ABSTRACT
No longer ignored by collegiate athletic programs, sports franchises, fans and the media, African Americans have come to define certain sports and/or sports positions. To understand the meaning of sport to the black community this chapter examines some of the crucial athletic events in American sport and their impact on the black community. It begins with Jack Johnson at the turn of the century. Despite Tom Molineaux's unsuccessful bid for the belt, the fact that he and a few other slaves received special privileges and were, in rare cases, manumitted undoubtedly led some to proclaim sport's ability to elevate the status of African Americans. Unlike Jack Johnson, who was despised by whites, especially for his behavior towards them, Joe Louis and Jesse Owens were, to some extent, loved by many white Americans. And they should have been. The effect of Louis's and Owens's accomplishments was to heighten the discussion about what sport had done, or could do, for African Americans.
