Posted on 10/16/2005 9:17:49 AM PDT by lunarbicep
LONDON (Reuters) - A seven-metre sculpture commemorating the 1968 Mexico City Olympics black power protest by Tommie Smith and John Carlos will be unveiled in San Jose State College on Monday.
Smith, who had won the 200 metres gold medal in world record time, and third-placed Carlos bowed their heads and raised one black-gloved hand each in the black power salute on the victory podium while "The Star-Spangled Banner" was played.
The pair, who had been team mates at the college, will be present at Monday's ceremony along with second-placed Australian Peter Norman.
Smith and Carlos say they were influenced in 1968 by a young sociologist friend Harry Edwards who asked them and other black American athletes to boycott the Games.
Edwards said the civil rights movement had not gone far enough to eliminate the injustices faced by blacks in the United States.
Although the boycott never happened, Smith and Carlos joined Edwards's group, the Olympic Project for Human Rights, and planned a peaceful protest after the 200 metres final, which they were expected to dominate.
Smith said he had raised his right fist to represent black power while Carlos's left fist represented unity in black America. A black scarf around Smith's neck stood for black pride and their black socks with no shoes represented black poverty in the United States.
They bowed their heads because they believed the words of freedom in the U.S. anthem represented white Americans only and wore a badge representing the Olympic Project for Human Rights.
"We didn't come up there with any bombs," Carlos recalled. "We were trying to wake the country up and wake the world up too."
I never had any desire to visit San Jose State, now I've even less.
I wonder how different this story would be if it were a statue commemorating a white power salute. Racism is racism, folks.
ping
Communist art is always so inspiring, isn't it? It reeks of blood and crime, and it's generally about as aesthetic as public execution.
I think it's because they only had one pair of gloves.
That should be "as a" public execution.
Well, isn't that special? I wonder if anyone else notices the similarity between the "black power salute" and the Third Reich's "Heil Hitler" salute?
And then, of course, it's San Jose Stste - a proud member of the Left State of California.
Nothing to see here, just move along.
Black gloves must be a black crime trademark. First there was the black gloved fist then there was the bloody black glove found at OJ's after Ron & Nicole were killed
If they're so worried about civil rights, why don't they do something constructive with their lives to help people?
LOL!
Smith and Carlos say they were influenced in 1968 by a young sociologist friend Harry Edwards who asked them and other black American athletes to boycott the Games.
This is the same Harry Edwards that's always hanging out on the San Francisco 49er's sideline. It's nice to see they suck.
The story has it that Carlos forgot his pair and had to borrow one from Smith.
Maybe somebody could photoshop that pic and have them
making the "Hook'em horns"!
Makes me want to go see it and bring 10gal of white paint,
just to paint the glove, make it look like Mickey Mouse.
The gays will absolutely love it.
It would have been funny if Norman had noticed their juvenile antics and made a funny face or something. ;)
Losers then, losers now, losers into the future.
That wasn't just some athlete, that was the Mauler of Marshall, George Foreman.
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