Race, Ethnicity, and Sport
Racism and ethnicity have been cited as detrimental in so many aspects of society. In sports, for instance, athletes have been subjected to racial profiling and this has seen many quit their carriers or even perform below their standard potential as a result of demoralization.
Recently, a renowned Kenyan athlete broke his own record by running 42 kilometers in less than 2 hours. Most of the celebrated long-distance runners worldwide are Kenyan, and this has been the case for longest time. This very aspect has made sport analysts and enthusiasts question the reason for their outstanding popularity, as opposed to other cases like the prolific ski jumpers in Finland, for example. It is apparent most fans are of the opinion that Kenyan athletes are superior in this field than any other across the globe.
While this thought lacks a scientific basis, it shows the prejudice built on racial grounds, and how thoroughly it affects the mindsets of athletes and fans around the world. Fans will support a certain sport because they are affiliated to a certain athlete by race.
Mascots, for the longest, time have embraced Native American themes and are seemingly adamant to change the same. Most journalists doing these stories will choose broadcasting the same themes over and over again and obliviously crossing boundaries of racial discrimination.
Several sports in America have suffered a similar predicament, where some athletes feel they are not portrayed correctly by the media. Athletes who are not indigenous to the US have had problems identifying with their native counterparts, in what seems like a racial competition. This has lost the integrity and the value behind the sport, compromising on key aspects of integration and cohesion among people from all racial divides.
The impact has been severe, to the extent that there is resistance to change mascots to other themes. The ethnicity and racism has seen a whole lot of divided people for reasons as the ones mentioned. This ends up losing meaning and value for sports and brings about division and disunity, rather than camaraderie and interactions among all.