1968 Olympics; Cry for Freedom

Durin the
During the 1968 Mexico City Olympics, the tension was in the air in the United States. Martin Luther King Jr. and John Kennedy had been assassinated, and many young Americans were overseas fighting in Vietnam. Only days before the games began, over 300 students at Mexico City University were killed during a riot; the games proceeded on time.

Despite the air being actually thinner due to high altitude, men and women shattered records left and right.  American Tom Smith not only won the 200 meter race, but he broke the world record at 19.83 seconds. He was followed by Austrialian Pete Norman at 20.06 seconds and fellow American John Carlos at 20.10 seconds. 

As the two American runners walked onto the podium to accept their medals, everyone began to notice their attire. Both athletes were shoeless to represent the poverty in the United States and beads to remember those who’ve been lynched, killed, tarred, or hung. Carlos had his track jacket unzipped to respect for the blue collar workers in his country, and Smith wore a black scarf to show black pride. All three runners wore a badge for the Olympic Project for Human Rights. However, the one item most remembered were the black gloves each man wore as they raised their hands in the air, rather than rest their hands over their heart during the national anthem which was the traditional response.  As they left the podium, the crowd booed their gesture. Smith said he had raised his right fist to represent black power in America, while Carlos raised his left fist to represent black unity. Together they formed an arch of unity and power. Smith said, "If I win, I am American, not a black American. But if I did something bad, then they would say I am a Negro. We are black and we are proud of being black. Black America will understand what we did tonight."  

Because of their actions, Smith and Carlos were banned from the Olympic Village and further suspended from the US team. The duo had only done the fist gesture because Harry Edwards, the founder of the OPHR, urged black athletes to boycott the Olympic Games. Edwards began this protest in hopes to show the world how the civil rights movement has not been strong enough in the US.  North Korea and Cuba both withdrew from the summer games claiming the reason being the racial inequalities represented by other countries participating in the games.

In 2005, student Erik Grotz mentioned how his school, San Jose State, has not honored alumni Smith and Carlos for their courage. In remembrance of the heroes, SJS had a 22 foot replica of the two in protest made for their campus.

Later in life Smith became a college track coach and a sociology teacher. He also had a autobiography written by David Steele. Carlos on the other hand became a professional football player for the Philadelphia Eagles in 1970. In 1985 he became a high school track coach and a counselor. Recently in October 2011 he spoke at Occupy Wall Street, letting the world know, "there is still a fight to be won."