Читать книгу One Game at a Time. Why Sports Matter онлайн

24 страница из 41

We should be singing the praises, trumpeting, and defending any and every athlete who stands up, whether it’s Jackie Robinson, John Carlos, Brittney Griner, or the kid who comes out to her high school field hockey team: that shit takes real bravery and a consistency of courage. Because sports are so volatile and so powerful, every impact reverberates something fierce. Think of the battles that ensue when a young woman just wants to play on a boy’s football team, let alone the shit storm Ali caused. It’s said, and I think maybe it’s true, that the money shot for queer rights will be when a revered currently-playing athlete in a major sport comes out. Jason Collins probably isn’t high-profile enough to fit that bill, but maybe. Magic Johnson might well have been the tipping point that finally undermined HIV/AIDS prejudices.

But leave that aside for a minute. Politics is more than iconic events or star-struck moments. You can’t participate in or spectate sports without constantly articulating values, running into difference, talking about what matters and why, and being forced to figure out who you have responsibility for and why. Our core political ideals are always being performed in the gym, rink, ring, field, or track and then tested materially and bodily.