Professional sports is intertwined with American socio-politics, including the historic movements for civil rights and to counter imperialist war. Dave Zirin's recent book, What's my Name Fool? Sports and Resistance in the United States examines this history with a progressive's eye on racism, sexism, and homophobia in sports, along with the profound connection between sports and patriotic nationalism.
As the 2004 World Series champion Boston Red Sox have traded in on their popularity to become one of the more profitable franchises in sports, it is important to recognize the history of racism in Boston and the organiation itself. The Red Sox were the last team in Major League Baseball to integrate, more than 10 years after Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier in 1947. Zirin, and others, suggest that the 86-year "Curse of the Bambino," is just punishment for this racist record.
The taint of racism is apparent in Boston even today, when radio call-in guests and hosts routinely batter the Sox' superstar Dominican players with a racist tone: last winter on Boston's most popular sports radio network, WEEI (the highest-rated in the country, they proudly proclaim on-air as they openly seek advertisers), the station aired a racist "comedy bit" on former Red Sox star pitcher Pedro Martinez, who opted to sign with the New York Mets for more money than the Sox were willing to offer.
The bit used an actor who portrayed a stereotyped Dominican, with a racist, phony accent, depicting a greedy, foolish Martinez.
Zirin points out another recent example: John Dennis, a WEEI host, commented on a photo of an escaped gorilla standing near a city bus stop. He said it was "probably a Metco gorilla waiting for a bus to take him to [the affluent white suburb] Lexington." Metco is a program for inner city kids, mostly black students, to attend public schools in the suburbs.
Professional baseball, football, and to a lesser degree other sports, are also a consistent source of nationalistic propaganda during half-time shows and beyond, particularly at the Super Bowl, the most-watched program on television every year and a bonanza for advertising dollars for the broadcast media.
Article comments
1 - Natalie Bennett
Fascinating, and scary! Thanks John
2 - rwood
David Mirin's application for water boy must have been turned down by some astute coach during his formative years because of his lifetime subscription to The Daily Worker.
3 - Ralph Jamerson
Zirin, an obvious pacifist leftest weenie, is merely riding the back of an American sports icon (Alli quote & picture on book cover) in order to spew his socialist dogma and hatred of the current administration. This is completely evident in his discription of patriotic displays during national sporting events as promoting the administrations "business of war". When will peacenick pacifists like Zirin ever understand that the only thing that can insure "peace" in our world is maintaining and displaying the force necessary to preserve and insure it.
4 - Dman
I love how on one account, Zirin is spitting lefty garbage and the other Ali is a icon. Go figure! It must mean that some lefties are OK.
5 - Lee
This article is quite enlightening, although the prevalence of racisim in the U.S. is, and will continue to be, an insidious presence within our modern society; The concept of "Having arrived", is merely a joke, as the amount of money, celebrity, and upper-level education certainly doesn't diminish the color of your skin, or the fact, that no matter what you become, "Black" will be the operative word...Collectivism among a country's citizens always brings about a warped sense of power (Nazi Germany???); However, people, while yelling and jumping in fervent favor of their teams, don't quite see the "Big Picture", i.e. Corporate input within the sports organization...Why is it, that an athelete is paid, respected and regarded far more favorably than an effective educator??? It seems necessary, that we, as "intelligent" people, attempt to redesign our priorties, and direct our collective strengths in the right direction, rather than focusing on blindly filling the pockets of some corporate marketing whiz, under the guise of "rooting for the team"...