Black Sports : Forty Million Dollar Slaves

Destee

destee.com
destee.com
Jan 22, 2001
36,716
10,468
betwixt and between
destee.com
Occupation
Website Consultant
Forty Million Dollar Slaves: The Rise, Fall, and Redemption of the Black Athlete

40millionslaves_.jpg

Rhoden's provocative thesis is that today's black athletes are akin to pre-Civil War plantation slaves, because slavery had as much to do with power and control as it had to do with wealth. The big-money sports in America–football, baseball, basketball–are owned and controlled almost exclusively by white men, and yet each has a disproportionately large percentage of black athletes. They are well paid, but they have no direct power over the current and future direction of these sports. More than that, they lack any real control over their roles within these sports. The author supports his position with a well-researched and thoughtfully rendered survey of the history of the black athlete. From plantation-born jockeys and boxers of the early 19th century, to the NBA of Michael Jordan and Larry Johnson, Rhoden remains focused on prevailing structures of racism. He notes the accomplishments and frustrations of several well-known figures, including Jackie Robinson, Muhammad Ali, Jesse Owens, and Willie Mays, as well as others who have faded from our collective memory. In doing so, he examines the damaging effects of what he calls the conveyor belt in the contemporary sports world, where children as young as 11 and 12 are pegged as prospects and viewed as potential sources of income through middle school, high school, and college. This book will no doubt spark controversy, but will also prove to be a lasting contribution to the history of race relations in America.

:heart:

Destee
 
I couldn't agree more , that black children are pegged as money makers then
tossed aside like many great sport figures .
No matter what position they hold they still impowered by the massa man
who call all shots and rule the table.
 
oldiesman said:
there's one teeny tiny difference...these are RICH SLAVES,now what they need to do is invest those slave wages and stay outta trouble retire and buy a little plantation of thier own.

That's more than a teeny tiny difference...it blows the whole comparison out the water.

What slave had more personal income than 99% of people on the planet?

To equate these rich athletes with slaves is disrespectful to the legacy our ancestors overcame.
 
I haven't read this book yet so I can't speak to how the writer uses the "slave" metaphor. I can only assume that the point he's trying to make is that although highly compensated black athletes are exploited.

There are more than a few books on this topic. A few years ago I read a similar book. Darwin's Athletes: How Sport Has Damaged Black America and Preserved the Myth of Race.
See my review.


peace,
We
 

Donate

Support destee.com, the oldest, most respectful, online black community in the world - PayPal or CashApp

Latest profile posts

HODEE wrote on Etophil's profile.
Welcome to Destee
@Etophil
Destee wrote on SleezyBigSlim's profile.
Hi @SleezyBigSlim ... Welcome Welcome Welcome ... :flowers: ... please make yourself at home ... :swings:
Back
Top