Ali spoke for the disenfranchised during the prime of his career. He risked everything in order to give the people a voice. There are very few superstar athletes today that speak out on social or political issues that plague Black communities all over the nation.
Professional sports are a huge component of Black male culture. Historically, Black professional athletes took full advantage of their influence and used the platform sports presented to address social issues that were affecting the Black community.
Black athletes use to be more than athletes. They were also catalyst’s for social change.
Black athletes were ready and willing to make both social and political statements on their respective sports biggest stages.
With social media platforms that were non existent just 15 years ago, and traditional media outlets catering to the nations infatuation with sports. Black Athletes today have more avenues to actually express their dissatisfaction with society towards the Black community. Which means that Black athletes today have the potential to be more influential now than ever before.
Add that to the fact that athletes today are far more financially capable to help the disenfranchised, leads me to question why Black athletes are not speaking out on issues that affect people in the communities a large number of these athletes come from.
Although I am not criticizing athletes today, I am trying to figure out what happened to the thought process of Black athletes. Is the amount of money athletes are making the reason for the sense of complacency? Do athletes lose sight of issues in the Black community once they step foot on predominantly white campuses?
Lebron James, and other NBA stars wore shirts in honor of Eric Garner who was murdered by the NYPD. Very few words were said, but NBA stars were praised for their stance on the issue.
The people who have the influence to shift public opinion, are the same people who have the money to actually fund programs, and are the closest thing to an actual connection between the rich and poor, also happen to be the people least likely to help.