In Quasi-Segregated America, Why Would Our Sports Be Any Different?

In sports, as in society, we’ve made progress breaking down some walls, but other walls persist.  

All the people are just like me—in my neighborhood, in my organizations, and where I recreate. White. The situation is quite different a few miles away.

It’s a portrait of America: White here, mostly Not White there, and without much difference in-between.

America’s quasi-segregated state isn’t necessarily a preferred outcome. But no matter how hard we try, we always seem to return to where America was, which (let’s face it) is the way America is. Case in point: as America becomes more diverse, a recent headline read, America’s public schools are becoming more segregated.

America’s sports are no different. Certain sports are dominated by White players (e.g., golf, tennis, and hockey). Other sports include a majority of African American players (e.g., college/pro football and basketball). And an obstacle still—even after all these years of struggle—is African Americans breaking into White-dominated sports.

Courtesy: SportsAspire

Yes, there’s considerable diversity in White-dominated sports, but it’s coming primarily from overseas. Why? One reason is that the middle class is expanding in a number of countries. That metamorphosis is creating opportunities for youth to play sports they’ve not played historically in great numbers.

The results are striking, especially in women’s golf. For example, Asian players dominate the Ladies Professional Golf. Eight of the top 10 players in the most recent Rolex World Rankings come from Pacific Rim countries. Domestically, though, only eight African-Americans have participated on the LPGA tour since it’s founding in 1950. Those diversity numbers aren’t much better on the men’s side. Since 1929, fewer than 30 African Americans have played on the Professional Golf Association (PGA) Tour.

International diversity in “America’s Pastime” follows the same pattern, but a primary reason isn’t the achievement of upward mobility. It’s the prospect of it, especially among Latin American youth. On Opening Day 2018, major league rosters included 254 international players from over twenty countries—30% of all players. Again, though, the percentage of African Americans in major league baseball is small, around 8%, or about the same level it was in 1958.

Organized athletics is trying to bring more African Americans into White-dominated sports. An array of golf associations have been working for over twenty years to entice diverse youth to take up the game. Pro baseball wants to recruit more people-of-color to assume front-office positions. And we know that segregation in sports isn’t hardwired as it once was—when separate leagues existed and racial border crossings were prohibited.

Courtesy: The Atlantic.com

But while structural (de jure) segregation is gone, functional (de facto) segregation persists. Go to any major college or pro football or basketball game. Who’s playing on the field? Who’s watching in the stands? The answers are as clear as black and white.

Functional segregation isn’t anything new, either. In my youth, there were so-called “gentleman’s agreements” in college football and basketball. Those informal pacts restricted competition between teams (e.g., don’t play football against schools with African Americans on the roster) and during games (e.g., don’t play more than three African American basketball players at a time).

In sports, as in society, we’ve made progress breaking down some walls. Other walls still exist.

The result? We’re not where we need to be. We’re nowhere even close.