Abstract

Where Are the Jocks for Justice?

The article looks at the political activity of athletes in the United States as of June 2004. Adonal Foyle is a center for the National Basketball Association's Golden State Warriors. Off the court he is an outspoken critic of the U.S. political system. Foyle's political activism is rare in the world of professional sports. Many athletes visit kids in hospitals, start foundations that fix inner-city playgrounds, create scholarship funds to help poor students attend college and make commercials urging kids to stay in school and say no to drugs. But when it comes to political dissent, few speak out on big issues like war, sweatshop labor, environmental concerns or the increasing gap between rich and poor. On the few occasions when they do express themselves, they are often met with derision and contempt. After breaking baseball's color line in 1947, Jackie Robinson was outspoken against racial segregation during and after his playing career. Contemporary activism has not infiltrated the locker rooms as it did in the past, in large measure because of dramatic improvements in athletes' economic situation.