US athlete Tommie Smith attained international fame when he gave the Black Power salute at the 1968 Mexico City Olympics, 55 years ago. But as the exclusive BBC Archive clips in this new series reveal, that protest came at a heavy cost.
On 16 October 1968, two black US athletes – Tommie Smith and John Carlos – stood on the podium at the Mexico City Olympics, heads bowed. They wore black socks with no shoes; Smith wore a black scarf around his neck. As the US national anthem played, they each raised a black-gloved hand in silent protest.Although no words were spoken, the moment was full of meaning. Smith, who had won gold in the 200m, setting a new world record, raised his right fist to represent Black Power.
In athletics, especially track and field, nobody can say you are no good. The only person who can say that is that clock – Tommie Smith in 1972 It was a year of intense political and social turmoil: the Vietnam War and the anti-war movement were in full swing, and the Civil Rights Movement had made the struggle for racial equality one of the defining issues of the era. In April, Dr Martin Luther King Jr had been. The period leading up to the 1968 Olympics was punctuated by widespread unrest. Many black athletes felt a deep sense of anger and frustration at the injustices they were facing every day.
When asked by BBC Newsnight In 2012 if he regretted the salute, Smith said:"The only regret was that it had to be done".
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