But if history is any guide, the marginalization of outspoken and high-profile black athletes will not stay a win forever. During the last half century, dominated as it has been by culture-rattling debates over race and social justice, there have been numerous examples of activist athletes who suffered ostracism and worse, only to see themselves welcomed and even glorified decades later by a society whose conscience finally caught up to the righteousness of their causes. The media who scorned them in the hottest moment of their protest produced respectful biopics and coolly reconsidered their roles in a much longer arc of history. In short, these kneeling football players’ reputations will likely be rehabilitated sufficiently that the general public who boycotted and harassed them for disrupting their entertainment with politics may well one day embrace them as unsung heroes. “This isn’t a win that history is going to look too kindly on,” said Lou Moore, a sports historian and Grand Valley State University professor. “It will take some time, but Kaepernick will be proven right.”
Curt Flood sued for free agency in Major League Baseball. Once accused of trying to destroy the sport, he has been honored at the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown. Muhammad Ali, the one-time draft dodger, is an American hero who was eulogized at his funeral by a former president. John Carlos and Tommie Smith, the track stars who received death threats for raising their fists on the medal stand at the 1968 Olympics, have statues at the Smithsonian’s museum of African American history.
Remarkably, the White House itself just delivered a lesson in how this evolution occurs.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member