Op-Ed
The Black Athlete: Diversity of Track & Field
By Omar Tyree
NNPA Columnist
For the past five weekends, my wife and I have sat through countless hours of indoor track and field meets, where my youngest son, Canoy, runs the 1,000 meters as one of the Top 10, middle distance, high school sophomores in the state of North Carolina. After years of playing organized basketball, baseball, football and recently soccer, we’re sure glad that he found track and field. It’s become a great equalizer for him… and for us as hopeful parents.
As my son likes to joke, “Track isn’t really even a sport. All you do is this…” as he shuffles his arms and legs forward mimicking a robot. My son now knows that thousands of kids take track and field very seriously. Some of them have definitely inherited genetic information from their parents for speed, but the majority of consistently good runners have learned to work for it, while putting in mile after mile of breathing, striding, keeping their form and channeling their minds over their body’s to finish a strong race and not give in to fatigue.
A dedicated football player in my own high school years, I’ve understood the importance of track and field for decades. Quality running goes hand in hand with nearly every other sport. But after running track from 4th through 8th grade in elementary school, I didn’t return to it until my senior year of high school, where I was talked into running the 400 meter hurdles and the 4×400 meter relay. Well, guess what I ended doing in my freshman in college at the University of Pittsburgh in 1987 instead of playing football? I ran more track.
Track and field is that one sport where a person’s body type, weight and height don’t really matter. You simply find the event that fits you the best. Although my youngest son is now several inches taller than his older brother, Canoy is still not tall enough to legitimately play his first love of basketball at the next level. You have to be the toughest point guard in the world when you’re still under six feet. Neither of sons have the body size or physicality to play football like I did. Baseball got tossed in the garage with our old leather catching gloves, and soccer has now been reduced to a traveling sport of club teams, with a very slim chance of earning a scholarship for it.
So my son Canoy came full circle and found track and field in his freshman year, while learning to run the same event that his mother ran for four years at Howard University, the 800 meters. He’s perfectly built for the 800 as well; long and slim. Only a 15-year-old sophomore, my son still has a few years left to put on some needed weight and muscle. He may even grow a few more inches.
While watching, literally, thousands of kids compete in indoor track and field events these past few months, my wife and I have witnessed hardworking boys and girls of every race, class, creed, height, weight, body size, and all on the same track. On a cultural level, it’s been really inspiring. Track and field is the true American melting pot of sports.
Of course, you still have your cultural separations depending on the different events. Black kids continue to dominate the sprints, while White kids dominate the distance events. The cut off seems to be the 800 meters, right where my son has landed. He doesn’t want to go up and run the mile or the 1,600 with the endurance-running White kids, and he’s terrified of even trying the 400, where some of the powerful Black football players await.
The high jump, long jump and triple jump competitions remain dominated by long kids with springs for legs and agile bodies, and mostly Black boys are winning. But not so much with young women – White girls hang right in there on every jumping event. Pole vaulting? Nope. You won’t find too many Black kids lined up for that, but you do have a few.
Then, you head over to the shot put and discus throw areas for the track and field beefcakes. Most of these kids have their minds set to compete for several years too, as they will all grow stronger, more experienced and more confident with age. Just like my son will.
I hate to put increased pressure on him, but track and field kids still receive full scholarships to college all across this country. In fact, I ran with half dozen Jamaicans at the University of Pittsburgh in 1987. Young Jamaican kids continue to flood the country every year at Philadelphia’s famous Penn Relays Carnival, seeking hundreds opportunities. So if your sons and daughters are not doing anything else, try them out on a track and field team before it’s too late, and see what events they could specialize in as they learn and grow.
Omar Tyree is a New York Times bestselling author, an NAACP Image Award winner for Outstanding Fiction, and a professional journalist, who has published 27 books, including co-authoring Mayor For Life; The Incredible Story of Marion Barry Jr. View more of his career and work @ www.OmarTyree.com.
###
Activism
Actor, Philanthropist Blair Underwood Visits Bay Area, Kicks Off Literacy Program in ‘New Oakland’ Initiative
These community activations were coordinated with the San Francisco-based non-profit program “Room to Read.” Ray said he is also donating his time to read and take pictures with students to encourage their engagement and to inspire them to read more. The inspirational book “Clifford Ray Saves the Day” highlights Clifford Ray’s true story of saving a dolphin.
By Paul Cobb
New Oakland Series
Opinion Part 3
The Post mentioned three weeks ago that a number of our local luminaries were coming together to support the “New Oakland” movement. As this current national administration continues to eliminate our “legacy” institutional policies and programs left and right, most communities find themselves beyond “frozen” in fear.
Well, esteemed actor, long-time Bay Area supporter, and philanthropist Blair Underwood returned to Oakland this week to speak with city leaders, community trust agents, students, the Oakland Post, and local celebrities alike to continue his “New Oakland” initiative.
This week, he kicked off his “Guess Who’s Coming to Read” literacy program in some of Oakland’s middle schools. Clifford Ray, who played the center position of the 1975 World Champion Golden State Warriors, donated close to 1,000 books. Ray’s fellow teammate Charles “The Hopper” Dudley also gave Converse sneakers to students.
These community activations were coordinated with the San Francisco-based non-profit program “Room to Read.” Ray said he is also donating his time to read and take pictures with students to encourage their engagement and to inspire them to read more. The inspirational book “Clifford Ray Saves the Day” highlights Clifford Ray’s true story of saving a dolphin.
Underwood also spent quality time with the Oakland Ballers ownership group and visited the amazing Raimondi Park West Oakland community revitalization site. In the 1996 TV film Soul of the Game, Underwood played the role of the legendary first Black Major League Baseball player Jackie Robinson and commended the Ballers owners.
“This group of sports enthusiasts/ philanthropists needs to be applauded for their human capital investment and their financial capital investment,” Underwood said. “Truly putting their money and passion to work,” Underwood said.
Underwood was also inspired by mayoral candidate Barbara Lee’s open-minded invitation to bring public-private partnership opportunities to Oakland.
Underwood said he wants to “reinforce the importance of ‘collaborative activism’ among those most marginalized by non-empathic leadership. We must ‘act out’ our discomfort with passionate intentions to create healthy change.”
Activism
Councilmembers Ramachandran, Kaplan, Unger Identify Funds to Save Oakland Fire Stations
Our budget crisis – one of the worst in Oakland’s history – is compounded by the fact that people do not feel safe coming to Oakland due to our public safety crisis. By investing in our fundamental public safety resources today, we can send a signal to the world that Oakland is open for business. We have such a rich and vibrant culture, arts, and food scene that is worth celebrating – but we can only showcase this if we are able to keep our neighborhoods safe. Having fully functioning fire stations are absolutely essential to these efforts.
By Janani Ramachandran
There is no greater concern to the people of Oakland today than public safety. Fire stations are the bread and butter of essential city services – and every day that we have stations shuttered, we imperil the lives of our community members. In response to widespread outcry over the current and planned closure of stations, myself, along with Councilmembers Kaplan and Unger, have painstakingly worked to identify millions of dollars of new funding to save our stations. The legislation we introduced on Thursday, February 13th, will amend our budget to prevent the closure of four fire stations that are currently on the chopping block due to our budget crisis and will re-open two closed stations that have already been closed – Station 25 and 28 – in the near future. The resolution that will provide the funding to keep our stations open will go before the full City Council for a vote at our meeting on Tuesday, March 4th at 3:30 PM – and we invite you to join us at City Hall to share your perspective on the topic.
Our budget crisis – one of the worst in Oakland’s history – is compounded by the fact that people do not feel safe coming to Oakland due to our public safety crisis. By investing in our fundamental public safety resources today, we can send a signal to the world that Oakland is open for business. We have such a rich and vibrant culture, arts, and food scene that is worth celebrating – but we can only showcase this if we are able to keep our neighborhoods safe. Having fully functioning fire stations are absolutely essential to these efforts.
With the devastating Los Angeles fire at the top of people’s minds, terrible memories of Oakland’s own wildfires are re-surfacing from the 1991 Oakland Hills Firestorm to the Keller fire just a few months ago – and how essential fire stations are to mitigating these catastrophes. But in Oakland, our fire stations don’t just fight wildfires – they also provide emergency medical services to our most vulnerable constituents, put out structural fires and encampment fires, and much more.
We recognize that there are a number of competing interests and important initiatives fighting for sparse City resources. But from my perspective, core safety services are the most pivotal functions that a City must spend its resources on – especially given the outcry we have heard around fire stations.
The fight to save our stations is not over. The resolution we introduced is a critical first step, and there are hurdles to overcome. If you support keeping our fire stations open, we invite you to be a part of the solution by making your voice heard at the March 4th City Council meeting at 3:30 pm.
Activism
NNPA Launches National Public Education and Selective Buying Campaign
“We are the trusted voice of Black America, and we will not be silent or nonresponsive to the rapid rise of renewed Jim Crow racist policies in corporate America,” stated NNPA Chairman Bobby R. Henry Sr. “The Black Press of America continues to remain on the frontline keeping our families and communities informed and engaged on all the issues that impact our quality of life.”
Washington, DC: The National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA), representing the Black Press of America, has announced the planning and implementation of a national public education and selective buying campaign across the nation in direct response to those corporate entities that have dismantled their respective Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) commitments, programs and staffing. NNPA Chairman Emeritus Danny Bakewell Sr. explained, “Now is the time for the Black Press of America once again to emphatically speak and publish truth to power.”
“We are the trusted voice of Black America, and we will not be silent or nonresponsive to the rapid rise of renewed Jim Crow racist policies in corporate America,” stated NNPA Chairman Bobby R. Henry Sr. “The Black Press of America continues to remain on the frontline keeping our families and communities informed and engaged on all the issues that impact our quality of life.”
At a recent convening of NNPA member publishers and editors, a united resolve was reached that each member publication of the NNPA will begin a national public education campaign coupled with the release of research data on those American companies that are engaging in efforts to sanction racial injustice, inequitable polices, divisive leadership, and economic apartheid in America.
“We note forthrightly that Black Americans spend $2 trillion dollars annually as consumers of products and services throughout the United States,” NNPA President and CEO Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis Jr. emphasized. “We now must evaluate and realign to question why we continue to spend our money with companies that do not respect us,” Chavis continued. “This now must come to an end. These contradictions will not go unchallenged by 50 million Black Americans who have struggled for centuries to ensure equality, fairness and inclusion in our nation’s democracy.”
A selective buying campaign involves exercising the right to select what we spend our money on and who we spend our money with. We are starting with targeting TARGET.
The following are some of the major American companies that have publicly retreated from Diversity, Equity and Inclusion:
- TARGET
- Lowe’s
- John Deer
- Walmart
- Meta
- Tractor Supply
- Amazon
- McDonald’s
- Ford
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Op-Ed
The Black Athlete: Diversity of Track & Field
By Omar Tyree
NNPA Columnist
For the past five weekends, my wife and I have sat through countless hours of indoor track and field meets, where my youngest son, Canoy, runs the 1,000 meters as one of the Top 10, middle distance, high school sophomores in the state of North Carolina. After years of playing organized basketball, baseball, football and recently soccer, we’re sure glad that he found track and field. It’s become a great equalizer for him… and for us as hopeful parents.
As my son likes to joke, “Track isn’t really even a sport. All you do is this…” as he shuffles his arms and legs forward mimicking a robot. My son now knows that thousands of kids take track and field very seriously. Some of them have definitely inherited genetic information from their parents for speed, but the majority of consistently good runners have learned to work for it, while putting in mile after mile of breathing, striding, keeping their form and channeling their minds over their body’s to finish a strong race and not give in to fatigue.
A dedicated football player in my own high school years, I’ve understood the importance of track and field for decades. Quality running goes hand in hand with nearly every other sport. But after running track from 4th through 8th grade in elementary school, I didn’t return to it until my senior year of high school, where I was talked into running the 400 meter hurdles and the 4×400 meter relay. Well, guess what I ended doing in my freshman in college at the University of Pittsburgh in 1987 instead of playing football? I ran more track.
Track and field is that one sport where a person’s body type, weight and height don’t really matter. You simply find the event that fits you the best. Although my youngest son is now several inches taller than his older brother, Canoy is still not tall enough to legitimately play his first love of basketball at the next level. You have to be the toughest point guard in the world when you’re still under six feet. Neither of sons have the body size or physicality to play football like I did. Baseball got tossed in the garage with our old leather catching gloves, and soccer has now been reduced to a traveling sport of club teams, with a very slim chance of earning a scholarship for it.
So my son Canoy came full circle and found track and field in his freshman year, while learning to run the same event that his mother ran for four years at Howard University, the 800 meters. He’s perfectly built for the 800 as well; long and slim. Only a 15-year-old sophomore, my son still has a few years left to put on some needed weight and muscle. He may even grow a few more inches.
While watching, literally, thousands of kids compete in indoor track and field events these past few months, my wife and I have witnessed hardworking boys and girls of every race, class, creed, height, weight, body size, and all on the same track. On a cultural level, it’s been really inspiring. Track and field is the true American melting pot of sports.
Of course, you still have your cultural separations depending on the different events. Black kids continue to dominate the sprints, while White kids dominate the distance events. The cut off seems to be the 800 meters, right where my son has landed. He doesn’t want to go up and run the mile or the 1,600 with the endurance-running White kids, and he’s terrified of even trying the 400, where some of the powerful Black football players await.
The high jump, long jump and triple jump competitions remain dominated by long kids with springs for legs and agile bodies, and mostly Black boys are winning. But not so much with young women – White girls hang right in there on every jumping event. Pole vaulting? Nope. You won’t find too many Black kids lined up for that, but you do have a few.
Then, you head over to the shot put and discus throw areas for the track and field beefcakes. Most of these kids have their minds set to compete for several years too, as they will all grow stronger, more experienced and more confident with age. Just like my son will.
I hate to put increased pressure on him, but track and field kids still receive full scholarships to college all across this country. In fact, I ran with half dozen Jamaicans at the University of Pittsburgh in 1987. Young Jamaican kids continue to flood the country every year at Philadelphia’s famous Penn Relays Carnival, seeking hundreds opportunities. So if your sons and daughters are not doing anything else, try them out on a track and field team before it’s too late, and see what events they could specialize in as they learn and grow.
Omar Tyree is a New York Times bestselling author, an NAACP Image Award winner for Outstanding Fiction, and a professional journalist, who has published 27 books, including co-authoring Mayor For Life; The Incredible Story of Marion Barry Jr. View more of his career and work @ www.OmarTyree.com.
###
Activism
Actor, Philanthropist Blair Underwood Visits Bay Area, Kicks Off Literacy Program in ‘New Oakland’ Initiative
These community activations were coordinated with the San Francisco-based non-profit program “Room to Read.” Ray said he is also donating his time to read and take pictures with students to encourage their engagement and to inspire them to read more. The inspirational book “Clifford Ray Saves the Day” highlights Clifford Ray’s true story of saving a dolphin.
By Paul Cobb
New Oakland Series
Opinion Part 3
The Post mentioned three weeks ago that a number of our local luminaries were coming together to support the “New Oakland” movement. As this current national administration continues to eliminate our “legacy” institutional policies and programs left and right, most communities find themselves beyond “frozen” in fear.
Well, esteemed actor, long-time Bay Area supporter, and philanthropist Blair Underwood returned to Oakland this week to speak with city leaders, community trust agents, students, the Oakland Post, and local celebrities alike to continue his “New Oakland” initiative.
This week, he kicked off his “Guess Who’s Coming to Read” literacy program in some of Oakland’s middle schools. Clifford Ray, who played the center position of the 1975 World Champion Golden State Warriors, donated close to 1,000 books. Ray’s fellow teammate Charles “The Hopper” Dudley also gave Converse sneakers to students.
These community activations were coordinated with the San Francisco-based non-profit program “Room to Read.” Ray said he is also donating his time to read and take pictures with students to encourage their engagement and to inspire them to read more. The inspirational book “Clifford Ray Saves the Day” highlights Clifford Ray’s true story of saving a dolphin.
Underwood also spent quality time with the Oakland Ballers ownership group and visited the amazing Raimondi Park West Oakland community revitalization site. In the 1996 TV film Soul of the Game, Underwood played the role of the legendary first Black Major League Baseball player Jackie Robinson and commended the Ballers owners.
“This group of sports enthusiasts/ philanthropists needs to be applauded for their human capital investment and their financial capital investment,” Underwood said. “Truly putting their money and passion to work,” Underwood said.
Underwood was also inspired by mayoral candidate Barbara Lee’s open-minded invitation to bring public-private partnership opportunities to Oakland.
Underwood said he wants to “reinforce the importance of ‘collaborative activism’ among those most marginalized by non-empathic leadership. We must ‘act out’ our discomfort with passionate intentions to create healthy change.”
Activism
Councilmembers Ramachandran, Kaplan, Unger Identify Funds to Save Oakland Fire Stations
Our budget crisis – one of the worst in Oakland’s history – is compounded by the fact that people do not feel safe coming to Oakland due to our public safety crisis. By investing in our fundamental public safety resources today, we can send a signal to the world that Oakland is open for business. We have such a rich and vibrant culture, arts, and food scene that is worth celebrating – but we can only showcase this if we are able to keep our neighborhoods safe. Having fully functioning fire stations are absolutely essential to these efforts.
By Janani Ramachandran
There is no greater concern to the people of Oakland today than public safety. Fire stations are the bread and butter of essential city services – and every day that we have stations shuttered, we imperil the lives of our community members. In response to widespread outcry over the current and planned closure of stations, myself, along with Councilmembers Kaplan and Unger, have painstakingly worked to identify millions of dollars of new funding to save our stations. The legislation we introduced on Thursday, February 13th, will amend our budget to prevent the closure of four fire stations that are currently on the chopping block due to our budget crisis and will re-open two closed stations that have already been closed – Station 25 and 28 – in the near future. The resolution that will provide the funding to keep our stations open will go before the full City Council for a vote at our meeting on Tuesday, March 4th at 3:30 PM – and we invite you to join us at City Hall to share your perspective on the topic.
Our budget crisis – one of the worst in Oakland’s history – is compounded by the fact that people do not feel safe coming to Oakland due to our public safety crisis. By investing in our fundamental public safety resources today, we can send a signal to the world that Oakland is open for business. We have such a rich and vibrant culture, arts, and food scene that is worth celebrating – but we can only showcase this if we are able to keep our neighborhoods safe. Having fully functioning fire stations are absolutely essential to these efforts.
With the devastating Los Angeles fire at the top of people’s minds, terrible memories of Oakland’s own wildfires are re-surfacing from the 1991 Oakland Hills Firestorm to the Keller fire just a few months ago – and how essential fire stations are to mitigating these catastrophes. But in Oakland, our fire stations don’t just fight wildfires – they also provide emergency medical services to our most vulnerable constituents, put out structural fires and encampment fires, and much more.
We recognize that there are a number of competing interests and important initiatives fighting for sparse City resources. But from my perspective, core safety services are the most pivotal functions that a City must spend its resources on – especially given the outcry we have heard around fire stations.
The fight to save our stations is not over. The resolution we introduced is a critical first step, and there are hurdles to overcome. If you support keeping our fire stations open, we invite you to be a part of the solution by making your voice heard at the March 4th City Council meeting at 3:30 pm.
Activism
NNPA Launches National Public Education and Selective Buying Campaign
“We are the trusted voice of Black America, and we will not be silent or nonresponsive to the rapid rise of renewed Jim Crow racist policies in corporate America,” stated NNPA Chairman Bobby R. Henry Sr. “The Black Press of America continues to remain on the frontline keeping our families and communities informed and engaged on all the issues that impact our quality of life.”
Washington, DC: The National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA), representing the Black Press of America, has announced the planning and implementation of a national public education and selective buying campaign across the nation in direct response to those corporate entities that have dismantled their respective Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) commitments, programs and staffing. NNPA Chairman Emeritus Danny Bakewell Sr. explained, “Now is the time for the Black Press of America once again to emphatically speak and publish truth to power.”
“We are the trusted voice of Black America, and we will not be silent or nonresponsive to the rapid rise of renewed Jim Crow racist policies in corporate America,” stated NNPA Chairman Bobby R. Henry Sr. “The Black Press of America continues to remain on the frontline keeping our families and communities informed and engaged on all the issues that impact our quality of life.”
At a recent convening of NNPA member publishers and editors, a united resolve was reached that each member publication of the NNPA will begin a national public education campaign coupled with the release of research data on those American companies that are engaging in efforts to sanction racial injustice, inequitable polices, divisive leadership, and economic apartheid in America.
“We note forthrightly that Black Americans spend $2 trillion dollars annually as consumers of products and services throughout the United States,” NNPA President and CEO Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis Jr. emphasized. “We now must evaluate and realign to question why we continue to spend our money with companies that do not respect us,” Chavis continued. “This now must come to an end. These contradictions will not go unchallenged by 50 million Black Americans who have struggled for centuries to ensure equality, fairness and inclusion in our nation’s democracy.”
A selective buying campaign involves exercising the right to select what we spend our money on and who we spend our money with. We are starting with targeting TARGET.
The following are some of the major American companies that have publicly retreated from Diversity, Equity and Inclusion:
- TARGET
- Lowe’s
- John Deer
- Walmart
- Meta
- Tractor Supply
- Amazon
- McDonald’s
- Ford
-
#NNPA BlackPress3 weeks ago
Target Takes a Hit: $12.4 Billion Wiped Out as Boycotts Grow
-
Activism3 weeks ago
Undocumented Workers Are Struggling to Feed Themselves. Slashed Budgets and New Immigration Policies Bring Fresh Challenges
-
#NNPA BlackPress4 weeks ago
BREAKING Groundbreaking Singer Angie Stone Dies in Car Accident at 63
-
Activism4 weeks ago
Oakland Post: Week of February 26 – March 4, 2025
-
#NNPA BlackPress4 weeks ago
NAACP Legend and Freedom Fighter Hazel Dukes Passes
-
Arts and Culture3 weeks ago
Beverly Lorraine Greene: A Pioneering Architect and Symbol of Possibility and Progress
-
#NNPA BlackPress4 weeks ago
Trump Kicks the Ukrainian President Out of the White House
-
#NNPA BlackPress4 weeks ago
Apple Shareholders Reject Effort to Dismantle DEI Initiatives, Approve $500 Billion U.S. Investment Plan
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