lengthy suspension as a metaphor for his anti-government beliefs. He just really didn’t want to go to the White House and while I find that weird (because it was probably cool) I’m not losing sleep over it.
A Closing Thought on the Super Bowl
The only time I’ve been close to this nervous for a Super Bowl was in 2001. Brady was a rookie who had gone on an improbable run with his team, part of that being a game that was played in a blizzard, decided by a field goal, and enabled in part by a rule effectively being invented on the spot. All that ran into Kurt Warner and the mighty Rams. I was afraid that the result would be what most of the country predicted. Instead, we got one of the most memorable upsets in recent Super Bowl history. People that have grown to hate Brady and New England for their continued success will still, now somewhat ashamedly, admit to having totally rooted for the Patriots in that game.
For a Patriots fan, the last four years have been a constant exercise in what should have been. In uniquely improbable fashion, the New York Giants ended the run at perfection with their own upset in 2007. Then we lost Brady for all of 2008. The following season ended in embarrassment as Ray Rice and the Ravens smoked New England at Gillette Stadium. The 2010 team bounced back from that loss to secure a bye and face our hated division rivals, the New York Jets, only to lose and have to endure the awful punishment of seeing Rex Ryan happy.
This year is different, though. At an overall of 15-3, the Patriots are somehow the underdog in this game. The Giants overall record of 12-7 doesn’t accurately depict how good Eli Manning and their offense has been. It doesn’t show how solid they’ve played defensively for the last two months. In 2007, the Giants had to somehow stop the Patriots offense, which they did, but the game still came down to one of the most improbable catches, and plays, in NFL playoff history.
I’m nervous, not because everything on paper looks to be in the Giants favor, but because my experience, at least this year, has been paper means absolutely nothing. On paper, the Eagles were supposed to go to the Super Bowl. On paper, that team became the Packers, who were supposed to, on paper, complete the 18-0 dream that the 2007 Patriots failed to realize. I have the feeling that this game will be well contested on both sides of the ball. I’m nervous because I think it will come down to some type of weird, improbable, and lucky play. I just really hope it’s an end around for 60 yards and a touchdown by Julian Edelman with one minute left in the game…something epic like that.
Photo Credit: Tommie Smith's Facebook page
