Smith/Carlos Tribute

[utkvol80]

While I applaud this recognition for Smith and Carlos, I wonder if a similar tribute to Vince Matthews and Wayne Collett is in order?

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f ... CVP9V1.DTL

[xcfan]

Re: Smith/Carlos Tribute

All of these men made contributions to this sport
and it goes without saying that they should
be honored for their accomplishments.

[dukehjsteve]

Re: Smith/Carlos Tribute

>While I applaud this recognition for Smith and Carlos, I wonder if a similar
>tribute to Vince Matthews and Wayne Collett is in
>order?

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f ... PG1ICVP9V1
>DTL

I'm as "lefty" as you can come , but I do not agree. Smith and Carlos presumably did what they did with some planned conviction. Whereas IMHO Collett and Matthews were just nonchalant because they were disinterested.

[paulthefan]

Re: Smith/Carlos Tribute

well Im as right wing as you can get.. and while I can respect the shoeless tribute to those that were poverty stricken and the beads to represent those killed and mistreated in the past.. the raising of fisted glove to the flag that stood for the men and women that you are there to represent is a total disgrace... I respect them as athletes immensely I forgive them for their folly because they were young... but some of us out here in USland will not be remembering those events when we remember the greatness of these athletes.

[Highland]

Re: Smith/Carlos Tribute

To me, the most fascinating aspect of the Smith-Carlos protest is how public perception has changed over the years. They were vilified by 99 percent of the press (and probably public) in 1968, but now it's seen as a peaceful statement of conscience. But if an athlete did the same thing today, he or she would undoubtedly come under fire for the same basic reason Smith and Carlos did in 1968 - disrespecting the flag. Personally, I think Tommie Smith and Lee Evans really thought things through (as much as young college kids think things through). Carlos wasn't nearly as committed to the cause as they were. But if their goal was to make a statement that would endure, they certainly succeeded. 1968 was a fascinating year.

[gh]

Re: Smith/Carlos Tribute

tons of Smith/Carlos reading material in here from a few months back, when we reprinted (still available in the Archive section) a lot of the stuff leading up to the almost-boycott of '68

http://www.trackandfieldnews.com/tfn/di ... age=154276

[telamonajax]

Re: Smith/Carlos Tribute

<I forgive them for their folly >

I am sure they can both rest much more easily now.

[utkvol80]

Re: Smith/Carlos Tribute

>tons of Smith/Carlos reading material in here from a few months back, when we
>reprinted (still available in the Archive section) a lot of the stuff leading
>up to the almost-boycott of
>'68

http://www.trackandfieldnews.com/tfn/di ... forum=5&th
>ead=10533&message=154276

Thanks for posting that link!

[jhc68]

Re: Smith/Carlos Tribute

Folly or disgrace or whatever you think of the raised fists, you gotta admire it as an act of defiant courage that grabbed the attention of the world. Tommie was one of the greatest track athletes of all time, and Carlos was one of the great talents who coulda, woulda, shoulda done better than he ultimately did. But it was the gesture transcended the sport or even the olympics and made them historic figures.

[twittering debutante]

Re: Smith/Carlos Tribute

If Carlos and Smith are being honored, why not Peter Norman?

http://www.blackathletesportsnetwork.ne ... 21002.html

[utkvol80]

Re: Smith/Carlos Tribute

>If Carlos and Smith are being honored, why not Peter
>Norman?

If Australia chooses to do so.... If he had doned a black glove and raised his fist in solidarity with Smith and Carlos then he might be included in this statue.

[einnod23]

Re: Smith/Carlos Tribute

>the raising of fisted glove to the flag
>that stood for the men and women that you are there to represent is a total
>disgrace...

Avery Brundage translation: These boys should have stood at attention and kept quiet!!!!!

[paulthefan]

Re: Smith/Carlos Tribute

proving I guess that even AB could get it right sometimes!..

[Arnie]

Re: Smith/Carlos Tribute

To me it was never about what they did being wrong or right, it was that the Olympic Games are no place for demonstrations, political, or racial.

[jrun]

Re: Smith/Carlos Tribute

>To me it was never about what they did being wrong or right, it was that the
>Olympic Games are no place for demonstrations, political, or racial.

----
Says you?