Not the Triumph but the Struggle CRITICAL AMERICAN STUDIES SERIES GEORGE LIPSITZ, UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA–SAN DIEGO SERIES EDITOR Not the Triumph but the Struggle The 1968 Olympics and the Making of the Black Athlete Amy Bass Critical American Studies University of Minnesota Press Minneapolis • London Copyright 2002 by the Regents of the University of Minnesota All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publisher. Published by the University of Minnesota Press 111 Third Avenue South, Suite 290 Minneapolis, MN 55401-2520 http://www.upress.umn.edu Printed in the United States of America on acid-free paper Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Bass, Amy. Not the triumph but the struggle : the 1968 Olympics and the making of the Black athlete / Amy Bass. p. cm. — (Critical American studies series) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0-8166-3944-2 1. Olympic Games (19th : 1968 : Mexico City, Mexico) 2. African American athletes. 3. Olympic Project for Human Rights. I. Title: 1968 Olympics and the making of the Black athlete. II. Title. III. Series. GV722 1968 .B38 2002 796.48 — dc21 2002005310 The University of Minnesota is an equal-opportunity educator and employer. 12 11 10 09 08 07 06 05 04 03 02 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 The most important thing in the Olympic Games is not to win but to take part, just as the most important thing in life is not the triumph but the struggle. The essential thing is not to have conquered, but to have fought well. —The Olympic Creed, 1896 We believe in fulWllment—some might call it salvation—through struggle. We reject any philosophy that insists on measuring life’s success on the achieving of speciWc goals—overlooking the process of living. More afWrmatively and as a matter of faith, we believe that, despite the lack of linear progress, there is satisfaction in the struggle itself. —Derrick Bell, Faces at the Bottom of the Well, 1993 This page intentionally left blank Contents Note on Usage ix Acknowledgments xi Introduction: A Tiger in the Woods xv 1. The Race between Politics and Sport 1 2. What Is This “Black” in Black Athlete? 37 3. An Olympic Challenge: Preparing for the “Problem Games” 81 4. The Power of Protest and Boycott: The New York Athletic Club and the Question of the South African Springboks 131 5. Tribulations and the Trials: Black Consciousness and the Collective Body 185 6. “That’s My Flag” 233 7. Whose Broad Stripes and Bright Stars? 291 Notes 349 Index 425 This page intentionally left blank Note on Usage On February 19, 2002, Vonetta Flowers became the Wrst African Amer- ican to win a gold medal at an Olympic Winter Games. In an Olympics that had already established speed skater Derek Parra as the Wrst Mexi- can American medalist in winter history, Flowers’s achievement created a Xurry of panic throughout the ranks of U.S. media (of which I was a freelance member) regarding how she should be described. All agreed that she was not the Wrst black medalist; Debi Thomas assumed that title when she won a bronze medal in Wgure skating in 1988. The more difWcult question was whether a black athlete had won a medal since Thomas. Everyone seemed certain that a black face had not graced a skiing or skating victory podium, but who could be absolutely sure that the fourth member of the Swiss bobsleigh team in 1994 was not black by some deWnition? Who could claim to know the self-identity of every single Winter Games medalist? Deeming Flowers the Wrst African American, then, seemed the most precise route to follow, and it was the one that I—in my capacity as a broadcast research supervisor—helped NBC settle on for its coverage of the event, thinking that the word black might be too ambiguous for the television audience. I did not foresee, with this decision, that a commentator at the bobsleigh venue would then erroneously describe Flowers as the Wrst African American from any country to win winter gold. As Matthew Frye Jacobson eloquently points out in his own note IX X – NOTE ON USAGE on usage in the ever-important Whiteness of a Different Color: European Immigrants and the Alchemy of Race, making decisions regarding racial terminology is a complex procedure for reasons of style and substance. Many scholars take the safe route of putting quotation marks around racial terms in an attempt to further emphasize how such terms are culturally and socially constructed. Additionally, such practice removes responsibility from the writer if any reader Wnds a term objectionable. Yet it is the rare individual, as Jacobson points out, who Wnds it neces- sary to encompass terms like white and Caucasian in these scare quotes, making clear that when we talk about race we tend to be talking about color rather than the lack thereof. Such practice grants whiteness a spurious authenticity, and therefore value, while further highlighting the constructed nature, and perhaps inferiority, of blackness. The decision to remove the scare quotes from archaic—and often uncomfortable—terms like American Negro, Negroid, and Negro was dif- Wcult to make and required much prodding, for which I am grateful, from my editors. Terminology and semantic shifts are key arguments of the pages that follow, and I hope that I have historically situated them well enough to stand on their own, and that each reader will understand the meanings and consequences of each one. Acknowledgments The idea for this project began when I asked my brilliant brother about “Olympic” topics that might be appropriate to research for a graduate class titled “Race, Class, and Culture.” During the course of our con- versation, he mentioned Tommie Smith and John Carlos. After prelim- inary research, I realized their story encompassed everything I wanted to emphasize in my work. The seed was planted. The professor of that class, Nikhil Singh, helped cultivate that seed, as well as many others. He has profoundly changed the way I see the world, and he helped me gain the capacity to articulate clearly the thoughts that wander in my head. His impact is everywhere through- out my work; I hope I have done his inXuence justice. Equally, Matt Jacobson has remained my most trusted adviser on any matters that I (constantly) put before him—intellectual, professional, and pedagogi- cal—despite a variety of geographical distances between us. I thank him for remaining as “in touch” as I ever could want. I owe much to the faculty at the State University of New York at Stony Brook. They cultivated a creative, progressive, Wnancially sup- portive, and collegial environment under difWcult gubernatorial cir- cumstances. Nancy Tomes has been an exemplary teacher, advocate, friend, basketball fan, and scholar. Femi Vaughan offered kind words, good conversation, and a sensitive critical eye. Thanks also to Gene Lebovics, Barbara Weinstein, Ned Landsman, Richard Kuisel, Joel Rosenthal, and Gary Marker. XI XII – ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Many people have offered valuable encouragement and critiques. Beth Vihlen MacGregor has been involved from day one, providing uncountable hours of support and advice. I never imagined I’d Wnd such a friend amid the chaos that is graduate school. Brian McKenzie, noted casino maven, has provided steady camaraderie and studied intellectual input—my respect for him is boundless. I am greatly indebted to the keen perspective of Rachel Buff; the book is much better for her numer- ous contributions. My editor, Richard Morrison, has occupied the knotty role of friend and critic, and I am forever grateful for his atten- tion, abilities, and good humor. Members of audiences at Stony Brook, Yale, Plattsburgh State, Michigan State, the Newberry Library, the American Studies Association, the Organization of American Histori- ans, the Berks, and the NEHA provided good insights. Thanks also to George Lipsitz, Alejandra Osorio, John Bloom, Michael Willard, Seth Spiro, Emily Kelly, Tom Bailey, Victoria Allison, David Wiggins, Eric Zolov, and Patrick Miller, and to my colleagues at Plattsburgh State University, especially Jennifer Scanlon, Vincent Carey, Anita Rapone, Donald Maier, Wendy Gordon, Peter Friesen, Erin Mitchell, Tracie Church Guzzio, and members of the Cultural Studies Faculty Seminar. Practically, there were many who helped me get what I needed, whether that be experience, video tape, or answers. Special thanks to Peter Diamond (who got me “up close and personal” to several Olympic Games), Wayne Wilson, Joe Gesue, Glenn Morris, Brian Brown, Jimmy Roberts, Kirby Bradley, Dave Gabel, Maria Pagano, Aaron Cohen, Evan Silverman, Erin Davis, and the library staff at both Stony Brook and Plattsburgh. Thanks also to a teaching assistantship from Stony Brook; a fellowship from the Institute for Ethics in Public Life at Plattsburgh State; and a Dr. Nuala McGann Drescher AfWrmative Action/Diversity Leave from United University Professions. I have been lucky to have much friendship around me, both near and far: Christina Kahr, Sue Blood, Christine Tynan, Julia Gaviria, Pauline Cullen, Sally Vihlen, J.R., Tom MacGregor, Chip Blake, Micaela Corkery, Ian Southwood, Joe and Debbi Welch, Mark and Mary Greengold, Jennie Thompson, Julie Jones, Andy Gluck, Huck ACKNOWLEDGMENTS – XIII and Char Finn, Mary Holt, Karen Davis Simms, Steph Stamatos, Pam Jacobi, and Courtney Stewart. Sarah Tynan Murray has, since the ninth grade, been the consummate conWdante, consultant, and personiWca- tion of best friend. Why I deserve her—why she tolerates me—is quite often beyond my intellectual capacity. And while Evan Klupt was lucky enough to arrive at this party late in the Games, if he hadn’t come at all I don’t quite know what I would do.