Black Power Salute - Olympics 1968

People

Tommie Smith; John Carlos

Outcome

unknown

On October 16, 1968, during the medal ceremony for the 200-meter race at the Mexico City Olympics, American sprinters Tommie Smith and John Carlos raised their black-gloved fists during the playing of "The Star-Spangled Banner" in one of the most iconic political protests in sports history. Smith, who won gold with a world-record time of 19.83 seconds, raised his right fist while Carlos, who won bronze, raised his left. They shared a single pair of black gloves. Both men stood shoeless on the podium, wearing black socks to represent Black poverty. Smith wore a black scarf for Black pride, and Carlos wore beads representing those who had been lynched. The demonstration was connected to the Olympic Project for Human Rights (OPHR), an organization of Black amateur athletes that had considered boycotting the games entirely to protest racial injustice in America. Australian silver medalist Peter Norman, who finished second, wore an OPHR badge in solidarity with Smith and Carlos. In his 2007 autobiography, Smith clarified that his gesture was a "human rights" salute rather than specifically a "Black Power" salute. The response was swift and severe. International Olympic Committee President Avery Brundage ordered Smith and Carlos suspended from the U.S. team and banned from the Olympic Village. When the U.S. Olympic Committee initially refused, Brundage threatened to ban the entire U.S. track team. Smith and Carlos were expelled from the Games, though they kept their medals. Back home, both men and their families received death threats and were largely ostracized by the sports establishment. In 2005, San Jose State University honored the pair with a 22-foot statue of their protest. In 2008, they received the Arthur Ashe Courage Award, and in 2016, President Barack Obama recognized them at the White House, saying their protest "woke folks up and created greater opportunity for those that followed."