Final Book Post

After reading the book “Pumped” I have come to many conclusions about the subject. I have learned the serious dangerous of using steroids. For women, men and teenagers all can be at risk if they are using steroids and if done only once, they can still seriously harm their bodies and lead to extreme side effects. From reading about the subject I related it back to my project, and the question of high school students being tested for steroids. As I gained a better knowledge of the danger from using steroids my opinion only got stronger as I believe the test should be put in place. From reading this book I also learned about other drugs and their dangerous effects. By learning about these drugs I began to wonder if high school students should be tested for drugs as well as steroids. The number one goal in all this is to keep the kids safe and if we put steroid and drug test into high schools we can reach this goal. I have also discovered about addiction and tolerance which are two elements that can affect teenagers if they start to use drugs and steroids at a young age. With addiction kids are likely to keep using dangerous drugs and can seriously damage their bodies. Some kids and adults can also develop a tolerance, where they can move to more hazardous drugs because the simple steroid/drug does not satisfy to their needs. All the information I have learned from this book, has made me a bigger believer in testing for steroids and drugs in high school.  

pumped 5

As I am almost finished with “Pumped” I have learned many things about steroids. As I have read chapters on anabolic steroids I have also learned about other types of steroids that are out there. Another common steroid that is used today is Human Growth Hormone also known as HGH. Human Growth Hormone, which is produced by the pituitary gland and causes rapid skeletal growth and height increase during puberty. The fact that growth hormone is natural lasts only a short time in the body and is virtually impossible to detect with current testing methods has led to it increased use. With steroids out there many people can get addicted or gain tolerance to the drug. Many drugs cause much smaller reactions in the body after they have been taken for a while. At first many weight lifters experience big improvements from taking steroids but then the rate of improvement slows down. The body builders often compensate by taking more but eventually the improvements stops or stays the same and even taking very high doses no linger helps.

pumped 4

In chapter 6 and 7 the author takes a break from steroids and talks about the dangers of other drugs. Before reading these chapters, I had some knowledge on the dangers of drugs but did not know some of the unknown side effects that can occur. As multiple drugs where explained, I wanted to focus on drugs that are more common to be seen in high school. One drug that is one of the most popular is alcohol.

Alcohol can affect children, adolescents w and maybe even people in their early twenties differently than it does adults. Alcohol is dangerous to teenagers in the aspect of the memory from the brain. Science has discovered that the brain is not fully developed until your mid 20’s and drinking alcohol can affect the memory and functionality. Also by drinking alcohol at a young age kids can gain a tolerance, where they feel the need to drink more alcohol. This habit can be deadly as alcohol poisoning and alcoholism can occur.

From learning the dangerous of alcohol I began to think that if school where testing for steroids to keep kids safe, then should they test for alcohol and other drugs. As steroids may not be as popular as other drugs a test put in place can prohibit students from the dangerous habit.

pumped 3

I have read a lot of “Pumped” and really enjoy it. I have just finished chapter 5 called “Building Muscle mass and Strength” where the main focus is about the most common steroid, Anabolic. Anabolic steroids are natural hormones produced by the body that help build muscle. Anabolic steroids are known to be the first drugs that athletes of modern era used to enhance athletic performance. Anabolic steroids are very popular in sports because of their ability to increase muscle and cut fat. The steroid can come in a cream base or injection and no doctor is required to get the drug. Anabolic steroids are very dangerous and can cause major damage to the liver, cardiovascular system, and can alter the male’s reproductive system. As the danger of using the drug for the average user (adults) seems bad, teens are at an even high risk.

The rapid rise in testosterone in boys during puberty stimulates bone growth and so increases height but it also will make bones stop growing. Testosterone both stimulates the normal rapid bone growth during puberty and when it is done, triggers the end of this process. When teenage athletes take large doses of anabolic steroids they can end up shorter and can severely damage their growth plates.

Use of anabolic steroids began with elite competitive athletes but today it includes even high school student who are taking anabolic steroids. Most researchers estimate that 3 to 5 percent of high school age athletes and 5 to 15 percent of adult athletes use performance-enhancing drugs. The level of anabolic steroid use among young athletes exceeds use of any drugs other than alcohol nicotine or marijuana.

pumped 2

I have been reading the book Pumped and I have learned many things about steroids. As I am learning the dangers I began to wonder why athletes are using steroids. After reading the “Bulking up, Sliming Down” I learned that athletes are using performance enhancing drugs for two main reasons. One reason is that they are trying to enhance their body’s response to training.  Steroids like testosterone, are supposed to work with, rather than replace the effect of training. Another reason why people use steroids is to improve performance during competition. Drugs such as stimulants are used to improve endurance in aerobic events. Steroids are also used to alter a body composition, increase body mass, increased strength in particular muscles, achieve faster times in sporting events or to simply Increase weight lifted.  In a society that has accepted the use of chemicals it seems natural to turn to chemical to improve athletic performance. Most people can’t judge whether a chemical will achieve the desired results or whether it will cause harm. But kids and adults are willing to do anything to get that extra edge.

People are also included by media and pop culture, where steroids are relevant. In baseball stars such as Alex Rodgriez, Roger Clemens, and Barry Bonds have all been involved with steroids or have reportly done the drug. Kids who are trying to get an extra edge on completion, or are trying to make it through minor league baseball are the ones using steroids. With stricter rules in professional baseball, the steroids usage has declined. If tests that are used in professional sports can be implemented to high school level, I believe the numbers of steroid use will decrease.

Pumped #1

The book I am reading is called Pumped by Cynthia Kuhn. Cynthia Kuhn is a researcher in pharmacology & psychology at Duke University Medical Center. This book is about steroids and the effects it has on the body. Others doctors’ such as Dr.Scott Swartzwelder, and Dr. Wilkie Wilson give their expert option on the topic. As I have started to read the book I am learning more on the negative side effects steroids can have on a person. The book elaborates on the potential harm risks that can happen to an adult who uses steroids but the dangers of teenagers are even worst. For my topic I chose the issue of testing steroids in high schools. From what I have learned from the book, it has made my opinion even stronger towards testing high school athletes. By being tested the teenagers can be prevented from using steroids and can save themselves from harmful risks. I also have learned potential reasons why people would use steroids and was surprised at how the media and professional sports had a great influence on usage.

                                                                                                          

                                                                                                               

Future

Today I looked in to the future of testing steroids in high school.  I have come to the conclusion that putting steroid testing in high schools is effective, but schools should also educate the students on the potential harm of the drug. As health classes may briefly cover the subject, sports teams should be required to teach the physical and mental dangers of steroids. Also students should be taught not to buy into the media and professional sports where steroids use has occurred.

Petition

Today I wrote a petition to be mailed to Illinois governor Pat Quinn. The petition is asking for signatures to get more testing in high schools around the Illinois area. Illinois is a state that tests for steroids in high schools but not many high school test. Hopefully the governor will try to increase the number of schools allowing steroid testing.

My View

As I have found a lot of information on my topic I have gotten a good idea on the view of the topic. I have decided to favor for testing high school students for steroids in high school. A big reason why I am in favor of the test is because it prevents the kids from using the harmful drug.  Using steroids in high school can be harmful to the teen’s growth and poor injecting techniques can lead to bacterial infections.  Not only does the prevent benefit from the test but it will balance the field of play in high school sports making an unfair advantage unable if steroids are banned from high school sports.

Steroid Series: Early Detection

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/otl/news/story?id=3951039

 By Shaun Assael
ESPN The Magazine

Not long ago, America's high schools were being hailed as the next frontier in the sports world's war on drugs. In his 2004 State of the Union address, former President George W. Bush put the issue on the political radar by exhorting Americans "to get tough and to get rid of steroids now" as part of his call for additional funding for testing for illegal drugs in the nation's schools. Parents became mobilized as tragic tales of steroid-related teen suicides drew headlines.

Four years after the first statewide program was begun in the United States, however, steroid testing has become a hard sell. Last month, Florida threw in the towel on its $100,000 program after finding just one positive case among 600 students.

Florida's move leaves Texas, Illinois and New Jersey as the only states with random steroid-testing programs. And they aren't uncovering much more use. New Jersey found one positive in 500 postseason tests last year.

Texas reported seven positives out of 19,000 tests done through the school year. The $3 million annual price tag on Texas's program led one Republican state senator to call the tests, which cost between $150 and $200 each, a "colossal waste of taxpayer money."

Supporters discount the low numbers of positive test results, arguing that the real value of random testing is deterrence. Kurt Gibson, assistant executive director of the Illinois High School Association, says that while his state is only midway through the first year of its $150,000 pilot, he will not be concerned if its numbers mirror Texas' and New Jersey's.

"We feel there's great grassroots support for this," he says. "We talked to our members before we began this, and they all said they wanted it."

New Jersey's testing czar echoes the sentiment.

"Our goal isn't to catch kids. It's to prevent them from using," says Bob Baly, assistant director of the state's Interscholastic Athletic Association. "When we go into a school, the word gets around that we're there. Parents like that."

The statistics show that not many kids are getting caught for steroids and that it may be wasting money. If steroid use is declining from the fear of the test then the test is being effective even though the numbers may not seem to be.

New Jersey will soon become the first state to test high school athletes for steroids

New Jersey will soon become the first state to test high school athletes for steroids. Former Governor Richard Codey signed an executive order last December requiring random tests of students who participate in championship tournaments. Any student athlete found to be using illegal performance enhancing drugs would be suspended from competition for one year.

Mr. BOB BAILEY (New Jersey Athletic Association): We reviewed it just like a physical. We're making sure students when they enter an athletic contest will be healthy and won't be injured. We know that steroids has a harmful effect on anybody that takes them. So, I think we're talking health and safety first.

SOLOMON: Predictably, the ACLU of New Jersey begs to differ. Deborah Jacobs, the chapter's director, says it's not for the state to decide what kind of medical tests children should take.

Ms. DEBORAH JACOBS (ACLU, New Jersey): Having the school make the decision to subject a child to a medical examination really undermines the authority of the parent and the family privacy in that kind of decision making. So, this is something where really the government's trying to take on a roll that doesn't belong to it. It belongs to parents and it's a private family issue.

The National Institute on Drug Abuse says steroid use among teenagers peaked in 2002 and is now in decline. One study found that 1.5 percent of high school seniors took steroids in 2005.

SOLOMON: The New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association is expected to approve the testing plan on June 7th. The program would test 500 of the 10,000 students who participate in championship tournaments, beginning with the 2006-07 school year, which means the first drug test will probably be given before the tournaments in late fall.

Source: All Things Considered (NPR), MAY 29, 2006

Texas, Illinois and New Jersey are the only states with random steroid-testing programs

Steroid Testing in High School

According to the Monitoring the Future Survey by The University of Michigan, in 2006, 2.7% of high school seniors reported they had tried steroids at least once in their lifetime.  The majority of those who fall victim to teenage steroid abuse are male athletes seeking to better their performance in sports, be more competitive in the pursuit of athletic scholarships, or to gain recognition outside of the arena. 

 Females as well as males have shockingly admitted trying steroids as early as age 11, and are said to most commonly do so for aesthetic purposes.  The charted and graphical illustrations below demonstrate some of the trends seen over the past several years.

	8th-Graders					10th-Graders				12th-Graders
	2003		2004	2005	2006	2003	2004	2005	2006	2003	2004	2005	2006
Steroid Use
Lifetime Past year Past month		2.5 1.4 0.7	1.9 1.1 0.5	1.7 1.1 0.5	1.6 0.9 0.5	3.0 1.7 0.8	2.4 1.5 0.8	2.0 1.3 0.6	1.8 1.2 0.6	3.5 2.1 1.3	3.4 2.5 1.6	2.6 1.5 0.9	2.7 1.8 1.1

Potential Risks

Although some of the side effects are minor and temporary, adolescent use can increase both severity and permanence.  All too often teens simply ignore these signals.

Anabolic Steroids can stunt the vertical growth of adolescent users. 

Epiphyseal plates located on each end of the long bones remain open permitting growth to take place.

 At the time of maturity these plates fuse, thus definitively ending the vertical growth process.  Too much additional testosterone in an adolescent user’s body can cause hormones to send false maturity messages resulting in the premature fusion of growth plates and reduction in overall height. 

Teens most likely will not have the resources to obtain the proper paraphernalia for sterilely injecting steroids.  Poor injecting techniques can lead to bacterial infections under the skin such as abscesses, cellulitis, gangrene, and excessive the formation of scar tissue.  The hazardous practice of sharing needles can present a risk of transmitting AIDS, HIV and Hepatitis B or C.



Abuse is different from addiction, and will always precede it in drug use.  This earlier incidence is why abuse is the more easily treatable and curable of the two.  Drug abuse begins when one has made the decision to use repeatedly, and if used too often drugs create associated physiological cravings within the body. 

Steriods also have an effect on the brain and can be very harmful to teens.

What is government doing?

The federal government, various associations and committees have implemented specific measures in the prevention of adolescent steroid abuse.  The “Monitoring the Future Study” chart above depicts substantial decrease in the lifetime usage of 12th graders since 2003.  The Anabolic Steroid Prevention for Teen Athletes (ATLAS) is a program that provides male, high school athlete steroid users with peer counseling, factual information and healthy alternatives.  ATLAS received the ‘Model Program Award’ from the Center for Substance Abuse Prevention in 2000, and the ‘Exemplary Award from Safe and Drug Free Schools’ in 2001.  Surveys have reported a positive impact by ATLAS in the areas of drunk driving, illicit drug use.  Students who participate in the ATLAS program report higher self-esteem, better self-confidence, and greater awareness after completing the program.  In 1999 ‘Athletes Targeting Healthy Exercise and Nutrition Alternatives’ (ATHENA) was designed to reduce both the use of drugs and eating disorders in teenage girls.

http://www.steroidabuse.com/steroid-use-in-high-schools.html

Should High School's test for Steroids

Should High School Test for Steroids?

 It happens in High schools all across the world. High School athletics are injecting themselves with anabolic steroids for their specific sports for the purpose of being the best or getting recognized to play college sports.

Pros- Prevent death, decline in future steroid activity, scares athletes away from steroids, equal in sports.

Cons- invasion of privacy, expensive (190$ per test), steroid use is low in high school

Race

Dating back to slavery race and racism towards African Americans was an issue in which African Americans had to face discrimination on a daily basis. Today the discrimination is to a lesser consent but still exist. Not only do African Americans be treated unfairly but with more immigrants living in America Latinos are becoming the new race that is being discriminated. But the discrimination is not always negative as America is being to adapt to the new society. Television shows such as Dora the Explorer on Nickelodeon who is a Spanish speaking character brings a new version of integrating and focusing on children who may be minorities. With more minorities coming, the racism will decrease. As America deals with issues towards Latinos, African Americans still face problems of racism today. From reading Andrew Hacker and Tim Wise's articles both have similar ideas agreeing that blacks are mistreated. Stereotypes and racial profiling are common among the racism America shows towards blacks. Acts of negative connotations, false accusations, hate read and violence have occurred to the African American race. When taking the test in the hidden bias my test results found that I was somewhat to a little racist towards the African American race. The results said that I showed a quicker reaction time when seen positive words connecting with the race of white. I was surprised with my test results because I do not think I am racist towards African Americans but giving characteristics it did show that the white faces where easier to identify positive traits than the blacks. Racism in America must stop so everyone can be treated fairly.  

Cases

Trial 1- In Trial 1, the case of two college students and the event of rape occurred. A college student was in a relationship with a female for a long period of time. After a party they both went back to the male’s dorm room and after a night of drinking began to kiss. When the male wanted to have sex with the female she resisted and tried to leave. The man ripped her shirt and pulled her back onto the bed. When she walked out after she was raped she saw a picture of the male and another female. The picture had a reference to marriage and this upset the female. Later that week the female sued the male for rape.

The verdict was reached with unanimous decision. In the favor of the male, the jury found that she was not raped. Key facts that helped the male included: she went back to bed with him and kissed him, they had been dating before and had sex, she was jealous of the other women in the photo and a strong closing argument. I was surprised that she did not win because it seemed she had clearly been raped. With a bruise on her arm, a ripped shirt and many emotional symptoms of a rape victim it seemed that the man indeed committed the crime. To reach an opposite outcome I would have to know for sure that the women was mad at the picture and that her number one motive was to set the man up. If there were facts that showed her hate for the women in the picture my decision would have changed.

Trial 2- In Trial 2 with the case of Elyse Roberts’s v. The Felony Bureau Office, Elyse Roberts attempted to sue the Bureau for Sexual Harassment from the offender Kevin Murphy.  Kevin Murphy countlessly harassed Elyse by joking with her and making her feel uncomfortable.  Elyse went through the process through the office complaining to Fran Troy and Sandy Yu.

When the verdict came out Elyse, did not win the case in a vote of 7-2. Reasons that see did not win where from the lack of evidence that her work was poor from Kevin and that Ms.Guzman did not report any harassment going on. I was surprised by the verdict found Elyse had not been harassed after she clearly was. Kevin told Elyse jokes that made her feel uncomfortable and clearly bothered her. She filed the complaint and completed the correct steps but still did not win. In order to change my view on the case I would need to know if Kevin was really attractive to Elyse and if he was really joking with her.

2. The issues of sexual harassment and date rape are big problems for women in the world today. Women must know how to prevent the situation if it every must occur and must tell someone. To my knowledge there is no date rape or sexual harassment at DHS but there may be some cyber bullying which could be in the category of sexual harassment. The culture of DHS detracts these problems by having strict rules and major punishments. If a problem like this comes up it should be address by a counselor or a person who knows the victim well.

Egypt Blog

The 30 years of Mubarak term are up and Egyptians are ready for a change. With the city in pandemonium the Military now has control of the city. The strike is effecting the economy, where many workers have gone on strike, demanding for better wages and condition. The financial investors are backing away and tourism is nonexistent.  

Video- Abdul Hakim Nasser Speaks

The video I watched involved the son of former Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser Hussien. Gamal Abdel led the people of Egypt in last revolution in 1952.  When the son visited the square named after the last revolution, many people enjoyed his company and treated him like a celebrity, taking pictures and hugging him. The son stresses that the problem must be fixed before it gets even more out of hand.

Slide Show

Watching the slideshow of the Cairo’s protest I see how the people are desperate for a change. Where the media is blocked out signs reading “Facebook” where the anti-Mubarak movement is operated. From looking at the signs and seeing the protest there seems to be no violence at all. By protesting in a peaceful manner a solution can be solved quicker and less violence will occur.

2011 State of the Union

This year’s state of union address was different than the past. For the first time Republicans and Democrats sat together for the President’s speech. The president speech talked about money being saved, the US expenses, education, future technology and the war in Afghanistan. For the financial portion of the speech Obama planned to freeze 400 billion dollars in spending, reduce health care expenses, increase tax on oil companies and reform social security. When talking about the future he pledged to have more electric cars by 2015, to have 80 percent of the country's electricity come from clean-energy sources by 2035, and to invest in biomedical research, information research and clean energy.

I would have to agree with the President where I think new energy plants can fix the economy by putting people to work from the energy power plants.

40 Million Dollar Slaves Final Post

In 2005 a group of current and former NBA players traveled to Mississippi and Louisiana to view the devastation of Hurricane Katrina. The hurricane was a wake up call for NBA athletes because the hardest hit were black and poor, many of them having stayed behind because they could not evacuate. Many athletes on the trip were raised in Mississippi and other parts of the south. They knew first hand what it meant to live in the harsh conditions. Shareef Abdur-Rahim of the Sacramento Kings and Allan Houston the former New York Knick sat at a table discussing the crisis, as well as the problem of leadership among African American athletes. What was needed at this moment of crisis was a individual who could lead athletes to mobilize, rally and execute a plan of action. As President George Bush was to no help, the NBA players were looking for a Michael Jordan type figure to lead the troops. But the NBA players could not find a leader, where black athletes have failed to produce a leader who understands the potential to change the society for African Americans.

In the 19^th century winning meant survival. The next generation, the generation of Jackie Robinson, winning was gaining access. Now winning is a scholarship to a big school and a large pro contract. Lifestyle, high-profile employment and status have taken over the athletes we see today. Winning now for African Americans are to see more employment beyond the courts, fields and diamonds. 

40 Million Dollar Slaves # 5

As I am close to finishing the book I learned about the college recruiting process, where I learned things I never thought happened. I learned that recruiting was a big part of a colligate sports program where a few star athletes could turn a losing team into a money making, winning team skyrocketing revenue. The recruiting process  starts at a early age making future stars feel they are above the rest. Young athletes become accustomed to hearing “yes” all the time and having adults flatter over them , giving  them second and third chances because of the promise of their talents.  The end result sees that most young athletes are not given any restraints off the court. As whites and blacks both experience the recruiting process, the author explains that African Americans enter  a whole new society.

With college basketball prominently played by African Americans , the value placed on African Americans has escalated and the stakes in the recruiting game began to rise. Predominantly White colleges and universities which once banned or ignored black athletes were now going out of their way to bring African Americans on campus by any means necessary. As a athlete is being wanted by multiple schools it is not uncommon that a college with buy the player shoes, take him out to dinner, get him some nice clothes and maybe give him a car. As recruits are getting things they never had before there life’s are changing. They will go away from their origins and throw the past away. Many athletes who reached the professional or college level sometimes fear returning to the neighborhoods they grew up in.

In the chapter I read about former NBA All-Star Chris Webber who criticized black colleges for not having built a better foundation. Webber was the top high school recruit in 1992 and could choose any college he wanted to. He could of went to a historically black college and changed the program around but they could simply not compete. He chose Michigan and took his team to the Final Four. He says that the black colleges did not put themselves in a position of leverage during the time when they had a monopoly on black athletes. The star athletes are skipping out on a colleges where they would fit if not playing sports and are being attracted by prestige schools. These school  have the needs to attractive the blue chip black athletes such as better facilities, larger arenas, more up to date training centers, and TV contracts.

African Americans recruits  see different educations from high school to college. But the ones who are not on a scholarship do not get a opportunity to education to better themselves.  Do the school systems need to be improved in low-income cities to prepare all kids for the future?

40 Million Dollar Slaves # 4

I am almost finished with the book and I found a interesting chapter. In chapter 10 I read the story of Robert Johnson the first African American owner of a professional sports team. Johnson was not the first man to own a sports franchise as Rube Foster founded the Negro league in 1920. But Johnson purchase of the Charlotte Bobcats made him the first black majority owner. Johnson earned his wealth from starting the television station Black Entertainment Television also known as B.E.T. Johnson started with a loan of 15,000 dollars never thinking his business would grow to the empire it is today. B.E.T programmed Black College football games, music videos and gospel on Sunday mornings trying to serve to African American interests. The company was a hit and turned into a 24 hour program competing with MTV. Johnson took B.E.T. public and later sold the team for 3 billion dollars to Viacom. From slaves to playing sports African Americans where always the product, owned by the white owner. Rob Johnson success proved that a black man could run an empire and could put on a show like everyone else. 

  Johnson ownership brought the African American race one step closer but did not create a change of equality. Curt Flood made the connection that it wasn’t enough to be allowed to play the game but that history and the legacy it offered demanded that people must fight to change the system not just buy into it. Johnson was the first to buy into it and hopes other African Americans can spread the movement.

Why are there so few African American owners?

Did Robert Johnson favor African Americans?

40 Million Dollar Slaves #3

             After reading about African American men star athletes the story of a women athlete was told in chapter nine. Luisa Harris was the first great star of women’s basketball but she is forgotten about. Lusia played basketball in high school and continued to play at Delta State a school a few miles away from her hometown in Mississippi. At Delta State, Lusia was one of only few African Americans at the school leading her team to three consecutive AIAW championships. During Harris’s four varsity seasons her team was 109-6. She competed in the Olympics but did not pursue a professional career because she felt the competition was too much. In 1980 Harris found work playing for the Houston Angels of the Women’s Basketball League in 1980. When the team disbanded she returned to Delta State and worked as an admissions counselor. Lusia served as the Women’s Basketball assistant coach at Delta State from 1980-1984. But to her dismay when the job became available a white man was hired instead. Disappointed, Lusia left Delta State and took the head coaching job at Texas Southern a historically Black College in Houston. The experience at Texas Southern was brutal. The women’s program like so many other Black Institution lacked a much needed support. There were no assistant coaches and Lusia had to give up her pay when she missed a class to coach. She felt the Men’s Basketball program was treated better where they had a full staff and would fly to games.

                Title IX a law aimed at equalizing spending on women’s and men’s programs in educational institutions began to have an effect. Title IX improved coaches’ salaries, equipment was upgraded, budgets were increased, transportation was improved and Women’s sports finally were treated equal.

                Today the dilemma for black women athletes is played out graphically in a growing women sports movement that has seen white women gain and black woman weaken. African Americans have seen success in Women’s Basketball but only 2.7 % of African American women are receiving scholarships to play all other Division 1 sports. White Women have also enjoyed success in the sports industry as black women have lagged.

                Title IX and the 19^th Amendment have helped women to be treated equal to men. But abortion is still illegal, denying a women’s choice, are women today still being discriminated against?

40 Million Dollar Slaves #2

         I have just finished reading chapter 4 and have learned a lot. In this chapter I am learning that African Americans are starting to integrate in college football and are having success. But some colleges are still not accepting African Americans and it is hurting their programs. In the chapter examples of teams who were still not acceptable of African Americans in sports where suffering. In the 60’s the new era of African Americas in college sports resulted in success. In the 1960 college football saw quarterback Sandy Stephens an African American; lead the Minnesota Golden Gophers to the Rose Bowl. In the Championship game Michigan State won with a defense anchored by Texas natives Bubba Smith and George Webster both who were African American. College Basketball saw African Americans shine In 1966, when Texas Western an all-black starting lineup beat Adolph Rupp’s all white Kentucky team to win the national title. Integration into sports at the college level pushed African Americans into fame for their stellar athletic ability, but executive and coaching positions for African Americans were to no existence .Under the integration arrangement, many black institutions were dismantled or downsized; those educators who had been heads of departments frequently became assistants or were made heads of smaller divisions. Black head coaches became assistants’ coaches. As the coaches suffer so did the African American owners who lost money from the African Americans who left their leagues. Black talent and white ownership faced a power dynamic as black athletes constantly had to prove their worth. At the same time it destroyed the black industry practically eliminating every black person involved in sports including coaches, owners, trainers, accountants, lawyers, and secretaries.

         The NFL has the Rooney Rule in which NFL teams must interview a African American for a coaching Job. Only 5 Current Coaches in the NFL are African American. Are African Americans still seeing inequality off the field as they did in the 60’s?

Forty Million Dollar Slaves # 1

The book I chose to read was Forty Million Dollar Slaves by William C. Rhoden where the story of the up rise in African-Americans into sports is told. Being an avid sports fan I have been watching sports for many years. I had noticed that the NBA and NFL is made up of many African Americas and I also wonder why this was. Rhoden explains in his first chapter that today's African American athletes are focus on the present and must think of what their ancestors had to suffer and how they paved a path to put them in the position they are in today. As I began to read to book I learned that when sports where beginning whites dominated and participated in all sports. Slavery had blocked African Americans from playing sports until after the civil war. When slavery was abolished African Americans got here first chance to play sports. In the first chapter Rhoden portraits the story of African American Boxing. Tom Molineaux the first African American boxer story is told and how he impacted America. Tom Molineaux was born into slavery on a Virginia plantation and he challenge Tom Cribb in the first "Fight of the century". Tom Cribb was a white man and the boxing match was more than just a sport. The fight carried implications for the entire country as every African American felt they were fighting Tom Cribb. Tom Cribb winded up winning in the 11th round with a knockout, but America had seen sports in a whole new way. Molineaux did not win the boxing match but he won over America and a new prospective in sports. Three years later Jack Johnson became the first African American to win the heavy weight championship of boxing. After Johnson had won the title panic started over the African Americans rise in sports.


Where laws going to be put in place to regress African Americans sucsess.


Where Whites not ready to accept African Americans even though slavery had been abolished?
Is there a reason why African Americans dominate sports today?


Why do African Americans take up a large percent of the NBA and NFL but not the NHL(2.7%) or MLB(9%)?