Racism in Sports
By Noah Schimanski
The Marshall Henderson Effect
On January 5th 2012, at 1:24 A.M. two African American players from the Ole Miss Basketball Team were arrested on suspicion of having drugs.(Dearse Edward:The Portrayal of Race, Ethnicity and Nationality in Televised International Sporting Events) Later, they were both dismissed from the team. Then Coach Andy Kennedy, Announced later in the semester that he will allow Marshall Henderson {a white player} to join the team. Henderson tested positive for cocaine, marijuana and alcohol in January 2012. They don’t seem to care that a white person does drugs and more serious drugs at that. But when an African American is on suspicion of drugs he is immediately kicked off the team. That seem a little racist. People might say “Marshall Henderson has changed”. Thats not even the slightest bit true. Marshall Henderson is the same person he was he showed us that when he raised both his middle fingers at fans after losing to La Salle.(Deadspin:How Marshall Henderson Gets Away with being Marshall Henderson) That show’s us that he is responsible right? Every responsible college athlete flips off the crowd. He simply gets away with being himself because he’s white. This is one of the most racist moments ever to happen in sports.
Arthur Ashe
He was a very focused man and he opened the door for many young African American tennis players.
Marshall Henderson
He is known for his crazy emotional out bursts.
Danny Rose
He was beaten up by the Serbian Under 21 team after there match in which England won 2-0
Racism in European Sports too
Donacasters defense men Danny Rose had a tough trip to Serbia earlier this year. They made monkey noises when he ran on to the pitch and whenever he touched the ball. When he picked it up for a throw-in, they hurled stones at his head. At the final whistle, the defeated Serbian players surrounded Rose, pushed and slapped him. He was brutally beaten and the Serbian Under 21 team still hasn't apologized to Rose.
African Americans Cowards?
I have heard over and over in my life that African Americans are cowards. That is just not true and Arthur Ashe is a prime example of that. Arthur Ashe was a professional tennis player in the 70s. Arthur was the first African American selected for the Davis cup team.("Arthur Ashe." Wikipedia. ) That made him the only player ever to win both a national and an amateur national Champioship. Arthur now had a courage award named after him. He didn’t have an easy road. He was the only black tennis player in his day. He made it so other young African American boy and girls could become tennis players. Arthur was diagnosed with HIV/ AIDS he got it through an unsterile blood transfusion in the hospital. He lived with it for a few years and eventually passed away. If you looked in a dictionary and looked at the word courage you would see a picture of his face. Up until this day he is one of my greatest role models.
Email: schimanN@mcfsd.org