The significance of sport in African American
culture is massive, and has been growing immensely the past few decades. In the
past sport was dominated by Caucasians, even sports such as basketball. If you
take close examination of sport in the day in age, it has almost done a
complete one-eighty. Films such as Love and Basketball, Remember the Titans,
and Hoop Dreams all display the struggle of African Americans via sport. These
films all contain aspects of African Americans exceeding in sport, but what happens
if they fail to meet their goals? The stereotype Hollywood has created surrounding
African American in sport, while positive, is still crippling for the race as a
whole. While sport has offered African Americans many opportunities, it has
also created a stigma. This stigma of African Americans being exceptionally
talented at sports might be true for some, but it obviously does not apply to
all. This leads some to believe that if they cannot make it to the professional
platform, then they have nothing else to strive for.
One can notice a vast difference between Hollywood
movies starring African American athletes, such as Remember the Titans, and
documentaries such as Hoop Dreams. While both show African American teenagers
striving towards their goals to become the highest quality athletes, Hollywood
waters down the difficulties that many experience. I think it is essential that
Hollywood begins to create a more realistic image of how difficult it can be to
excel to the top of the sporting world, while at the same time stressing the
importance of other aspects of life as well.
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