Sports and Activism: what could Lebanon learn?

Opinion Analysis by Albert Geokgeuzian, Staff Writer

September 29th, 2020

Athletes are often viewed as the pinnacle of human ability. Whether that’s basketball with the NBA, football with the Champions League, baseball with the MLB, tennis with the US open, or hundreds of other sports leagues, their abilities often lend these athletes a platform.

Over the past few years there has been a shift by the majority of athletes in the way they use their platforms. Whereas before they were often reluctant to voice their opinions, nowadays you will quite often see athletes not only speaking out about issues yet also being community leaders. While sports activism isn’t new, there is in fact a long history, athletes do have more power and resources than ever. But these athletes are standing on the shoulders of giants. 

In 1963, one of the most important protests in US history took place when more than 200,000 people marched on washington for racial equality. On August 28th, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his “I Have A Dream” speech. People from all walks of life were among those who marched that day, including athletes.

While athletes were not the focal point of that march, rightfully so, they did continue to protest afterwards; which brings us to the case particularly of Bill Russell.

Bill Russell was a black athlete during one of the most racist eras in the US in modern times. His career started in 1956 and ended in 1969, in 13 years he won 11 championships even in the face of dreadful acts of hate. When he started his professional career many fans and owners did not want black players in the game of basketball, but Russell’s talents could not be stifled; he not only participated in the NBA, he dominated the league.

During those years however, Russell endured a lot, there was one time when fans broke into his home, spray painted racist graffiti on his walls, trashed his trophy cabinet and defecated on his bed. Yes, people broke into someone else’s home and shit on their bed simply because that person had a different pigmentation than they did. 

But Russell didn’t let any of that stop him, there were times when Russell and his team went to other cities to play, he and his black teammates were denied service at bars and restaurants so they, in turn, refused to play, they protested.

Bill Russell was a pioneer in social activism, his impact can’t be understated. Russell inspired so many to fight for what’s theirs, and that influence reached beyond the sports world. President Barack Obama said this in an interview: ”The gift someone like Bill Russel gave to somebody like me is an expectation that yeah there’s nothing I can’t do, and I don’t have to shrink myself or think that there’s a ceiling to what I can accomplish” 

Nowadays the landscape has changed dramatically in the US, the NBA in particular, is at the forefront of sports activism. Superstars like LeBron have literally built schools to help struggling communities, he recently created the “More Than A Vote” organization to combat systemic, racist voter suppression. 

Even within the last 4 years things have changed dramatically. In 2016, NFL star Colin Kaepernick took a knee during the national anthem to peacefully protest against racial inequality which eventually led to him being an outcast by the NFL for continuing to protest. 

Recently however, both the NBA and NFL, and many other leagues, have thrown their entire weight behind supporting peaceful protests. Many of the biggest stars of today participated in the protests that took place after the murder of George Floyd, using their platforms to speak up against inequalities. 

There was a breaking point.

On Aug 26, in the heart of the NBA playoffs, when the stakes were at their highest, the Milwaukee Bucks refused to play their pivotal Game 5 in the wake of the Jacob Blake shooting at the hands of police officers that happened not 65 kms from their team arena. They used their platform to get in contact with the Milwaukee governor to talk about what changes that were going to take place to make sure something like that doesn’t happen again. 

Athletes using their platform to force change.

The moral of the story is that when you have a platform, you can have an impact. This brings us to Lebanon, what do racial protests by athletes in a dystopian country have to do with lebanon? It’s simple, community leaders using their platform to impact the politics of their country. We desperately need that. It is time for lebanese icons to put their money where their mouth is. 

We look up to these people, they have the cache and resources to speak up and help struggling communities. Fadi El Khatib has the ability to create scholarships for aspiring kids, he has used his platform tremendously to speak up, but more can be done.

It is time for Fairuz to step into the light and use her legendary status to unite the nation, to use her resources to support the country whether it is through helping local brands, investing in business or a slew of other ways that can help the country. 

We are facing an inflection point.

We could still see a prosperous Lebanon, but we need all of our icons, not only our athletes and sports heroes, to lead us there.