In Black and White: Race and Sports in America

by Kenneth L. Shropshire

Overview

Confronts the pressing problems surrounding race and diversity in the front offices of the American sports industry

From the years of the Negro Leagues in baseball up to today, when college basketball programs entice and then fail to educate young Black men, sports in America have long served as a barometer of the country’s racial climate. Just as Black employees are often barred from the upper echelons of corporate America, they are underrepresented in the front offices of the sports industry as well. In this compact volume, Kenneth L. Shropshire confronts prominent racial myths head-on, offering both a history of—and solutions for—the most pressing problems currently plaguing sports.

Despite the fact that Black athletes represent a huge majority of the American sports industry, the majority of ownership stake in professional basketball, baseball, and football teams is still held by white owners. And yet, when confronted with programs intended to diversify their front offices, many teams resort to the familiar refrain of merit-based excuses: there simply aren't enough qualified Black candidates or they don't know how to network. These hollow excuses not only stigmatize and exclude Black employees, but directly contradict the important value Black candidates can bring to these roles. In the insular world of sports, where former players often move up to become coaches, managers, executives, and owners, Black candidates are eminently qualified. After decades of active involvement with their sport, they often bring to the table experiences more relevant to the Black players on their teams. As a central aspect of American life, the sports industry has a responsibility to be a leader in the fight for racial equality—a responsibility that has not yet been met.

In Black and White takes the industry to task, revealing claims of colorblindness and reverse racism as self-serving deflection and scrutinizing professional and collegiate sports, sports agents, and owners alike. No mere critique, however, the volume looks optimistically forward, outlining strategies that will drive the sports industry toward greater racial equality, and help it lead the way for racial justice efforts throughout America.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780814780169
Publisher:	New York University Press
Publication date:	08/01/1996
Pages:	240
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.84(d)

About the Author

Kenneth L. Shropshire, the author of several books, is CEO of the Global Sport Institute and the Adidas Distinguished Professor of Global Sport at Arizona State University. He has written for USA Today, The Los Angeles Times, The New York Daily News, Emerge Magazine, and The Philadelphia Inquirer.

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

"A prominent sports-law specialist sends down an indictment of racism in sports that is impossible to ignore. Anyone desiring to be informed about race issues and sports should read it."

-Kirkus Review,

"A new standard of excellence in writing about sports in America begins with this book. Shropshire has approached his task with unique skill, passion, seriousness, and intelligence."

-Houston A. Baker, Jr.,University of Pennsylvania

"In Black and White hits harder than Lawrence Taylor. A how-to manual not only for sports but society as well. It should be required reading for every incoming freshman."

-James Lofton,former NFL All Pro, NBC Broadcaster

"This is not merely a screed on sports' lagging track record in combating racism. Shropshire provides workable solutions for bringing more minorities into the coaching and business ends of athletics."

-USA Today Baseball Weekly

Houston A. Baker,Jr.

A new standard of excellence in writing about sports in America begins with this book. Shropshire has approached his task with unique skill, passion, seriousness, and intelligence.
— Houston A. Baker, Jr., University of Pennsylvania

James Lofton

In Black and White hits harder than Lawrence Taylor. A how-to manual not only for sports but society as well. It should be required reading for every incoming freshman.
— James Lofton, former NFL All Pro, NBC Broadcaster

Editorial Reviews

"In Black and White hits harder than Lawrence Taylor. A how-to manual not only for sports but society as well. It should be required reading for every incoming freshman."

-James Lofton,former NFL All Pro, NBC Broadcaster

"A new standard of excellence in writing about sports in America begins with this book. Shropshire has approached his task with unique skill, passion, seriousness, and intelligence."

-Houston A. Baker, Jr.,University of Pennsylvania

"This is not merely a screed on sports' lagging track record in combating racism. Shropshire provides workable solutions for bringing more minorities into the coaching and business ends of athletics."

-USA Today Baseball Weekly

"A prominent sports-law specialist sends down an indictment of racism in sports that is impossible to ignore. Anyone desiring to be informed about race issues and sports should read it."

-Kirkus Review

From the Publisher

In Black and White is both a metaphor for the racial divide between athletes and owners in professional sports and an apt description for the author's dry, statistical writing. Whites, not surprisingly, have a 95% ownership stake in the three major professional sportsbaseball, basketball, and footballin which black athletes dominate. So while the industry superficially looks egalitarian, it can actually be a chattel existence. Shropshire, a professor at the Wharton School of Business and author of The Sports Franchise Game, considers the racial makeup of the front office personnel; the climate of the NCAA; and preconceptions about the power and prestige of a white sports agent. Shropshire is informative, factual and even anecdotal, but still awfully bland. Even when he is at his best (discussing racial myths while allowing for his personal experience as a practicing sports law attorney), the flow is entirely disrupted by the overabundance of footnotes (143 in the 25-page second chapter alone). Shropshire clearly believes that athletes by have a duty to be race men and to work for change in an industry that routinely rejects them when they have passed their prime. It's rather optimistic of him to end with the image of Tommie Smith and John Carlos on the medal stand at the 1968 Olympics as they "bowed their heads, listened to the U.S. national anthem, and raised black-gloved fists to the sky." But it's hard to imagine self-indulgent narcissists like Dennis Rodman or Deion Sanders standing up for anyone except themselves. Gestures are only so effective. The real question is whether high-priced athletes of today will use their money to buy into the front office. (July)

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

Practicing sports lawyer Shropshire (legal studies, U. of Pennsylvania) points out the racism still institutionalized in American professional sports, distills the attitudes that allow it to persevere, and recommends strategies for redressing the situation. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Booknews

This is not merely a screed on sports' lagging track record in combating racism. Shropshire provides workable solutions for bringing more minorities into the coaching and business ends of athletics.

Baseball USA Today

A prominent sports-law specialist sends down an indictment of racism in sports that is occasionally dense and difficult to read but impossible to ignore.

Noting that 95 percent of all sports team owners are white, while their teams' athletes are for the most part black, Shropshire (Legal Studies/Wharton School, Univ. of Pennsylvania) reveals the many reasons why pro and college sports remain under the control of what is essentially a white old boys' network. These include prevailing racial images and myths, white racism, black apathy, athletes' and owners' self-interest. In addition to identifying the problem, Shropshire proposes several remedies. Some, such as reforming college sports admission policies (by dropping the use of standardized aptitude tests as a means of judging students for admission and eliminating freshman eligibility) seem simple, bordering on the obvious, and they have been raised before, but decision makers have yet to embrace them. Other proposals seem less probable, including the boycott by athletes of some major sports events, the utilization of additional resources to improve America's high schools, and a program to wean society away from the creation and worship of sports heroes: "A white kid tries to become President," Shropshire writes, "and the skills and knowledge he picks up on the way can be used in a thousand different jobs. A black kid tries to become Willie Mays and all the tools he picks up are useless to him if he doesn't become Willie Mays."

Despite the author's conjecturing and frequent overreliance on obscure legal examples, this is a solid, well-argued, and important study. Anyone desiring to be informed about race issues and sports should read it.

Kirkus Reviews

"A new standard of excellence in writing about sports in America begins with this book. Shropshire has approached his task with unique skill, passion, seriousness, and intelligence."

Houston A. Baker

"This is not merely a screed on sports' lagging track record in combating racism. Shropshire provides workable solutions for bringing more minorities into the coaching and business ends of athletics."

USA Today Baseball Weekly

"In Black and White hits harder than Lawrence Taylor. A how-to manual not only for sports but society as well. It should be required reading for every incoming freshman."

James Lofton