Paving the Way: An Analysis of the Sporting Myths Depicting Barack Obama’s Election as Racial Progress

• In Event: Race, Whiteness and Culture

Abstract

Obama’s election reinforced the myth that black athletes have established racial equality and social mobility. Black athletes rejected this myth by expressing incredulity at Obama’s victory instead of assuming that his election was an inevitable result of racial progress. Although black sporting figures spoke out during the campaign, not all forms of political expression were accepted. Instead, the narrative that sport “paved the way” for Obama’s success substituted for true social change.

Author

• Bonnie Sierlecki, Penn State University