On April 5 and 7, 2016 my American sport in the 21st century class discussed the importance of race and ethnicity in sports. We went over stereotypes associated with certain ethnic groups and sports that they are apparently dominant in, definitions, what explains the success of African Americans in sport, and consequences of race logic. Here is what we discussed in class:
Definitions
-Bigot- someone who is stubbornly attached to an opinion or
belief
-Prejudice- an expression of bigotry. Judging without
knowledge of the facts
-Stereotypes- fixed ideas about a group
-Discrimination- treating someone differently from others
-Race- social category constructed and accepted by society to
describe members with genetic similarity
-Ethnic group- a socially distinct population that shares a
way of life and is committed to the ideas, norms, and things that constitute
that way of life
-Minority
group- members share common group characteristics, and suffer from
discrimination
Stereotypes Discussed
-Does race or ethnicity have an effect or define who is best
at certain sports?
-Are AA faster and do they jump higher?
-Are Asians better golfers?
-Why are Latinos/Hispanics great boxers and why do they have
such great soccer skills?
-Are white athletes better at hockey?
What explains the success of African Americans in sport?
-Blacks have a slight genetic advantage over whites in some
areas
-African Americans are more physically suited for activities requiring speed and
power
-Longer levers, slimmer pelvis, less fat on muscles
-More fast-twitch muscles
-Advanced motor skills at an early age
-Research Summary (Genetic factors & Athletic
Performance)
-Are there genetic differences between individuals? Yes
-Are genetic characteristics related to athletic excellence? Yes
-Could one gene account for success across a range of
different sports? Probably not
-Might skin color genes & physical performance genes be
connected? No Evidence
Consequences of race logic
- Desegregation of revenue producing sports
- Continued racial exclusion in “social” sports
- Position stacking in team sports
- Racialized interpretations of achievements
- Skewed distribution of AA in U.S. colleges and universities
- Management barriers for blacks
An article posted by Jason Alexander on Quora.com titled "Why do African-Americans favor and dominate in basketball vs. other sports?" posted on May 25, 2015 discusses what life is like as and African American man and why African Americans gravitate towards basketball. Alexander argues that genetic dominance does not play a factor in why African Americans dominate in basketball. Rather, the sport is cheap and so available to everyone and that being dominant at the sport comes down to effort.
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