African americans in sports Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

African americans in sports - Research Paper Example 42-43). Too often, however, sport does not provide social mobility and lucrative careers for African American. Background Debate involving whether or not the sport domain in the United States is benefiting or exploiting its African American participants continues to be an issue of critical concern. Specifically, as the discussion relates to the impact of the athletic experience upon the progress of young, African American student- athletes. Embedded within this discussion exist two opposing perspectives which view sport as either "the embodiment of the American dream of meritocracy and success" (Sammons, 1994, p. 215) or as an institution designed to operate as a form of social control. According to sport sociologist George H. Sage (2000) the fundamental difference regarding these arguments and in how sport has historically been understood lies in whether one considers sport a cultural practice or not. Sage (2000) offers a logical and rational argument for considering larger socio-hi storical context when examining sport issues. He maintains that sport is a cultural practice that cannot be fully understood "as a practice isolated from the social, economic, political, and cultural context in which it is situated" (In Brooks & Althouse, p. 2). The divergence in opinion regarding the utility of sport, as expressed by the African American community, has dated as far back as slavery (Wiggins & Miller 433). The sentiments of ex- slave and abolitionist Frederick Douglass on this subject have been noted by historian Jeffrey Sammons: From his retrospective position as ex-slave, Douglass considered sport and oppressive instrument and divisionary device to occupy the minds and energies of slaves, thus preventing them from pursuing more useful activities and fully appreciating their horrible plight (p. 216). Cautiousness about the current role of sport in the lives of the African American community continues to be voiced mainly through the limited amount of sport sociologic al literature addressing the subject of the African American athletic experience. As indicated by Gates (p. 78) much of the current focus involving African American athletes has been generated in response to the channeling and overrepresentation of young black youth into collegiate revenue producing sports, unrealistic dreams of playing at an elite level, and the alarmingly poor academic performance and graduation rates of high profile Division IA collegiate athletics [i.e. basketball and football]. Historically, higher education institutions have tended to view low achieving minority students as "problems" citing the student's inability to "acculturate" to the college environment as a significant factor. Tierney (p. 603-618) suggests that institutions reconsider this position and to consider their own inability to operate in a multicultural world. Explanations for poor academic performance [as compared to whites] in African American student-athletes have generally been consistent w ith the "problem" perspective, implying that these student-athletes and their significant others overemphasize sport at the cost of academic development. According to Powell (p. 73) African-American males â€Å"don’t treat academics with the same intensity as they do basketball or football.† According to Harris (In Brooks & Althouse, 47) the National Collegiate Athletic