Unit 4: Black Lives Matter (Tle G1)

 A Silence that Speaks Volumes (Part 1)

The document under study is a news report from CBS News, published in 2016. There is an interview of the famous African-American track and field athlete Tommie Smith. In fact, him along with his colleague, John Carlos, had been invited to the White House to be honored by Barack Obama nearly 50 years after their protest gesture on the victory stand.

At the time, they felt the need to protest on the victory stand because there were still inequalities in the USA regarding the Black community despite the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Their action was controversial, they were hated and vilified because of it. This showed that things needed to change. As a consequence, they lost their medals back then. On top of that, they were banned from the Olympic community for decades. Nevertheless, in 2016, thanks to Obama who decided to honor them for their protest gesture and their victory because they paved the way for the future generations to speak out against inequalities. Indeed, nowadays a new generation of athletes continue to protest in their fields.

Homework: Learn the lesson.