- Commissioner’s statement on Ventura, Marte
- Ronnie O’Sullivan: Masters champion ‘felt so vulnerable’ in final
- Arron Fletcher Wins 2017 WSOP International Circuit Marrakech Main Event ($140,224)
- Smith challenges Warner to go big in India
- Moncada No. 1 on MLB Pipeline’s Top 10 2B Prospects list
- Braves land 2 on MLB Pipeline’s Top 10 2B Prospects list
- Kingery makes MLB Pipeline’s Top 10 2B Prospects list
- New Zealand wrap up 2-0 after Bangladesh implosion
- Mathews, Pradeep, Gunathilaka to return to Sri Lanka
- Elliott hopes for rain for Poli
Activist: Athletes wield real power; action needed
- Updated: July 25, 2016
4:53 AM ET
Prominent sociologist and civil-rights activist Dr. Harry Edwards says the efforts of superstars such as Carmelo Anthony and LeBron James in using their platforms as a means for social change reflects an evolution in power among top black athletes but that action will be required to effect real change.
Edwards, a professor emeritus at the University of California-Berkeley, said in an interview published by The Associated Press that athletes “have the capability today that we only dreamed about in the 1960s when only one or two athletes even had endorsements.”
Edwards dated the punctuated moments of the evolution back to the early part of the 20th Century, saying they began as fights to gain legitimacy, then access, before moving on to respect and dignity — and ultimately power.
“Now the struggle is for power. And these men have power,” Dr. Harry Edwards said. “So they have a different forum than we had in the late 1960s to be able to go on network television and make a statement .. … That’s an exercise of power.” David Schmitz Photography, San Jose State University Commencement 2016
“Joe Louis and Jack Johnson and Jesse Owens struggled for legitimacy,” Edwards said. Then “you began this struggle for access. Which is what Jackie Robinson and Larry Doby and Kenny Washington and all those guys were involved in. In the 1960s, the struggle was for respect and dignity.
“Now the struggle is for power. And these men have power. So they have a different forum than we had in the late 1960s to be able to go on network television and make a statement concerning violence and the killing of black men, women and children in this country. … That’s an exercise of power.”
Anthony, the New York Knicks star forward, is taking a break from his preparation with the Olympic basketball team Monday to host a meeting in Los Angeles with athletes, politicians and people in the community to advance the conversation about what he’s called a broken system.
Anthony’s meeting in Los Angeles coincides with the latest stop on the Olympic men’s team exhibition schedule as the Americans prepare for the Rio Games.
Edwards pointed to the need for progress on both an individual and collective level. He said trust and respect needs to be built between individuals and police, and both sides need to acknowledge wrongdoing. There are criminals in the community that deserve to be arrested and there are rogue officers that deserve to be held accountable for excessive force.
Editor’s PicksMelo planning meeting to address police violence
Carmelo Anthony hopes the meeting among community leaders in …
continue reading in source espn.go.com
