Sports Now a Platform for Social Justice?

One of the many reasons people are not planning to watch or attend professional sports is the introduction of politics into what was once considered entertainment.  This politicization has been increased due to the Colin Kaepernick flag kneeling–and now George Floyd’s tragic death in Minneapolis.

Northeastern University’s Dan Lebowitz, executive director for the school’s Center for the Study of Sport in Society, in a recent article by Molly Callahan, says that a racial justice message could be amplified during the reopening of sports.

 “Sport is so much bigger than just compartmentalized entertainment, it’s a transcendent platform for social justice that allows for the promise and possibility of true structural change that can be built around communal engagement for common cause,” Lebowitz says in the article.

What about just going to watch an expensive game after months of not being able to see one?  What about the enjoyment?  The overpriced food?  Watching your favorite players against a rival?  Why are we constantly bombarded with a political message, even if we agree with it, at a sporting event?

There is a whole center at a major university devoted to spreading political messages at sporting events.  Think about that.  Just because you don’t want these messages to be a big part of these sports events, doesn’t mean you are a racist.  It means that perhaps this game, which you paid a lot of money to attend with your family, should be entertainment, which Lebowitz says is just not enough. 

Okay, just we’ve found yet another reason to stay home and do something else.  Maybe write your congressional representative about the inequality of the races instead of attending the game you are supposed to enjoy!