Coaching While Black

As the world turns to sports as a distraction for the reality amerikkka faces, athletes and coaches are increasingly being asked to speak on the issues at hand, and with more freedom, than previously allotted. For Black athletes and coaches, the sports world is no different than the outside world: full of white supremacist policies, practices, and values. From the player-coach dynamics to hiring practices, racism is always present even in an industry dominated by Black labor.

The image of Allen Iverson, Michael Vick and other unapologetic Black athletes was shocking to amerikkka when these athletes, who were the faces of their franchises, decided to reject colonial standards of what Black star athletes should look, sound, and act like. African hairstyles, tattoos, and fashion were tied to being a “thug” (racist coded language) and having off-court issues. The “thug” image became a negative character trait associated specifically with Black athletes and it was “up to coach/program/organization to keep them in check.” Hollywood and the media contributed to these stereotypes and propaganda, and has helped perpetuate this myth of how Black athletes need to be “handled”. This association with Black athletes has often resulted in anti-Black thoughts, policies and practices throughout coaching philosophies.

Almost every staff I’ve been apart of, even the ones I was the head coach of, have been guilty of re-enforcing these white supremacist ideas. Forcing Black athletes to remove du-rags, policing play style, game day attire, and setting punitive…