Race in Sport

Are there genetic advantages in terms of race?

By: Brandon Akins



Source: Chillmedia

On November 15th, 2012 in class we talked about race in sport and the stereotypes brought with it. In today society it is seen as the sports based of athletic ability (speed, agility, quickness, and explosion) are dominated by Black athletes, sports such as football and basketball. I only mention these sports these are the most marketable and bring in the most money of the sports. Also these are the top two sports that are almost based solely on athletic ability. Which I find kind of ironic because the these sports are dominated by black athletes and yet we know not to much about their history in the sport, which was a topic Dr. Higgs opened my eyes to but that's neither here nor there. She also brings up another good point in class about the stereotypes in sport regarding to race, and this was most of us fall into these race stereotypes. Think about it most of us have played pick up games of a sport whether it was in school or in your neighborhood, who are the first people selected to be on teams.. the nerdy "white" kid in the back or the athletic looking "black" kid in the front. I believe  the picture to the top right kind of define the stereotypes about race in sport within our society. Is this to say white people can not like athletic no but genetically it is more common for black people to look it because the build muscle easy and typically have fast metabolisms. Do I agree with these stereotypes? The answer is yes, this is because numbers do not lie and statistics show that these stereotypes hold true. Dr.Higgs provided us with a couple figures that back these stereotypes: 87% of the NBA is black and 70% of the NFL is also black. Then from there you break it down by position in football your "skill" positions (running back, wide receiver, corner back, and safety) are dominated by black athletes. You take it to the NBA almost every position on the court is dominated on the court. Now on page 282 Coakley talks about Race, Race Ideology, and Sports. He starts off by saying that none of us are born with a race ideology, but that we acquire it over time as we interact with others and learn to give meanings to physical characteristics such as skin color, eye shape, the color and texture of hair, or even specific bodily movements. And that is when we as people begin to classify other people into racial and associating categories with particular psychological and emotional characteristics, intellectual and physical abilities, and even patterns of action and lifestyle. I think this goes hand in hand with what we discussed in class and that was it is not that black athletes are born better but given the demographics of where they grow up as opposed to white athletes it is more available for them to play these sports. Black kids typically grow up in urban areas and white kids grow up in suburban areas. So with black kids having more access to local recreational centers and parks it is easier for them to participate in these sports, with white kids typically living far away from the city they tend to play individual sports because they are far away from the bulk of the population and usually have the financial background to participate. Black kids usually do not have these resources to participate so they gravitate more to sports that do not cost as much and are at their disposal. I recently read an article " ESPN Survey on Race and Sports Reveals Huge Differences in the of Whites and African" where it talks about how black people even though are presented the same opportunities feel like they are not equal ones, the article goes into more detail. I know the stereotypes are basically in stone but how do you feel about them? Do you believe them to be true?