Why I Idolize Athletes More Than Politicians

“Most people think basketball is a way out, but for me it’s always been a way in.” 

-John Isaacs, African American player during the Big Five Era.   

In the current state of our country, democracy is a threatening power, and fascism is a prevailing unit. The people no longer harbor critical thinking skills that allow them to detect propaganda and to sympathize with those other than themselves. We are in a crucial period where the common people are louder than our own politicians. What our country needs is to stop leaning left and right, and to instead come together as one to protect democracy. 

What is most ironic about American history is that I, a former attendee of American public schools, have learned more about civil rights from the sports industry than the textbooks that I studied in school. Sports have taught me that athletes are better activists than politicians. Athletes have no demand or requirement to advocate for anything. They are given the greatest quality of life, with opportunities for immense wealth, fame, stability, great health, and personal and professional success. The athletes who build foundations for charity, who travel the globe to build better communities, who protest during the National Anthem, and who march the streets with their voices high and loud, are the true superstars of our nation. They are the advocates who do what the people of our government should have already accomplished, as they are the ones being paid to do so. 

“Reagan was the smiling face calling for a new “Morning in America.” But there was nothing new about his agenda: making the rich richer, attacking unions, promoting U.S. imperial power, and abusing the most vulnerable in society.” (David Zirin, 2009). Our country is in a crucially comparable time with the civil rights movement. Those who belong to the upper class have restricted the full rights of the First Amendment for those that they believe do not deserve its rights. Propaganda is in our advertisements, in the speeches from politicians, and the voices of the people living inside the White House. Those who support democracy have fought back with protests surpassing thousands of participants, films and books, and actions taken by professional athletes. 

During the pandemic in 2020, the NBA formed ‘The Bubble’ to ensure the safety of their players, staff, and fans by hosting games with no attendees. Games were still streamed on national television where players continued to stand as activists against the injustices in our country. A moment I consider gravely memorable from ‘The Bubble’ is an image of the Los Angeles Lakers bowing during the National Anthem while wearing shirts that said “Black Lives Matter.” This act of protest advocated for the George Floyd tragedy and the equal rights of American citizens. A similar protest occurred in 1968 at the Olympic Games in Mexico City when Tommie Smith and John Carlos raised their fists during the National Anthem to advocate for similar rights. If you really pay attention, and really listen and look around at what is happening to yourself, to your neighbors, to the government, and to the media, it will be as clear as the skies on a summer day: we are headed for a divided and fascist future. One that is mighty comparable to the history we are not supposed to repeat.

The key to defeating the divided and oppressed future of this country is to rid ourselves of red and blue, and blend together in purple. The establishment of the United States fueled the movement of activism for those whose rights were threatened. The common people have always been louder and more impactful than the voices and actions of the government. We must take advantage of this, and once again recognize that we are the ones with the opportunity to be the most proactive at the largest scale. If this weren’t true, then the lives of a million Native Americans would have not been avenged by abandoning concentration camps and re-establishing the rightful owners to the land that our founding fathers stole. If this weren’t true, segregation would still be alive in schools, offices, restrooms, parks, and public transportation. If this weren’t true, women would not be able to vote in this country. 

“I would start by saying I think that sports is the closest thing to a national language that we have. The most wide watched television program in the history of the United States in the Super Bowl. It’s something that has created a common basis for people across lines of race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality to actually have discussions about things that are happening in the country, through sports.” (David Zirin, 2013). NBA stars Carmelo Anthony, Chris Paul, and Dwayne Wade started the Social Change Fund to fight systematic racism, police brutality, and to expand voting access. A’ja Wilson’s foundation is dedicated to children who struggle with bullying and dyslexia. In 1996, NBA player Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf protested the National Anthem by refusing to stand because he considered the American flag a symbol of tyranny and oppression due to his Islamic faith and experiences with racism. In 2016, NFL player Colin Kaepernick made the same move to protest injustice. I could spend a long time listing the other instances where athletes protested this country, and the causes in which they support and contribute to, but you should understand by now the power and influence that sports has—and the reason why I idolize athletes more than politicians.