Support Asian American athletics.

Last Thursday, American gymnast Sunisa Lee won the women’s all-around title in the Tokyo Olympics. She overcame injuries and personal tragedies to win her gold medal, which means the United States is now tied with the Soviet Union for most total wins in the category (CNN). Her win has been overshadowed by her teammate Simone Biles’ decisions to withdraw from the event to focus on her mental health (CNN). As an Asian American athlete, Lee’s win was also met with outright racism.

TAKE ACTION

Follow the Asian American & Pacific Islander Athletics Alliance on Instagram and Twitter.
Follow and support the Asian American Justice + Innovation Lab.
Practice solidarity with Asian and Pacific Islander communities.

GET EDUCATED

By Andrew Lee (he/him)

Last Thursday, American gymnast Sunisa Lee won the women’s all-around title in the Tokyo Olympics. She overcame injuries and personal tragedies to win her gold medal, which means the United States is now tied with Russia for most total wins in the category (CNN). Her win has been overshadowed by her teammate Simone Biles’ decisions to withdraw from the event to focus on her mental health (CNN). As an Asian American athlete, Lee’s win was also met with outright racism.

Replies to a SportsCenter announcement of her victory (Twitter) included, “Isnt [sic] she chinese,” “Made in China,” “You wouldn’t guess she was an American based on her appearance and name, but go USA,” and “Is is legal for someone with her name to claim to be an ‘American’? I think so, but what to [sic] the Trumplicans think?” Confused non-Asian viewers presumably comprised most of the 19,300 people who viewed an article entitled “Sunisa Lee Ethnicity” (Heavy). Lee is from St. Paul, Minnesota, born to Hmong immigrants from Laos, a community displaced by the U.S. “secret war” in the country during the occupation of Vietnam (MSNBC). But many Asian athletes in the United States find they can never be American enough.

Taiwanese-American professional basketball player Jeremy Lin famously endured racist media coverage and fan commentary while playing in the NBA (MSN). A few weeks ago, Stephen A. Smith made controversial remarks that MLB player Shohei Ohtani’s use of a translator “harms the game,” as we discussed in our piece on language justice. And last Monday, the World Archery Federation shared a video with the names of South Korean women’s archery team members written out in a “chop suey” font (Yahoo, NextShark).

Racism in sports doesn’t start at the professional level, either. Asian American kids are stereotyped as good students but poor athletes. “Asian American men are often seen as effeminate or asexual,” one report stated, while Asian American women are seen as “passive” or submissive (APA). These aren’t the characteristics that come to mind when you think of aspiring athletes. As a result, sports organizations fail to provide Asian athletes mentoring, Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) kids quit sports sooner than kids of any other race, and AAPI players are “vastly underrepresented” in American professional sports (Yahoo). Seeing that there are few avenues for Asian American success in sports, parents are more likely to encourage their kids to pursue other avenues such as academics.

This is one example how the back-handed "compliment" of the "model minority myth" hurts Asian people. The model minority myth states that Asians are exceptionally hard-working, rule-abiding, and intelligent. It’s harmful because it paints Asians as a monolithic block and because it was developed as an anti-Black stereotype to be used against the Civil Rights Movement (Anti-Racism Daily). It also hurts Asian Americans, who are dissuaded from participating in sports because athletics doesn’t fit the narrative of Asians as studious nerds.

Fortunately, people are coming together to change this dynamic. This past March, the National Organization of Minority Athletic Directors and the Asian American Justice + Innovation Lab hosted a workshop exploring the intersections of Asian identity, athletics, and anti-racism (NOMAD). And in May, the Asian American & Pacific Islanders Athletics Alliance, 4AAPI, was founded to create a community for AAPI people in college athletics. “The creation of 4AAPI is long overdue in college athletics,” said 4AAPI cofounder Pat Chun. “AAPI individuals have a long and proud history of impacting college athletics and I’m proud that this community will finally have a home” (4AAPI).

Sports should be an opportunity to come together and witness athletic excellence. It's unfortunate that backwards stereotypes exclude some while souring the victories of others. The Olympics are an opportunity to reflect on the importance of changing this fact. We need to denounce racism in sports and support Asian American athletics.

Key Takeaways

Asian American athletes often face racist abuse.
At the same time, Asian American student athletes are discouraged by stereotypes and lack of support.
These attitudes are some of the many harmful consequences of the model minority myth.

Nicole Cardoza 6/28/21 Nicole Cardoza 6/28/21

Compensate student-athletes.

Last Monday, the Supreme Court made a decision that could significantly impact the lives of student-athletes. The Court ruled against the National College Athletic Association to allow student-athletes to receive education-related payments of up to $6,000 a year and unlimited non-cash education-related benefits (CNN). College sports bring in billions of dollars of revenue each year. The 2019 March Madness tournament was estimated to have brought $1.18 billion in advertising revenue for CBS and Turner Sports, with networks paying about $800 million for the rights (CNBC). Given the profitability of college athletics, it would be expected that athletes receive fair compensation for the labor that they perform.

Happy Monday, and welcome back to the Anti-Racism Daily! The conversation around compensation, value and worth for athletes in the U.S. – particularly student-athletes – is certainly not new. However, last week's decision by the Supreme Court re-ignites conversations about the role of race and equity in collegiate sports. Read more in Nia's recap below.

Are you a student-athlete? I'd love to hear your thoughts – reply to this email.

Thank you for your support! This daily, free, independent newsletter is made possible by your support. If you can, consider making a donation to support our team. You can start a monthly subscription on Patreon or our website, or give one-time using our website, PayPal, or Venmo (@nicoleacardoza).

– Nicole

TAKE ACTION

Sign the #paytheplayers petition to demand fair pay for college athletes in every state.
Support the College Athlete Advocacy Initiative, which advocates and provides legal support for college athletes.

GET EDUCATED

By Nia Norris (she/her)

In reality, college athletes are not compensated at all beyond scholarships and possibly a stipend. College athletes could be compensated similarly to professional athletes if not for NCAA amateurism rules barring payment by their schools. College athletes are not considered employees and are therefore not protected by federal employment laws that allow other workers to unionize and demand fair compensation for their labor (CNBC).

College athletes sign their name and likeness over to the schools they play, but are not permitted to receive compensation for playing (The Guardian). Student-athletes work full-time hours, often 30-40 hours a week on top of their academic course load. With only 1.6% of college football players and 1.2% of college basketball players getting drafted into major professional leagues, the majority of them will not go on to a career in professional sports. Though are “compensated” with scholarships, graduation rates are significantly lower for student-athletes than non-student athletes and many report lackluster academic support and challenges finding post-college employment (The Guardian).

These athletes often suffer chronic injuries playing for coaches who are the highest-paid public employees in 39 states (IPS). A study from the National Bureau of Economic Research found that athletic department revenue doubled in the last 14 years – along with salaries for both coaches and athletic department administrators. While athletic staff is generously compensated, revenue-generating athletes are considered “amateurs” and therefore receive little to nothing in what’s been described as “the injustice of fake amateurism” (The Nation).

Black students comprise only 5.7% of the population at Power Five schools, but makeup 55.9% of men’s basketball players, 55.6% of men’s football players, and 48.1% of women’s basketball players. On condition of anonymity, many student-athletes discussed what The Guardian described as “the racist dimensions of their experiences at Power Five PWIs” (predominantly white institutions). Many described the power imbalance between schools and Black athletes and reported feeling exploited and pressured to not express opinions or take on interests outside of the sports they played (The Guardian).

Both professional and college athletics have a history of racism and exploitation. Initially, professional sports were segregated, with Black players excluded from Major League Baseball until 1946 when Jackie Robinson joined the Montreal Royals and later the Brooklyn Dodgers. The National Hockey League still has a majority of white players and when Black players do come onto the rink, they are often subject to racist abuse from fans (McGill Tribune).

The recent Supreme Court decision will not lead to full compensation for student-athletes as it only applies to payments and benefits related to education. However, it invites further challenges to the NCAA ban on paying athletes. Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh wrote that “nowhere else in America can businesses get away with agreeing not to pay their workers a fair market rate on the theory that their product is defined by not paying their workers a fair market rate” (NYT). Effectively, if this decision were to be successfully challenged further in the Supreme Court, it could entirely change the way that student-athletes are compensated and open up the door for more opportunities for them.

Student-athletes are workers and should be compensated as such. They should be permitted to earn money from their names, images, and likenesses that bring in billions of dollars of revenue for the NCAA, schools, and the broadcasting industry. A 2020 survey found that two-thirds of adults believe that college athletes should be able to reap some of the profits that are generated by their hard work (Forbes). The NCAA must change their unfair policies regarding student-athletes.

Key Takeaways

The NCAA prohibits student-athletes from receiving compensation as “amateurs.”
College sports are a billion-dollar industry. Coaches are generously compensated; players receive little more than a scholarship.
A recent Supreme Court decision allows education-related compensation for college athletes, though the NCAA still bans direct payments.

10/21/2020 | Change racist sports team names.

2/2/2021 | Rally against racist sports mascots.

PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT

Thank you for all your financial contributions! If you haven't already, consider making a monthly donation to this work. These funds will help me operationalize this work for greatest impact.

Subscribe on Patreon | Give one-time on PayPal | Venmo @nicoleacardoza

Nicole Cardoza 5/18/21 Nicole Cardoza 5/18/21

End “race norming” in healthcare.

Over the past year, the global pandemic has highlighted the vast racial disparities in medical treatment in the U.S. Many of its elements are more subtle; difficult to see if you don’t experience it first-hand. But some are more blatant – like racial correction factors. In medicine, equations and algorithms can often be used to diagnose or screen patients. Racial correction factors are when physicians adjust the measurements or risk calculations for patients based on their race. Despite the fact that race is a social construct, many medical providers hold on to the idea of race as a biological variable. This has a severe, sometimes fatal impact on people of color.

Happy Tuesday, and welcome back to the Anti-Racism Daily!

Right now, thousands of retired Black professional football players and their families are fighting to end the racial bias that determines which players are eligible for payouts for brain injury claims. The bias embedded in testing process makes it more difficult for Black players to demonstrate signs of dementia than white players, making them less likely to receive the $1B in settlements from the NFL (ESPN). Today, Tiffany shares other ways that racial bias influences the health and wellbeing of Black and Asian people.

Thank you to everyone that gives a little when they can to keep this newsletter going! If you can, consider giving $7/month on Patreon. Or you can give one-time on our website or PayPal. You can also support us by joining our curated digital community. This newsletter will continue to be a free resource because of this collective support.

Nicole

TAKE ACTION

Read Towards the Abolition of Biological Race in Medicine and Public Health which details the history of medical racism, particularly for hypertension.
Watch Dr. Vanessa Grubb’s video segment on Racism and Race: The Use of Race in Medicine and Implications for Health Equity
Empower and educate people around you about racial correction factors so they can advocate for themselves in medical situations where doctors choose to delay treatment.
Consider: How does your racial identity influence your experience at the doctor’s office? What do or don’t you have to consider? How may this change based on your gender identity, or other factors of your identity?

GET EDUCATED

By Tiffany Onyejiaka (she/her)

Over the past year, the global pandemic has highlighted the vast racial disparities in medical treatment in the U.S. Many of its elements are more subtle; difficult to see if you don’t experience it first-hand. But some are more blatant – like racial correction factors. In medicine, equations and algorithms can often be used to diagnose or screen patients. Racial correction factors are when physicians adjust the measurements or risk calculations for patients based on their race. Despite the fact that race is a social construct, many medical providers hold on to the idea of race as a biological variable. This has a severe, sometimes fatal impact on people of color.

One of the most commonly used and widely discussed racial correction factors exists with estimated glomerular filtration rates (eGFR) in the kidneys, which assesses the level of kidney functioning. Medical providers measure eGFR by using a mathematical calculation that compares the creatinine measured in a person’s blood, with their size, age, sex, and race (Kaiser Permanente). Many medical institutions utilize a racial correction factor of approximately 1.2 for Black people (Nature).

“With the correction, Black patients' estimated kidney function is about 16-21% higher (depending upon the equation used) than all other races in this country”, according to Dr. Vanessa Grubbs, nephrologist and author of Hundreds of Interlaced Fingers: A Kidney Doctor's Search for the Perfect Match.

Medical providers use eGFR values to deduce what stage of chronic kidney disease a patient is at (National Kidney Foundation). The lower the eGFR value, the lower the kidney functioning, and the higher stage of kidney disease a patient is diagnosed with (Kidney). The correction factors that inflate Black patient’s eGFR measurements, could potentially have them diagnosed with an incorrect stage of kidney disease and delay needed treatment.

“This means that Black patients—even though they reach end-stage kidney disease nearly 4x faster than White patients—are referred later to nephrology specialty care and transplant evaluation”, recounts Grubbs. “I would not have referred one of my patients to kidney transplant at least a year later had I believed the race correction was indeed correct. And he lost kidney function faster than expected,” she adds. Grubbs recommends that patient’s request cyastain C blood tests to estimate their kidney functioning without the inclusion of race.

Another commonly used correction factors exists in in the use of spirometers in pulmonology. Spirometers directly measure the amount of air you can inhale and exhale, and the rate at which you exhale (Mayo Clinic). Medical providers use this tool to assess the strength of lungs and to diagnose for respiratory conditions such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) (Mayo Clinic). Spirometers measure two main values: FEV1 (how much air you can force out of your lungs in 1 second) and FVC (greatest amount of air you can breath out after brething in very deeply) (Healthline). Provider diagnose certain respiratory conditions such as by comparing patient’s FEV1, FCV and FEV1/FCV ratio to predicted normal values.

“So every age group has a different measurement of what normal means. At the same time, differences in gender, and race, at this moment is still added as part of the metrics,” explains Dr. Panagis Galiatsatos, MD, MHS pulmonologist and Assistant Professor, Division of Pulmonary & Critical Care Medicine at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine.

Many spirometers have a built-in racial correction factor that automatically assumes a 10-15% smaller lung capacity for Black patients and a 4-6% smaller lung capacity for Asian patients when computing measurements (NIH). Medical providers typically diagnose COPD when a patient’s FEV1/FVC ratio is less than 70% of an estimated normal value (NIH). The lower adjusted values for Black and Asian patients could potentially lead to these patients not being diagnosed as having COPD when measured as having similar spirometry values or physical symptoms as white patients who are diagnosed with COPD.

“There’s a great number of studies that show fewer diagnoses of COPD in Black/African-America patients, even though they have much more symptoms,” explains Galiatsatos. “Spirometry is used for diagnostic purposes. So if you can’t diagnose [COPD], because you have this racial bias, then you’re going to delay these patients from getting the interventions that they need” he adds. He recommends patients ask medical providers to look at their flow volume curve results, which is not influenced by race when looking for an assessment or diagnosis.

The idea that Black people have different medical needs stems back from the times of slavery and was built from racist scientific ideas.

During slavery, people believed that Black folks had inferior lung capacities to white people. In 1832, Thomas Jefferson referenced differences in lung function between slaves and colonizers (Google Books). In the 1800s, physician (and slave owner) Samuel Cartwright used the spirometer to compare the lung capacities of enslaved Africans to the slaveholding white masters (NIH). He concluded that enslaved Africans had inferior lungs.

The racial correction factor for eGFR, however, was introduced later in the 1990s because Black people were observed to have higher creatinine levels in their blood (Nature). Researchers concluded that Black people’s higher creatinine levels were due to Black people having higher muscle mass than white people (Scientific American). This study failed to truly consider other explanations for why the Black patients had higher creatinine levels. This idea of all Black people being stronger than other people is reminiscent of stereotypes used to justify the animalization and enslaving of Black people for profit (NIH)

“There is no real science behind it,” believes Grubbs. “Most doctors still do it because they don't know why race was included in the first place and are just following along blindly. Others still do it because they are upholding White supremacy ideology that Black people are inherently different than all other humans.”.

Racial correction factors for eGFR are especially harmful because Black people are 3-4 times as likely to develop kidney failure compared to white people (NIH). 32% of kidney failures occur in Black people, despite only making up 13% of the population (NIH). In addition, Black people are three times as likely to die from asthma and Black men are 50% more likely to get lung cancer than white men (Lavaca Medical Center). Black and Asian people are both at a higher risk for being hospitalized for asthma compared to white people (NIH). It’s devastating to imagine how many people of color were delayed or denied life-saving treatment because of an outdated correction factor.

The movement to end the use of racial correction factors is picking up across medical institutions across the country (STAT News). Vanderbilt, University of Washington, and the University of California, San Francisco have moved to end the use of race-based correction factors in their medical institutions (Vanderbilt, UW, UCSF). Students like Noor Chadha at the joint UCSF Medicine and UC Berkeley program created a report titled Towards the Abolition of Biological Race in Medicine which examines the many explicit racist issues, including racial correction factors, in modern medicine.

We need to abolish racial correction factors to ensure that all people can equally get a chance to get life-saving medical treatments.

Key Takeaways

Many healthcare providers still utilize racial correction factors that require Black and Asian people to have lower kidney function and lower lung capacity to get diagnosed and get needed treatment.
Many racial correction factors are rooted in racist scientific ideas.
Many institutions are now making a push to remove racial correction factors.

8/14/2020 | Support Black mental health.

8/18/2020 | Support athletes in taking action.

PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT

Nicole Cardoza 2/23/21 Nicole Cardoza 2/23/21

Rally against anti-trans legislation.

Right now, there are over 50 pieces of anti-trans legislation under consideration in states across the U.S. All are designed to strip away the limited rights and protections that currently exist for transgender people (LGBTQ+ Nation). Seventeen states are all considering bills that would ban transgender girls and women from school sports this year, and some of the bills also ban transgender boys and men. These states are Arizona, Connecticut, Iowa, Georgia, Hawaii, Kentucky, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, and Texas.

Happy Tuesday and welcome back to the Anti-Racism Daily. This week, hearings are scheduled in South Dakota, Kansas, Tennessee, and South Carolina to act on anti-trans legislation that will disproportionately impact trans women and girls. Amplify the work of state and federal organizers fighting for their rights.

This newsletter is a free resource and that's made possible by our paying subscribers. Consider giving $7/month on Patreon. Or you can give one-time on our website or PayPal. You can also support us by joining our curated digital community. Thank you to all those that support!

Nicole

TAKE ACTION

Sign up to phone bank with NEAT, the National Equality Action Team, to defend trans youth in key states.
Review the anti-trans legislation by state on the ACLU’s tracker. Then, contact your local legislators and urge them to block anti-trans bills from passing. Find your state representatives here.

Donate to trans-led organizations in your community. To make a donation that will be distributed to local orgs, donate to the Trans Justice Funding Project.

Action items inspired by the work of Chase Strangio, deputy director of transgender justice for the ACLU.

GET EDUCATED

By Nicole Cardoza (she/her)

In addition, 15 pieces of legislation designed to prevent transgender youth from receiving gender-affirming healthcare. Like HB 1/SB 10 in Alabama, these bills seek to impose criminal penalties on medical professionals and parents that offer transgender youth medical care. Arizona’s SB1511 wants to make it a Class 2 felony – punishable with up to 12 years in prison (Human Rights Watch).

Together, this legislation drafted in 2021 is a coordinated attack against trans rights, which activists feared after the Trump administration’s continued attacks on the trans community and growing anti-trans sentiment. Although President Biden signed an executive order to protect LGTBQ+ people in federally funded spaces, including education, it’s insufficient to ban state legislation on this topic (them).

These bills don’t necessarily reflect the sentiment of each state’s voter base. The Human Rights Campaign and Hart Research Group conducted a study across ten swing states on LGBTQ+ rights. They found that 87% of total respondents believe transgender people should have equal access to medical care, with many states breaking 90% support. They were also asked to prioritize banning transgender people from participating in sports against other policy issues. This issue came in dead last, and only 1-3% of respondents prioritized the issue (Los Angeles Blade).

In fact, much of this legislation has been drafted not by legislators, but Alliance Defending Freedom, a conservative Christian nonprofit organization that aims to protect "religious freedom, sanctity of life, and marriage and family" (Southern Poverty Law Center). As Nico Lang reports for them, the ADF has been fighting against equal rights for queer and transgender people for years. The organization has lobbied in favor of anti-LGBTQ+ legislation in Colorado, Idaho, and South Carolina and advocated for the use of “religious freedoms” to justify discrimination against LGBTQ+ people (them).

This is also happening in a time of rampant violence against the trans community, particularly the Black trans community. And many of these deaths were directly caused by police brutality; the criminal justice system disproportionately impacts the Black trans community (Vox). This is exacerbated by the systemic injustices that the Black trans community experiences, including unprecedented unemployment rates, high levels of houselessness, and low household incomes (Harvard Civil Rights). The Human Rights Watch noted a 43% increase in the formation of anti-LGBTQ hate groups in 2019.

This legislation is yet another form of policing the health and safety of trans youth, particularly trans women, for it’s important to emphasize how gender influences these harmful narratives. A common refrain from proponents of this legislation is that it’s necessary to protect women in sport because people assigned male at birth are “inherently” better at sports, purporting the notion that “women are weak and in need of protection.” It also insinuates that trans women athletes have an unfair advantage (this has been proven untrue). Throughout history, women’s protection, particularly white women, has been used to justify unnecessary harm against other marginalized communities (Washington Post). And more generally, the government continuously tries to control women’s bodies (Institute for Women’s Policy Research).

"
These bills cloak transmisogyny in inflammatory language and scare tactics that distract from the policies’ discriminatory intent. Notably, many do not lay out restrictions for transgender boys and men, focusing solely on regulating women’s bodies.
Excerpt from Fair Play: The Importance of Sports Participation for Transgender Youth by the Center for American Progress (CAP), via them.

As hearings unfold this week, I urge you to take direct action on this legislation right now, even if it doesn’t affect your state. And, more broadly, continue to amplify and advocate for the needs of the trans community, particularly trans youth.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

A series of anti-trans legislation is being discussed in state legislators across the U.S. this week.
This legislation is a part of the violence and discrimination that trans communities experience on behalf of our government, particularly trans communities of color and the Black trans community.
This is especially harmful for trans women and girls, who experience added discrimination because of stereotypes about the role of gender in society

RELATED ISSUES

11/20/2020 | Honor Transgender Day of Remembrance.

6/13/2020 | Center Black trans lives.

PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT

Nicole Cardoza 2/2/21 Nicole Cardoza 2/2/21

Rally against racist sports mascots.

Fans of the Kansas City team can often be seen wearing “war paint” and “headdresses” in addition to other caricatured aspects of Native cultures. While these acts were recently banned in the home field of Kansas City, Arrowhead Stadium, all bets are off as the team and fans travel to Tampa Bay. The team itself continues to use and encourage the “tomahawk chop,” a gesture widely used to mock Native peoples, most recently in the AFC Championship.

Happy Tuesday! The Kansas City Chiefs are headed to the Super Bowl, and along with it comes a national stage for appropriation and disrespect to Indigenous communities. The organization IllumiNative joins us today with some easy ways to rally for change.

Are you signed up for our 28 Days of Black HIstory exhibition yet? It's truly something special. Camille Bethune-Brown and Shanaé Burch have curated an incredible series, and I've had the privilege to enjoy it alone for the past month. I can't wait for ya'll to see it unfold: 28daysofblackhistory.com.

Also I forgot to add this yesterday – we have a new podcast episode out! Listen to me chat with the inspiring Tyree Boyd-Pates about what it means to curate Black History in this moment (iTunes and Spotify).

Thank you all for your support. This newsletter is made possible by our subscribers. Consider subscribing for $7/month on Patreon. Or you can give one-time on our website or PayPal. You can also support us by joining our curated digital community.

Nicole

TAKE ACTION

Support and uplift Indigenous organizers who are impacted by racist sports mascots. Ahead of the Super Bowl, sign Not in Our Honor’s petition.
Share resources from the IllumiNative campaign and encourage sports teams to change their names: illuminatives.org/change-the-name
Educate friends, family, and loved ones on the true history of Native mascots, their harm, and why they need to end.

GET EDUCATED

By IllumiNative

Using Native people as mascots is unacceptable. Racist sports mascots like the Chiefs, used by the Kansas City football team, should be halted.

The images, gestures, and behavior connected to Native mascots negatively impact Native peoples, particularly Native youth. Research shows that these images and actions contribute to low self-esteem, increased rates of depression, increased rates of self-harm and substance abuse, and increased discrimination in schools against Native youth.

For the second year in a row, the Kansas City Chiefs will make an appearance in the Super Bowl. For many years, Native peoples have spoken out and protested against the Kansas City team because their name, history, and fan behavior is racist. Just this week, just outside Kansas City limits, the Shawnee Mission School District in Kansas voted to update the district’s non-discrimination policy – effectively banning the four schools that use a Native mascot.

While many celebrated the recent change of the Washington Football Team, who for decades used a dictionary-defined racial slur as their team name, studies have shown all Native mascots are harmful. The largest study to date on the issue of mascots, “Unpacking the Mascot Debate,” found that:

65% of Native peoples surveyed are offended by the use of the “tomahawk chop” by fans
70% are offended by the wearing of headdresses by fans
65% of Native youth are highly offended and opposed to Native mascots.

In August 2020, the Kansas City team announced they would ban red face and headdresses at their home stadium, but fans continue to use the “tomahawk chop.” Furthermore, this ban won’t apply when they travel to Tampa for the Super Bowl.

Reclaiming Native Truth, research co-led by IllumiNative founder Crystal Echo Hawk (Pawnee), found invisibility is one of the most significant barriers impacting Native peoples today. Research tells us that 72% of Americans surveyed said they know little to nothing about Native Americans. For many Americans, the only representation that they see of Native peoples comes from racist mascots, which are inaccurate, disrespectful, and a mockery of Native cultures and traditions. Read more and take action on the website.

These mascots enforce ideas of white supremacy by stereotyping Native people as savages. Dr. Stephanie Fryberg (Tulalip), a leading researcher on discrimination and mascots, at the University of Michigan, has discussed how this racist imagery impacts peoples’ psychology (Politico). She further notes that the only group that “benefits” from using these mascots are white Americans. Research shows that white people are the only group to demonstrate higher rates of self-esteem when viewing stereotypical Native mascots.

These mascots aren’t just dehumanizing. They’re rooted in white supremacist origin myths about the United States. For decades, Westerns depicted myths about this country’s founding, idolizing western settlers and showing Native peoples as violent and aggressive. These false narratives misconstrue Indigenous people as antagonists in the origin story of America. During games, fans echo these inaccurate narratives by “playing Indian.'' By dressing up in war paint and using war whoops, they reinforce the caricatures, and inaccurate depictions of Native cultures once used to justify the genocide committed against Native peoples. Bans or empty statements asking for fans not to participate are not effective in ending these traditions. It’s only by completely eliminating these mascots and names that we can mitigate these harms.

These stereotypes have real consequences for our community. Native people have the highest rates of murder by police. According to the National Sexual Violence Research Center, 45% of Native women are likely to experience both sexual and physical violence, compared to 20% of all women. Native youth have higher rates of suicide and depression. There is an epidemic of murdered and missing Native women in the country that has persisted for decades because dehumanization creates less empathy for and more othering of Native peoples. Read more about MMIW in a recent newsletter.

Ending racist mascots would help create a world where Native people are recognized as contemporary people with rich cultural traditions. There would be greater respect for our unique wisdom, harmonious relationship with the planet, and towering legacy of leadership. Achieving this goal is an essential step to ending white supremacy, for Indigenous people worldwide have been subject to genocide and erasure for centuries. We cannot advance in our struggle against racial injustice without healing these deep wounds.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

Racist mascots increase negative stereotyping of Native people and create the false perception of Native people as aggressive.
65% of Native people are offended—not honored—by the use of Native mascots.
Native mascots and the fan behavior associated with the use of Native mascots impacts Native youth by lowering self-esteem, increasing rates of depression, increasing rates of self-harm and substance abuse, increasing discrimination in schools against Native students.

PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT

Nicole Cardoza 10/21/20 Nicole Cardoza 10/21/20

Change racist sports team names.

This fall, after months of coronavirus restrictions, professional sports in the United States have returned to something close to normal (MarketWatch). MLB playoffs are in full swing, Lebron James won his fourth NBA championship last week, and the NFL regular season continues every Sunday. But as a large portion of the United States undergoes a racial reckoning, professional sports are working to adjust accordingly.

Welcome back, and happy Wednesday! Real talk: I don't watch much sports. So I was celebrating the name change of the football team based in DC without fully realizing how much further we need to go. I'm delighted to introduce Charlie Lahud-Zahner, who breaks down the importance of changing all the names of racist sports teams. And, if I add, extending the same sentiment to schools, cities and other spaces in need of a rebrand.

Nothing makes me happier than sharing this platform with other talented writers. And that's all because of you. Thank you to everyone that's chipped in to support our work. If you'd like, you can give one time on our website, PayPal or Venmo (@nicoleacardoza). Or, subscribe monthly or annually on Patreon. I really appreciate it.

Nicole

TAKE ACTION

Get educated about the specific histories behind sports teams' names. Start with this Texas Tribune article unveiling the violent history behind the original Texas Rangers.

Use social media to put pressure on these teams and team owners to change their problematic team names:

Cleveland Indians (@indians)

Texas Rangers (@rangers)

Braves (@braves)

San Francisco 49ers (@49ers)

Kansas City Chiefs (@cheifs)

GET EDUCATED

By Charlie Lahud-Zahner (he/him)

Back in July, the owner of the football team formerly known as the Washington Redskins bowed to pressure from corporate sponsors (including Pepsi, Nike, and FedEx) and agreed to change the team name to the Washington Football Team (Washington Post). However, as Suzan Shown Harjo (a Cheyenne and Hodulgee Muscogee activist who has rallied against the Redskins name for more than 40 years) noted, one would hope that financial pressure from investors would come before a state-sanctioned killing, not after (Washington Post).

“All of a sudden...they’re saying, ‘Change the name,’ and what’s the difference — George Floyd was murdered before the world and corporate America woke up,” said Harjo (NY Times).

Though Indigenous activists like Harjo have been pushing against racist sports teams long before FedEx and Nike, only now that white/corporate America has expressed interest in racial inequality as “corporate activists” have popular sports teams undergone renewed scrutiny (NPR).

Even names that seem benign to most people, like the San Francisco 49ers, have a racist history. As a Mexican-American living in California, I know how this state that was once part of Mexico was originally Indigenous land (Library of Congress). Through celebrating and maintaining focus on California’s white colonial history, the 49ers are one of many teams that exemplify the erasure of Indigenous people through celebrating the “glory” of white colonial history.

The historical psyche of California’s Bay Area is built around the California Gold Rush (PBS). In January 1848, James Wilson Marshall discovered gold flakes in Northern California, near modern-day Sacramento. A few days afterward, after the signing of the Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo, that land effectively passed from Mexico to the United States. The ensuing gold fever led to an international mass migration to the Bay Area in 1849—hence the name the“49ers” (History.com).

For many in California, the legend behind this period of economic growth is the legend of the American frontier: a mythology that rugged white settlers moved west to build and cultivate this land by the skin of their teeth (The Conversation). Accordingly, the San Francisco 49ers mascot is “Sourdough Sam,'' a goofy pick-ax wielding, Levi-loving Paul Bunyan looking character seemingly on the hunt for errant treasure.

However, this seemingly innocuous character and narrative ignore the fact that the Gold Rush happened in conjunction with the genocide of Native Californians. While the year 1849 was “historic” for white settlers, it was disastrous for the various tribes who had settled in the Bay Area for the 10,000 years prior (Culture Trip). The white miners, with help from the state and federal forces, murdered up to 16,000 Indigenous people of various Bay Area tribes. Today the Muwekma Ohlone tribe is recognized as a conglomerate of “all of the known surviving American Indian lineages aboriginal to the San Francisco Bay region” (Muwekma Ohlone).

Peter Hardermann Burnet, California’s first governor, told legislators in 1851 that “a war of extermination will continue to be waged between the races until the Indian race becomes extinct...the inevitable destiny of the race is beyond the power or wisdom of man to avert” (History.com). Local and state militias receiving state funding systematically killed, and even scalped, Native Americans. Nearly 80% of the 150,000 Native Americans who lived in California pre-gold rush were wiped out through disease or killings (KCET.org)

The 49ers are only one of many professional (and semi-professional) American sports teams that reference to violence against Native peoples or directly use Indigenous imagery in their team names. In the NFL, the Kansas City Chiefs are being pressured to change their name (USA Today), and in the MLB, the Braves, Indians, and Rangers have been the subject of discussion. When Kansas City played San Francisco in Super Bowl LIV back in January, writer Vincent Shilling accurately referred to the game as the “Genocide Bowl” (Indian Country Today).

Learning more about the history of racist team names brings light to the reality of the United States being built at the cost of—or on the backs of—Indigenous, Black, and Brown Americans. Changing team names isn’t about obscuring or erasing our history. It’s about refusing to glorify genocide and the gross characterization of Indigenous peoples. It’s completely possible to acknowledge a dark history without venerating false idols in sports. (Yes, I’m looking at you, Sourdough Sam).

Yet there is growing evidence that change can happen slowly. Besides the Washington Football Team, other organizations have also changed their team names or mascots in recent years. The Cleveland Indians removed “Chief Wahoo,” a racist caricature of a Native American man from their jerseys in 2019 (Global Sport Matters), the Chicago Blackhawks recently banned headdresses at home games (CNN) and, as of late September, the University of Illinois is moving closer to choosing a mascot to replace “Chief Illiniwek” (Chicago Tribune).

In 2013, when asked about removing the slur from the Washington Redskins’ name, owner Dan Snyder callously claimed, "We’ll never change the name. It’s that simple. NEVER — you can use caps” (USA Today).

He was wrong. Seven years later, he changed the name. And if we can educate ourselves, keep the pressure on these teams, and advocate for change, more teams will follow suit.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

Many professional sports teams, such as the Kansas City Chiefs and the Cleveland Indians, have names or mascots that revere genocide and/or racial violence.
The San Francisco 49ers are named after the gold miners of 1849 who, with help from the state, killed thousands of Indigenous residents.
We can create change. In 2013, the owner of the Washington Redskins claimed he would never change the team’s name. In 2020, bowing to public pressure, the name was changed to the Washington Football Team.

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Nicole Cardoza 8/18/20 Nicole Cardoza 8/18/20

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I think I owe you all an apology. HOW have I had this newsletter for 75 whole days and not written a single post about sports?! Perhaps it's because I'm often the worst player on any sports team. But the industry has had a long, deep history of challenging white supremacy – on and off the field – led by outspoken athletes throughout history.

Thankfully I'm not the only writer on the Anti-Racism Daily team anymore letting you down. We've got Renée at the plate teeing up a comprehensive look at how sports are amplifying the current movement. Our action is to get into the audience and be this movement's biggest fans – AND gear up and join athletes center court. There is no I in team. We can only win together.

Our new staff of contributors is made possible thanks to your generous contributions. I'm proud of the company that Anti-Racism Daily is becoming, and committed to continuing this work. If you can, pitch in by making a one-time or monthly contribution. You can give on our website, PayPal, Venmo (@nicoleacardoza) or subscribe monthly on Patreon.

Nicole

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Donate to Colin Kaepernick’s Know Your Rights Campaign, which works to advance the liberation and well-being of Black and Brown communities through education, self-empowerment, mass-mobilization, and the creation of new systems that elevate the next generation of change leaders.
Have you ever watched the WNBA? If not, now’s the time! Give them the views and support they deserve. Amplify and engage in the issues they are advocating.
Do you have a favorite sports team or league? How are they incorporating diversity and inclusivity into their organization? Does its ownership and management reflect the rainbow of society and players?

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By Renée Cherez

Sports can be a great unifier in any society while also acting as a mirror. They bring strangers together from all walks of life for a common cause (a win for their team), while also sharing a universal message of teamwork and comradery. Contrary to popular belief, sports have also been deeply political, especially sports with Black athletes as the majority.

At the 1968 Olympic games in Mexico City, Tommie Smith and John Carlos raised the Black power fist in solidarity with oppressed people around the world, and as a result, their careers were ruined (History).

Muhammad Ali, arguably the best boxer of all time, was convicted of draft evasion, sentenced to five years in prison (this was later repealed), fined $10,000, and was banned from boxing for three years for refusing to join the American-Vietnam War in 1967 (History).

More recently, sharing in the spirit of those before him, Colin Kaepernick, a former quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers, peacefully protested by taking a knee during the national anthem to raise awareness about police brutality against Black and brown people in America.

“I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses Black people and people of color. To me, this is bigger than football, and it would be selfish on my part to look the other way.”
Colin Kaepernick for The Undefeated

For the last four years, Kaepernick has been blacklisted by the NFL because of his unwavering commitment to social justice reform. After the murder of George Floyd, it seems the rose-colored lenses used by deliberate detractors of Kaepernick’s protest message have come off. It was never about the military or a flag; it was always about the deliberate state-sanctioned murders of Black and brown people in America.

At the start of the George Floyd protests in Minneapolis, Kaepernick started the Know Your Rights Defense Fund to raise money for legal assistance for arrested protesters (KYRDF). He continues to raise millions of dollars for various social justice causes that disproportionately affect Black and brown communities through his Know Your Rights Camp. Kaepernick has also donated $100,000 for COVID-19 relief providing nutritious foods, access to educational material, and shelter for the unhoused.

Critics have said sports are supposed to be an escape from the “real world,” a neutral space, but Black athletes understand all too well, that they are always Black. There are no “days off” or “neutral spaces” while existing in a Black body. There is no amount of money, fame, or championship wins that can stop racism from knocking on their door. This was evident in 2017 when Lebron James’s home was found vandalized with the N-word. (LA Times).

The racial breakdown of players versus management and ownership of professional sports leagues is staggering. The NFL (National Football League) is made of 70% Black players while the CEO/President roles, league office roles, and head coaching positions are filled by a majority of white men (TIDES). It’s common for retired athletes to take on jobs in broadcasting; however, NFL broadcasters are majority white though most players are Black.

Out of 251 NFL broadcasters in 2018, only 48 (or 19%) were Black (The Guardian). The NBA (National Basketball Association) consists of 74.2% of Black players, while white head coaches make up 70% of the league (TIDES). In terms of ownership, Michael Jordan is the only Black team owner and is one of four people of color who own an NBA team. Black and Latino presidents/CEOs make up a disturbing 7.3% owners, which is just four individuals in this role (TIDES).

After a four-month hiatus due to coronavirus, the NBA has resumed but not without critique by some of its most prominent athletes like Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant. They and other players opposed a restart amid racial uprisings that deserve continued attention and demand the conversation continue throughout the season to amplify what is happening in the streets (COMPLEX).

A league of women who do not receive the recognition and respect they deserve is the WNBA (Women’s National Basketball Association). When it comes to activism, the WNBA women are not new to this; they are true to this (SLATE). They’ve been kneeling, wearing the T-shirts, and doing the work to keep their fanbase engaged with daily injustices and social issues, including gun violence (SB Nation).

Maya Moore, a player on the Minnesota Lynx has sacrificed her career (in her prime) to help a family friend earn his freedom after 23 years in prison (The Undefeated). To continue the necessary conversations being unearthed during this freedom movement, the WNBA has dedicated its 2020 season to social justice (WNBA).

The Social Justice Council, enacted this season, focuses on three pillars: educate, amplify, and mobilize working with activists, educators, fans, league staff, and players to create sustainable social change. In an 80% league of women of color and 67% Black women, the WNBA also highlights the women who are always forgotten: Black women (TIDES).

WNBA players are wearing #SayHerName shirts this season to amplify the Black women who are murdered by police, yet we never know their names. The WNBA is unique because they don’t have the fanbase (or income) of their NBA brethren, yet they use the power they do have in intentional and culture-shifting ways. A league of women of color, Black women, and white allies is changing what it means to wield power for radical justice, and this is a league that deserves our support.

It’s eerily ironic that Colin Kaepernick non-violently protested by taking a knee. It was a knee that forced the life out of George Floyd’s body that’s woken up white America to police brutality.

Now is the time to ask ourselves how we will move forward with holding sports organizations accountable, especially our favorites. It’s not enough that they post black squares and put out statements of solidarity. They benefit from our dollars and views. Like the WNBA, it’s time for radical transparency, inclusivity, and diversity in management and ownership to reflect the players and American society at large.

*This post was previously titled “Support athletes in taking a stand,” which promoted discriminatory, ableist language. We’ve changed the title of the web version to “Support athletes in taking action.”

KEY TAKEAWAYS

Sports have always been deeply political, especially sports with Black athletes as the majority.
Both the NBA and NFL consist of 70%+ Black players, yet management, ownership, and coaching roles are predominantly held by white men.
The WNBA enacted The Social Justice Council this season, which focuses on three pillars: educate, amplify, and mobilize working with activists, educators, fans, league staff, and players to create sustainable social justice changes.

7/6/2020 | Abolish qualified immunity.

6/30/2020 | Boycott as a form of protest.

6/22/2020 | Talk about our right to protest.

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Support athletes in taking action.

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