Inbunden, Engelska, 2023

Black Mercuries

African American Athletes, Race, and the Modern Olympic Games

Av David K. Wiggins, Kevin B. Witherspoon, Mark Dyreson

442 kr

Beställningsvara. Skickas inom 10-15 vardagar. Fri frakt över 249 kr.

Beskrivning

"An essential source on African American athletes and Olympic history.” —Booklist, Starred Review, and Named a Booklist Top 10 Sports Book of 2023The first book to fully chronicle the struggles and triumphs of African American athletes in the Modern Olympic summer games.In the modern Olympic Games, from 1896 through the present, African American athletes have sought to honor themselves, their race, and their nation on the global stage. But even as these incredible athletes have served to promote visions of racial harmony in the supposedly-apolitical Olympic setting, many have also bravely used the games as a means to bring attention to racial disparities in their country and around the world.In Black Mercuries: African American Athletes, Race, and the Modern Olympic Games, David K. Wiggins, Kevin B. Witherspoon, and Mark Dyreson explore in detail the varied experiences of African American athletes, specifically in the summer games. They examine the lives and careers of such luminaries as Jesse Owens, Rafer Johnson, Wilma Rudolph, Florence Griffith-Joyner, Michael Johnson, and Simone Biles, but also many African American Olympians who have garnered relatively little attention and whose names have largely been lost from historical memory.In recounting the stories of these Black Olympians, Black Mercuries makes clear that their superior athletic skills did not always shield them from the racial tropes and insensitivity spewed by fellow athletes, the media, spectators, and many others. Yet, in part because of the struggles they faced, African American Olympians have been extraordinarily important symbolically throughout Olympic history, serving as role models to future Black athletes and often putting their careers on the line to speak out against enduring racial inequality and discriminatory practices in all walks of life.

Produktinformation

Utgivningsdatum: 2023-02-08
Mått: 160 x 232 x 26 mm
Vikt: 585 g
Format: Inbunden
Språk: Engelska
Antal sidor: 324
Förlag: Bloomsbury Publishing Plc
Medarbetare: Lonnie G. Bunch III
ISBN: 9781538152836
Utmärkelser: Winner of Book of the Year 2024

Utforska kategorier

Mer om författaren

David K. Wiggins is professor emeritus of sport studies at George Mason University. The author of many books, book chapters, and scholarly articles, his publications center primarily on the interconnection among race, sport, and American culture. Included among his books are Glory Bound: Black Athletes in a White America and More than a Game: A History of the African American Experience in Sport. He is a fellow of the National Academy of Kinesiology, currently Editor-in-Chief of Kinesiology Review, and past president of the North American Society for Sport History. Kevin B. Witherspoon is the Dr. Benjamin E. Mays Endowed Chair in the Department of History and Philosophy at Lander University in Greenwood, SC. He is the author of many articles, chapters, and books, most of which focus on the intersection of race, culture, and sport in the Cold War era. His books include Before the Eyes of the World: Mexico and the 1968 Olympics and Defending the American Way of Life: Sport, Culture and the Cold War, co-edited with Toby Rider, both of which won the North American Society for Sport History annual book award. Mark Dyreson is professor of kinesiology, affiliate professor of history, and co-director of the Center for the Study of Sports in Society at Pennsylvania State University. He has published numerous articles, chapters, and books on the history of sport, including Making the American Team: Sport, Culture, and the Olympic Experience and Crafting Patriotism for Global Dominance: America at the Olympics. He is a past president of the North American Society for Sport History, a fellow of the National Academy of Kinesiology, and has served as a managing editor and senior special projects editor for the International Journal of the History of Sport.

Recensioner i media

[Black Mercuries] presents a more comprehensive view of African American participation in the Summer Olympics throughout the entire 20th century, up to the most recent games. This text features not only prominent athletes but also underrecognized Olympians, coaches, trainers, and other personnel. The text chronologically analyzes the history, experience, and challenges of African American Olympians, documenting their introduction to the world stage, the rise of female athletes, expanded opportunities to compete beyond track-and-field, and participation in political and social resistance. Wiggins, Witherspoon, and Dyreson join forces to contextualize these topics within the changing social and political milieu of the US and broader world over many decades, beginning with "pioneer" African American medalist George Poage, who won bronze at hurdles in St. Louis (1904). Recommended.

Betyg & recensioner

0 recensioner

Inga recensioner tillgängliga.