Black Women Athlete Activism in the United States

Given the lack of attention to and consideration of Black women athlete activism in the context of recent social movements and social justice, this chapter focuses on several Black women athletes in the United States who have engaged in powerful peaceful protest over the last five years. In so doing, my aim is to explicate how and why these athletes play a central role in the larger athlete activist movement by politicizing sport, including how their intersecting identities might inform their activism engagement. I argue that these Black women athletes—positioned as outsiders within—are often forced to confront the very issues against which they seek to fight (e.g., racism and sexism). Yet, they continue to stand up and speak out. The collective, varied activism by these athletes underscores the reality that athletes do not operate in a vacuum wherein sport is devoid of political matters and movements.