Racism In Sports

279).
             However there is little that can be done to change the frame of mind symbolic of society as a whole. The argument that black people are the best basketball players is very strong for many reasons. The first argument being that, almost 80% of the athletes in the National Basketball Association are of African-American descent. Arguably the greatest player in the history of the game, Michael Jordan, is a black person. If an athlete from a minority group can excel in a sport he/she is recognized for his/her skill as much as his/her skin color. .
             The media plays a big role in the influencing body of how society must think. Since the release of the 1992 film, White Men Can't Jump, there has always been the hype and jokes made about a white person's inferiority in terms if skill and talent compared o that of a black person. In the movie, Wesley Snipes, a black athlete, says to Woody Harrelson, a white athlete having trouble completing a slam dunk, "White men can't jump!" The catch phrase has never died out. People will always segregate athletes by their skin color on the basis of their skills. There are always individuals trying to gain recognition for their talents rather then race. .
             For example, people always refer to Tiger Woods as a "black golfer" or "the greatest black golfer". There are clear examples of white athletes making racial remarks in pro golf. Golfer, Fuzzy Zoeller made a stereotypical wise crack about Tiger Woods saying that Tiger should go home and eat fried chicken and collared greens after the young golf prodigy played a phenomenal round of golf back in 1998. This remark was senseless and unnecessary. It sparked controversy leaving bad taste in the mouths of many. No athlete deserves a preferred treatment on the basis of skin color. According to Edwards, " .black youths and black society as a whole continue to harbor dreams of achieving excellence in sports- there is much to be learned and gained from both the challenges of sports competition and the experiences of meeting those challenges" (p.