Transcripts For CSPAN The Atlantic Discussion On Athletes Activism 20240714

This brandnew arena, where the mystics will tip off against the atlantic dream this saturday night, the first mystics game ever in this arena. [applause] we are thinking of ourselves today as the happy little warmup act for that. And what a wonderful crowd here today. Thank you, all, for joining us. Power ofploring the athletes who spotlight injustice and spur change. We will hear from olympians, collegiate allamericans, professionals and from people who cover sports. And listen to this, our speaker roster has one world cup soccer championship, eight hockey World Championships, nine olympic trophy. And one nfl so we think we have a pretty winning lineup today. Guiding the conversations on stage today is my winning colleague, Atlantic Staff writer jamal hill. Jemele writes about the intersection of sports, race, politics and culture. Now we want to learn more about all of you. Poll, andke a quick answering the question requires a cell phone. Phone andour cell and then type in slido. Com. Do ,com. I next, type in atlantic athletes, all one word. Should see two options at the top, questions at the left and polls on the right. We are going to use both features today but we will start with polls. I want us to answer the first question together. The technology is cool and we are going to actually tally the answers live on the screens on other side of the stage, and you and the millions of people watching on the live stream can play along. The first question is this. How would you describe yourself . Are you an athlete, activist, student, community leader, or a fan . I confess that this is not super scientific, so you are welcome to select more than one answer. Go ahead. I think if we kept watching, it would keep changing. We have a lot of athletes, activists, community leaders, fans, students, and that we have a good sense of who is along the ride with us today. I want you to get some practice because we will use this technology throughout the afternoon for questions and answers, and we want you to be part of the conversation today. Where going to leave time for your questions after we are going to leave time for your questions after each session and you can write your questions using this technology at any point along the way. We also hope youre going to join the conversation on twitter at atlantic live, use the hash tag atlanticathletes. Quick safety note, if you need help or a quick exit, the guestservices staff, people wearing all black who have clothing that says take care ofu if you need any help. Before we dive in i want to take a moment to thank the washington mystics for making today possible. They are starting their 2019 season here on saturday so thank you washington mystics. [applause] now it is an honor and a privilege to introduce the owner of the mystics and the ceo of monumental sports, here to share some thoughts. [applause] thank you, everyone. It is so great to see so many students in the audience and so many of our neighbors from Congress Heights. 18promised we said that would be the only community in the country to host an nba, wnba, team and we are so grateful that our city and events d. C. And monumental sports hall came together. This saturday we have our first game here. It is very special, it is very culturally appropriate for us to be able to celebrate and make central the washington mystics at this platform. To enjoy thel come season and we promised the community that we would bring jobs. We would bring attention, we would celebrate, be good neighbors, but that we would also bring cultural events and that we were able to pull this together so quickly and work with rate people at the atlantic, really great people at the atlantic really shows the power we can do working together. I hope this is the first annual event, that we can do this all of the time. I would like to make this community and arena and exemplar for womens sports. We should go out and recruit womens tournaments. We should have womens events here on an ongoing basis, so you can wind help us with that. We want to make the mystics the. Est franchise in the wnba we want to regroup players who not only are fantastic athletes but are even better human beings. When you look at our roster, when you look at the people we have up and down the lineup from our Coaching Staff to all of our players, what we are trying to do is hold a mirror up to the communities we serve and i am very, very proud of what we have done with the mystics. We are preseason favorites to win the championship. Mike tebow, i dont want to put any pressure on you or your family but that is what our expectation is. Our expectation is that all of our teams will be able to be perennial playoff teams, that the players we have in the organization will not only be great athletes and performers on the court, but that they will go out into the community and give back. We have made great commitments in philanthropy. We will live up to every one of those commitments, and right now we promise to leave more than we take. I hope the entire city, i hope the entire city will embrace this community, will embrace womens sports and we can build something great together and something that everyone around the country can point to and says that is how you get it done. What i would like to do now is introduce one of my favorite , nottes, favorite people got a legend on the court, a championship here at the university of maryland and then in the wnba, wanted to come back home, wanted to be a servant in service to everyone in this audience, one of our great leaders on the court and also as a coach now for the Washington Wizards and that kind of cross talent sharing i think youll see a lot more from us. Please help me to welcome christy oliver. Christy. [applause] christy hello. Lets give a shout out to the washington mystics over there. Give a little love. Now we know what business casual looks like, you guys are ready. On behalf of my teammates, i want to welcome everyone to the new home of the washington mystics. We look forward to another exciting season here in our new home in Congress Heights. Im thrilled to be kicking off todays discussion about the intersection of sports and social justice. There has never been a more important time for us athletes to raise our voices and use our platforms for good. But i want to make the point that this conversation is not new for the mystics. We have long believed in using our power to stand up and speak out. We are a team of women who care about a number of different issues from raising awareness about Mental Health to bringing opportunity to young women and girls, and we are a team of advocates and activists. We believe that the strength and power of our sport rests on the strength and the power of the next generation of young women and girls. We are a team of strong women and social justice warriors so this conversation is a natural progression of who we are and what we represent. Thank you all for being here today. Enjoy the next couple of hours of very, very good informative discussion. [applause] thank you, kristi, and thank you ted. I got to say i would never thought i would be on the same court with kristi toliver. Many athletes have used their platform to shine a light on issues they really care about from religion to race to gender equality to criminal justice reform, when speaking out they can jeopardize their careers, their Financial Stability and even their teams feeling of unity. Some athletes are still paying the price today for their activism decades ago. Others are now celebrated for standing up to injustice. To kick us off today, here is a quick take on the long defiant history of athletes and activism. Sports and activism are woven into the american experience. Oftentimes sports has been the leader when it comes to social change and when it comes to societal change. Does is itrts often provides a spotlight to issues that are often being discussed in smaller communities, hidden away without media coverage. When athletes become involved, it becomes hard to ignore the larger social issues. Robinson is now more than a ballplayer. He is by circumstance a representative of his race. Bill russell the man is someone who stood up for the rights and dignity of all men. When a restaurant refused to serve the black celtics, he refused to play in the scheduled game. Because sports gives us as close to a meritocracy as we can think of in this society, it often can be a leader in terms of changing how we in society view one another. In this Political Climate that were in, its become more important for athletes to be activists today. I think they see the danger of what happens when the people who have been blessed with the most when they become entrenched in the everyday struggle. Please welcome Damien Thomas and john carlos here with Atlantic Staff writer jemele hill. [applause] jemele thank you for joining us. Dr. Carlos you cant walk out , that cool. [laughter] as we saw from the video, sports has been such a powerful vehicle for change and seems to be very conducive to activism. Why du guys think that is . Do you guys think that is . Likethink today it seems sports are more conducive to activism particularly because we have a situation where athletes are more empowered. Certainly if you think about the union protections that the nba players have, the nfl players, major league baseball, i think thats a major part of why, why athletes can be a little bit more socially engaged, because they have thought for the right to have fought for the right to have strong unions. Thats a point we often forget. John i think the athletes today are finding themselves in terms of who they are and what their worth is. I think that they realize that they are a voice for the voiceless. They remember the communities that they came from. They remember where they have risen to. But they realize that their problems are still as great as it was before they were recognized as athletes. Jemele how do you all measure the impact that athletes have when it comes to activism . John i think it goes far and wide. You know, an athlete is recognized universally as well as the president of the United States. You can look at Michael Jordan, muhammad ali, jack johnson, all of them had a voice. Youngsters today have a voice and realize they have to protect the rights of those young individuals coming behind them. I think one of the ways you measure it is the extent to which we see social change. What we have to remember is athletes dont pretend to lead social revolutions, they respond to them. So what happens is that people are on the ground in a place like ferguson, in new york after the murder of eric garner and when athletes become involved, what often is a conversation taking place in a localized Community Becomes a national conversation, it becomes something that people cant ignore. I think thats when athletes involvement is most powerful and impactful. It just helps enlarge the conversation. Jemele damion, you have the difficult job, but im sure the rewarding job as the curator of sports at the National Museum of africanAmerican History of having a large say in who gets to be in the museum. How do you decide given that there are so many athletes throughout history who have used their platform for social change . Damion its tough. Its a tough task. I think the first thing is that the gallerys not a hall of fame. Its just not merely about chronicling the idea that africanamericans can run fast and jump high. But it really is about the larger political, social and cultural context of athletic engagement. The first thing that i do is i think about the gallery as one of 12 stores. The museum has 12 galleries. Sports is an entryway and you hope that at least one of the galleries resonates with someone. So when it comes to thinking about which athletes sort of get involved, i try not to think about it that way. And its one of the things if you go to the gallery, you will notice that the rooms are divided in terms of basketball, football, baseball, and what i try to do is to think about the larger contributions of that sport to this struggle for greater rights and equality. But you also have to respect your visitor and understand that the visitors want to see individual stories. And thats why in the back, we have the whats known as the Michael Jordan Game Changers hall, where we tell more individual stories. And also, what you have to do is balance. You have to balance time periods, you have to balance social causes. You have to balance different sports and things like that. What you just hope to do is to come up with something that is representative more so than comprehensive for athletic engagement. Jemele by the way, thank you for giving me one of the best not so humble brags because i can tell people im in the museum. [laughter] because when you go in there, theres videos that play, and i happen to be in one of those videos. Damion youre not just in the video, you are starring. You play a starring role in this gallery. Jemele [laughter] it was interesting because years ago when i sat down with you, i dont think it really sunk in how important it was. So im glad i was able to sound reasonably intelligent in most of those videos. Now speaking of videos, if you guys noticed in the video that was played before we took the stage, there was a young gentleman raising his fist on an olympic medal stand which would be obviously dr. Carlos. Now some of us in the room are old enough to know that full story, but theres a lot of people in this room who dont know that full story, so would you please do us the honor of explaining what went into your decision 51 years ago, last year was the 50th anniversary, 51 years ago to execute one of the most memorable, some could argue the most memorable, protest of all time when you talk about an athletes involvement . So talk about that decision in 1968 that you and tommy smith decided to raise your fist on the medal stand. John you know, we was at a Pivotal Point in history. I think we had so much strife going on throughout the world, dealing with racial issues, social issues. As young athletes, we felt that we had a significant role in this because we traveled the world and represented america. We saw what was happening in america to people of color, blacks in particular. We felt that we wanted to make a statement of some sort, maybe to withdraw from the Olympic Movement all together, say we will take a step back and not go to the olympic games. So we opposed a possible olympic boycott. But so many athletes say i trained all my life, i promised my kids i was going to go to the olympics, my community is counting on me. We didnt have the right to tell these individuals, man, you must vacate that thought and step back. So we decided to have a vote. But before the vote, we decided that we would go and research and study, to have a foundation so when they come and stick that microphone in your face, you can speak on issues. When we realized that these individuals was not on the same level we were, our next venture was to educate them, to make them understand why it was necessary to potentially create a boycott of the olympic games. But yet and still, through the education its hard to tell the individual, man, we want you to make this sacrifice, so we took a vote and they voted to go. I was upset that they voted to go because i thought it was so significant, if we had stuck together and uniformally said, we choose to step back, and say you know, we love representing america, but we want america to represent us as well. Then we decided after they decided they wanted to go, well, im going to stay home. For one, john carlos that was my thought. But theres a creator in this universe, and he objected and said, well john, if you stay , home, someones going to go in your spot, where they represent you the way you need to be represented. Then i was psyched up to get ready to make that team. I went on, i made the team. We went through the rounds, the rounds process of elimination, you might say, and we got to the quarter semi, and i decided i wanted to make a statement. Im here at the games, but i cant just go and win a medal and get on the victory stand, and just be there like everything is just peachy cream. So i decided that i would approach mr. Smith, we collaborated, we agreed, yes, we will make a statement. And then we brought all the facts together, the gloves, the socks, the scarf, the beads, the liberal project for human rights and we approached the victory , stand. Mind you now, we had been receiving threats throughout that twoyear period leading up to the games, but my thoughts were well, they might take my life, but they can never take this demonstration away. Once its done, its done. I felt that was far more important than my life because when i came into the games, i didnt go to the games to make a statement for john carlos. I meant to make that statement for my kids and their peers. For your kids. For a lot of you youngsters out in the audience today. That statement still registers 51 years later. So it was necessary to make a universal statement for people to open their minds and begin to challenge themselves in terms of what type of individual, what type of human being i am. Because i cant change it by merely putting my fist to the sky. We as a society have to change the ills of society. Jemele so this is the part i always think gets lost about that entire experience. Its what happened to you guys after you came home. Well one, you were dismissed from the team, correct . John yes. Jemele you were dismissed from the team. Had Brent Musberger ever apologized to you . Because Brent Musberger, who was on the air as an announcer, big reason why i tell people even now as they are talking about Colin Kaepernick and other sports and social issues, be careful what you say because it may live in eternity in a way that may embarrass you years later. And Brent Musberger called you and tommy smith black stormtroopers. I think that was the phrase. John blackskinned stormtroopers. Jemele blackskinned stormtroopers. On television. Has he apologized to you yet . John Brent Musberger doesnt even exist in my mind. I dont know who he is. [applause] jemele good answer. John he didnt mean anything to me 51 years ago. He doesnt mean anything to me today, because hes been proven to be wrong. Earlier part you were asking me about. Jemele the fallout. What happened once you guys got back to the states . John well we got back to the , states, say when we went to the olympic games, the sun was shining bright, you could see the rainbows in the sky. When we got back home, it was chaos. It was stormy weather. Just lightning everywhere. But one of the most important things that i had to learn is that those individuals that were supposed to be your peers and your friends were supposed to , have an understanding, they began to step away, move away from you. You start to sniff yourself, am i smelling bad, why are my friends leaving . It took two years for me to realize that they werent leaving because they didnt have love or respect for me or like me. They were leaving for fear of reprisal. The same type of reprisal we had to endure, we, talking about tommy smith, peter norman as well as john carlos, for 40 plus years. But i would go for another 140 years to do that again if it was necessary. [applause] you know, you can, as a young individual this is the way i used to frame this thing years ago. I was young individual, i was idealistic, i had a paradigm in terms of how our society could be, how we could love one another, and help one another to make this a beautiful earth, and i felt like i was on top of this pine tree, the highest pine tree you could imagine, and i felt like i was on the highest branch, and i knew what i was about to do was going to disturb, upset, or infringe upon other peoples rights, and i felt that that branch would break, but i didnt have any concern about the branch breaking because there were so many branches underneath that understood why i was there, and they would catch me when that branch broke. But i learned they retract those branches. So when we took the fall, we took the fall, and we hit the ground so hard, we bounced almost back to the top. But yet and still, it was worth doing it. And i realized at the same time that the guy that made the statement, every man is an island within himself, and i had to think for myself in terms of whats my role in this life that god gave me . Is it merely for me just to be a superstar and stick my chest out and say, yeah, im the greatest . No. I want all individuals to have that same opportunity, and be able to challenge themselves to be the best they can be, and defy anyone that tries to stop them, tell them that they dont have a right to go to this university, and they dont have a right to go to this community, or you cant get into this hospital. I think about, you know charles , groh. I think about this man a black man, and merely because he was a black man, the invention that he made, he lost his life based on the color of his skin. So when you sit back and think about that, as well as black soldiers that went to the First World War such as my father, and came home and was disrespected, think about Harry Belafonte coming here as a young man and them telling him he couldnt swim in the public pool, think about john carlos as a little kid, wanting to go to the olympics first time he heard about the olympics. He heard about someone swimming the English Channel, and i said pop, whats the English Channel . I want to swim it. And then i heard about the olympic games. Daddy, whats the olympics . Well, thats where the greatest athletes in the world come together to see whos the strongest physically and whos the strongest mentally. Well, pop, do they have swimming . Yes, son. Im going to be the first black to represent america. And he told me after a year, because he saw i was very serious about getting ready to make that team, and he came to me, and he told me, he said son, youre never going to be able to go to the olympics as a swimmer. What you talking about, dad . Im the best. Im the best in new york. I said, why cant we go . He put his hand out and he rubbed his hand. I thought he was rubbing a bug bite, but actually he was telling me merely because of the color of ones skin, they cannot be in this planet where god intended for them to be. My whole life has been trying to change that. For the rest of my life, i will continue to try and change it, so we can all come together as we are in this audience together to be one. [applause] jemele that history that dr. Carlos just talked about, charles drew, talking about the africanamerican soldiers, how can athletes use that history to inform their activism today . Damion i think history is really important because what history does is it provides us lessons that we can draw from. And it also provides us with a certain strength to realize that no matter how bleak things seem today, that people have endured more, survived more and come out and decided to fight. One of the most important moments i had in my own personal development is i was at an event with Randall Robinson who founded a group called trans africa, and transafrica fought for the end of apartheid in south africa. It was founded in the early 1970s. What he said, he said when we started that fight, in the early 1970s, we never thought we would see the end of apartheid in our lifetime. And it happened 20 years later. And so just hearing him talk about that, and seeing the lessons that i can draw from that is sometimes youve got to fight even when you think you cant win. And i think thats one of the most important lessons from history. Jemele i just want to tell people, we will be taking your questions. We will save a couple minutes at the end of the session to take those. So you might want to start thinking about them. You can use a website to type in your questions, and they will pop up on some screen. [laughter] and i will read them and we will all respond. But first i want to ask you this, dr. Carlos. So you have seen a conversation, i mean you know this all too well, despite the political nature of the times, despite all the adjustment that was happening when you were an athlete, despite all of that, you were told in some effective way to just shut up and play your sport, right . Athletes a lot today are hearing the same thing. How do you respond to those people who feel like athletes, all they should do is worry about their athletic contributions and not the larger contributions that they can make to society . John i dont Pay Attention to people that dont make sense. Didnt make any sense to jack johnson or Jackie Robinson because they told them the same thing. All of them. All of them received the same note that they put under my door, just shut up and play the game. But see i look at it like this. ,you know most of you guys out , there in the audience, yall are born into this world, and you want to want to make the football team, or you want to make the Basketball Team, Basketball Team why . Because you want to get in the game. The concept of the game is what . To win. But theres other individuals in society that didnt go out to try and get on the team, but they was pushed into the game of life. Thats the game that im concerned about winning. Im not concerned about those individuals telling me just go out and play sports because before i was an athlete, i was a human being. When i die, im going to be that human being. I cant come here and say, im here to serve just on the Athletic Field and have no concerns about what happens once i leave the Athletic Field. Individuals, you will look at john carlos another 150 years from now if were still spinning in this world, and they will look at me in terms of me being a blueprint. They will turn the pages one day and say someone did stand up. Someone did make a statement. And that goes across the board. I dont care what your ethnic background is or what your sexual preference is. It goes across the board to say someone stood up against all odds to say that youre wrong and had no fear. See because i always told people , to say man, you know, you can get killed. I tell them man, i was born , dead. Im fighting to live. [applause] jemele again you can go to the website if you have a question for our panelists. We have one question here already. This is for you, dr. Carlos. Can you speak about peter norman, his role in your protest, and how pivotal he was to that moment . Peter norman, for you all that dont know, was the other person who was on the podium with john carlos and tommy smith. Dr. Clips dr. Carlos friend. Rman was my he was very sure of himself and abilities. C concerns and falls about what was happening in australia. Had compassion for those people of color. I did not notice there any conversation we had come about i knew based on what he showed me in terms of his character, i remember running against him in at the corner of my eye, i taught him waiting me back down. But then, as we went on through the halls of the stadium. , he looked over and said what are you doing . I said, do you believe in human rights . Said his in his moment that were salvation workers their entire life. I have two pat them on his head, get back. He understood fully what the button met, what did represented. He stood on the victory stand fists. In raise his hadaid there at attention, total respect for our flag and the australian flag. It is like he defied the White Society because it represented people in peril, that button. Sochose to stand with us, tonk about what happened what happened to them in the United States. While they are whipping up on me, he gets arrested. A rest. Ts estimation, australia was running parallel with south africa in terms of attitude, so peter norman did not get no rest. They beat him 24 7, 365. He never denounced us, stepped away from us, he never said one bad word about what he did in his life and he took it to his grave. I will always have love and admiration for peter norman in my heart and my soul. [applause] we have time for 1 the significance of south africa, because in 1964, the southc midi kicks out africa because of the apartheid and then decided to allow them to come back in and that created a lot of controversy in the olympic project for human rights wasnt sure and they do not participate in the 1968 olympics. Peter norman faced a lot of australian because and south africa were major allies and when he wore that button, he was seen as criticizing australias most important allies and so that was a major part. We have another question here real quick. I think it is an important one. As a black star athlete, what would you tell the black kids about racist comments . I would tell them you have to rise above that. Like i said, they had people that were intelligent and just ignorant. The aim of people will make [indiscernible] but you have to rise above that. Words can always infringe upon your mind. If they dont put physical hands on you or your life is not threatened, dont ever let them stop you by calling you the n word. Dont let them stop you because they tell you we dont want you sitting at this table. It drives you harder. Just the strong inner you are. Talked to himn, i years ago and he did a song met on the mirror and what i said is the problem we have in society, most will go in brush her teeth every morning and a wash their hair, but they never got in touch with the person in the mirror. Find out the you are and once you find out the you are, no one can stop you. We are so busy looking at every one else and not paying attention to who we are. Once we realize our strengths, no one can stop you. That is why you are that are than me. Carlos. Why you are dr. Thank both of you all for this amazing conversation. We have more conversations on the way, but i think it would be remiss not to give a round of applause for everything. For conversation on leveling the playing field, please welcome christine, briand a briannahanna scurry and hillary knight. [no audio] generally the hyundai everyone this case they cannot win the argument along the same lines, somebody who is covered women sports as long as you had, what kind of impact do you think this is having on women sports to see u. S. Womens soccer, to see people hockey players, mobilizing and challenging a system that has tried to basically live in equity. I think both hilary and breanna and their peers and teammates, this will be in the history books, 100 years from now and you kids when you grant children are studying history you will be studying this woman. What they did in terms of american cultural history. Today is a greatest day to be a woman in sports until tomorrow. The glass is halffull, those of you that know me im a very positive person, their major issues out there. And you both are so lucky ive been lucky to cover both you. Last time i saw hillary, she had a gold medal around her neck, one of the greatest games i have ever seen. U. S. Was leading canada in the 2010 olympics. [cheering] ive seen her a fair amount but one of those times i saw her, she had a gold medal around her neck and oh so fortunate to be in the rose bowl in 1999 in the history of u. S. Soccer. I want to rihanna and her teammates when in one of my favorite stories in the history of my career. Entering a lot of history and a lot of thought into cultural history. I agree, the time is right and i know you agree as well. We are in the b2 movement, women are being heard, theres 100 women that are being called by athletes or sisters or cousins and now being called congresswoman. Twentyfive women in the senate, women running for president to the point where nothing would surprise us when another woman announces shes running for president. A course to lakeland running in 2016. Not being political or anything. [laughter] as a journalist covering this, i have seen a change to get to the point youre asking it is a bigger deal now, sports sections or were but weve done a terrible job with sports media covering woman sports, we have missed it, we blown it over the last 30 to 40 years. But now the pressure is on and thanks to people like you, heres the story of soccer of the near times. We put these things right up front, i deal with these issues, now they are part of the conversation in a way they never were before and that is progress. Most of the athletes have a lot more to lose in their male counterparts when it comes to endorsement or they didnt have as much despair to begin with. Why is it when we are causally saying people athletes be at the forefront on the frontlines when it comes to speaking out on activating and activism. When a year where a lot of the mystic players are in this room right now many of which have already ceased to seek out in the abortion ban going across the country prayed that the fight they do not necessarily have to take on. Its a risky one too. Yet, when it comes to Police Brutality or abortion ban many of the gender disco nation, equitable pay, women are always at the forefront despite having more to lose wise. I think theres a sense of responsibility to use our voices to use a platform to help other people and i think part of it because reliving it an understanding that we can have a voice for someone who does not have the same plot from. I think women for generations have had to fight call, and try to get equality and not only the right to vote, the workplace even to be able to fight for your country, women has always had to fight for everything as far back as youre going to go in history. So to be doing that from an athletic platform is not new but a bit novel, its a lot younger apart from to use for us to advance. We are not asking for more. We are asking for equal. In particular with me for the National Soccer team is we have proven that we are more than her male counterparts in terms of success, yet we still have two yet we still have to fight for the paper equal and that to me is upside down. We are fighting still. As you mentioned, the media is what sections have lagged behind the cup the coverage of womens work. In your mind, what disparity when it comes to this coverage look like for women in in sports . Is a great question. You and i both, and ive known you for a long, long time, and it could be proud of what youre doing and how youre doing. And all of this event and to see all of you. Just the fact that we are talking about these issues. In a weird way, social media is hammering Sports Editors and putting these things out and away that the phone calls could not. Probably maybe even for you two are you teammates mom or dad would call the paper and said why arent you covering my Daughters High School soccer team flex i dont know if thats the case but it was happening and i worked at the Washington Post, we would get occasional calls, what you doing equal coverage. A cement women being part of it, you proteins entrenched. We both covered a lot of men sports two. So we get them. You are not going to have the Washington Post immediately overturned and a 5050 coverage to women postcards you could you did not have 5050 in terms of that. But to not cover adult or to ignore it, none of the things really happening would be for example, maryland women across the maryland men across. I happened to go to the game because the menorah western wildcat and mailing to get to us. The point is, if the coverage is not equal, because those two programs are not equal, all of you should be picking up the phone or tweeting or whatever it may be to tell them you noticed that. One or two phone calls are one or two tweets can really be an explosion in a way in terms of waking people. It is noticed in a newsroom. I do think if twitter can be in terms of trolling and awful things that are said, especially to women and people of color, its a whole other issue and a whole another seminar and topic. I do think if you are in twitter, let me make it personal to your question. If you are in twitter an instagram, facebook, whatever, you have email, and you see something you dont like in the media, send a tweet at whatever or emo that person or if you dont know, imani and i will help you figure it out, you can find a website, its just mining. And let them know youre out there and you noticed it was not equal. I think thats where we are seeing an increased awareness in a voice that people did not exist 20 years ago its been used for so many bad things but there is good and it and try to take the good and use it to get the word out and let the Sports Editors and sports directors all around know youre watching and that you will be a consumer you will be consumer for the next 60 or 70 years. And that they should listen to you. Just remember if you have questions you can go to flago. Com and youll pop up on a wonderful screen and it will be addressed here on the panel. Ofistine, you have been one the leading journalists covering title ix and the continuing battles over title ix will stop what do you believe it means for the future of sports i think it is important and i think we are just seeing the benefits from it. I would also love to hear what both of you think about this, but for me, we again have not begun to see. The 10yearold today, when she is 50, first of all there will be women president s on this country guaranteed in the 30s and 40s for sure, not 2020. There will be 50 50 in the house and 5050 in the senate, there has to be because its demographic of this title ix way. Its depressing over the country. I think that hillary and you guys are looking back on your life, i cannot help but think were going to look at all these women were ceos of companies and running universities and running the country and president and whatever the common denominator all these young women will be that they played sports because of title ix. Not that i think the title ix is a big deal or anything. [laughter] what do you think about that . I cannot agree more. For me, i know im a huge benefactor from title ix. And i cannot be more honored and humbled to actually be the representative for title ix and africanamerican using as well and if it was not, once again it goes back to the initial think they were saying about how women have to fight, that title ix had to be enacted and had to be passed, enforced because to pull free equality. Otherwise we would not be here otherwise i know i would not be. I think its incredibly relevant and just now youre seeing the fruits of that labor. Like christina said, and the next ten, 20, 30 years from now youre going to see a lot more that and it will always be relevant in a thickest time goes on itll be more so. All voices collectively are extremely powerful and i think it is fantastic. Efforts was the support by the nhl players. We were not asking for the same amount, but lending their voice deftly helped move our support closer in terms of what we needed. Think men are a huge component of this because they are the ones with the keys. They are the ones that have all the gold and all the power. For womens soccer in particular, it is important for us to get the support of the National Team players, but also important to get the support of Board Members who are sponsors in the ceos i support your support. And i support women soccer and thats one of the reasons it comes on board because he went to be oh darn it was a girl. He wanted a boy to play sports with that was happening a lot. As we all know, billie jean theses a huge presence to this day on these topics. He has talked about his dad think the greatest feminist is all because once they have again, younger people here would not necessarily know this, but there were times when someone had a baby and the man would go back to work and all of darn,riends would say there was a girl. Im talking the 1940s, 1960s. Now, a dad is thrilled to have a girl because get ready for boysng that boy sat had. That is a huge change in our country. These things dont really happened. We have fell in love with title. X tiger woods, say what you will. Ive said about tiger. Good and bad. An amazing story and obviously the last month or so. Tiger woods is a title ix mail. You know what, the day he won the masters, his daughter most did not come that day because she had a soccer tournament the she had a match and almost of not make it. That is so different in this country. To have a golf world talking about a girls athletic schedule. Unbelievable. But bree is right, its a mans world still. Its Getting Better every day frescoes and women but to have a male voice chiming in on any of these topics, you probably feel the same way, the getting battered. Something is so bright and so true, so honest but a lot of these establishments do not want to hear it. Thankfully there are millions , and millions of men chiming in to support women. Your story reminded me of kobe bryant. Hes a huge supporter of the wnba and his daughter is playing basketball and she looks quite good. He said, he just laughs when other guys come up to him and say dont you want a boy to be just like you and i think he told one of them, i think my daughter has it was fine. He is just ok with that. I think thats cool that hes supportive of the league. And also as a reminder that he didnt get the package he expected. In considering the recent controversy with nike, can you talk about the issue around sponsorships, endorsements and pregnant athletes. Again, this is where we are. Where we are as a culture and its fantastic. Had to fight to sit alone or with a teammate friend, spouse, partner or whatever. It is a long time coming, took too long. We hope there is an outcome we dont know, but we shine a light as journalists and that is what we do, so this clearly came up allysonot attention and felix has been leading the othersas well as so many. In 10, 15 years, people look back and say what, they didnt do this . Thankfully, they are there and of course, nike has been a huge sponsor for womens soccer. Maybe its a surprise. It came around eventually. Like you said, for the womens National Soccer team, my experience has been essentially two of my teammates were the original soccer moms, they basically were the two people of soccer moms where the term came from. They were both pregnant, had children while they were still playing. They ended up bringing the kids and that was part of the battle that we had with the federation about nannies and being able to bring the kids and having that taken care of and covered. Progress takes time and it does not always happen in a straight line. I think it takes some time a certain touch point to really make a change occur and when you look back on it, you are thinking this is taking too sometimes you have to hit the nerve just right. I think finally it is been hit for that. We have another question. Is the broader fight for gender belatedly and inclusivity the next frontier in the battle . What are your thoughts on that christine, in terms we do not have a ton of time left so i wont go into details, if you havent read google and read it. It is not a tweet or headline. I feel terrible for her. For ten years, shes been twisting in the wind and leaders did not lead. Its been back and forth. She was born a certain way and this is about her life. Its been horrible the way shes been treated. Having said that, weve decided that womens sports and pro sports are a category that we care about. So the level of testosterone is an important conversation. I am one of the people who give you a straight answer. Youll know where i stand. This is more nuanced because we care so much about her rights but there are issues out there, nefarious use of these kind of things by a country like russia, i have no idea what is in the future but we do need to be very , aware of how much we care about testosterone levels and people say Michael Phelps had a big wingspan. We have not put a wingspan of the category we care about. If we did, michael would be in a different category than others. But women and womens sports we want to protect. Testosterone is an important marker in the conversation, and again having said that they treated her horribly and is a hero and my heart goes out to her. We have another one, why do more people attend boys games and not gross games . Hillary, would you like to tackle this one. Sure. It is a visibility issue. People did not even know we were in town playing. That is a great missed opportunity. Part of that is marketing but we found other avenues to combat these issues and hopefully that will change moving forward. Having a set platform, knowing we will be in town in whatever sport that is and whoever is on stage is important. I always like to come back to the beginning of questions like that. If you have 100 seeds and you are planting 98 of them on one side and you are planting two of them on the other side where are going to have more growth . Are you going home or growth on the 98 seed side or the two seed side . That was our argument with soccer. Seeding seating the field properly. Youre not giving them the marketing dollars, not telling people youre playing here, not broadcasting the team is coming, not putting all that money into development and what happens over time is the crop grows, and the visibility is higher on the 98 side and that is the same with womens, too. But we have been able to accomplish womens basketball, womens soccer, we have brought great glory to the country from all over the world and the way i think that will level out the scale. I think its important that you judge womens sports relative to the history and where they are, as opposed to always always making growth in male sports a comparative example. As christine mentioned, wnba has been in existence for 20 years. Look at where mens sportswear after 47 years or after 20 years. Compare it to that as opposed to , comparing it to entrenched billionDollar Industries who over time have been able to build a fan base and build an audience. Certainly the marketing and all , that stuff is hugely important but also i think sometimes women wind up taking unfair and unnecessary criticism because along, whens far the comparison shouldnt even be there, given the structural things are already in place from then sports. Anyways that is our time. Around of applause for the a round of applause for the wonderful panel. [applause] i think that is our q2 exit. Thank you for listening. Exit. Cue to thank you for listening. Welcome to the stage, the washington, d. C. Mayor. Good afternoon, everybody. Welcome to the hall of the washington mystics. We want to welcome you to our new entertainment and sports arena here in Congress Heights in ward 8 and we are very much looking forward to saturdays home opener right here in their new arena. We know theyre going to have a true homecourt advantage. We have said before, when we were fighting to build this arena that this arena is bigger than basketball. I am so proud of the washington mystics and monumental sports who have been able to play such an Important Role in bringing this arena to ward 8. It has always been about making a big investment in the community and a team that deserves it so much. So just like the district invested in chinatown, in the park at the navy yard, and about and at the point, we knew it was time for east of the river to get its investment in its new arena. And in building this arena, we court thattics the they deserve, too. Today, i am excited to be here for what i am certain will be a are for conversation about athletes, activism and the role of women in sports. There are no shortage of stories about what male athletes have done in bringing positive change through activism. Many of those stories become stories that are taught in school or common cultural references. They are certainly powerful stories. But, we want everybody to know they are not the only stories. Still today, we have so many examples of women in sports leading Important National conversations. We heard a few just moments ago. For example, you heard about the lawsuit that the u. S. Womens soccer team is bringing in demanding more from equal pay demanding equal pay for equal work. In the political arena, we can do many things by law but other things have to be hard fought in the courts. Earlier this month, we heard an olympic runner spoke out about discrimination against female athletes. When they become pregnant and their sponsors arent sure what to do with a woman who is a mother and athlete. We all know what is happening in womens gymnastics, where those athletes are fighting not to be abused sexually. We all know what Serena Williams , arguably, one of the best in the world has used her platform, time and time again to stand up for women. She has spoken about issues facing black Maternal Health care and i would argue, it was not until serena spoke up that people really listened and learned and began fighting for black moms giving birth in our nation. She stood up against the constant policing of what women where or how we wear our hair or express our frustration. If we are mad, we are angry or hysterical. She is literally changing the game for not only women in tennis but women in all walks of life. When female athletes raise their issues, we know that the cause is bigger than themselves and often bigger than their team. They are raising issues that affect women around the world and across the nation. This arena is bigger than basketball, the issues female athletes face are also bigger than sports. I know youre going to hear from some athletes, and i want to thank them for sharing their stories about Mental Health, activism and sports. In the district, over 20,000 people of all different backgrounds and ages and incomes receive care for a range of mental and Behavioral Health issues. Its up to all of us to make sure we are removing the stigma and promoting people taking active participation in their own healthcare. That includes behavioral and Mental Health issues. In the coming year, were investing over 300 million just through one of my agencies. So that more washingtonians have access to be healthy, happy lives they deserve. It is a small price to pay, because when we meet people where they are and give them the support and treatment they need, we know that they can prosper in our city. I want to turn it over to the next panel but i also want to thank and recognize ted from jamaaltal sports and hill, who is an outstanding representative for bringing activism and athletics together. And once again, our home team, the washington mystics. Have a great day everybody. Next session produced by the washington mystics. [applause] to win those championships, it was the best feeling on earth. We are out there winning one year after the next after the next. I felt like a rockstar. Im not going to lie. I was on top of the world. That really had a lot to do with all the accolades. When things are not going great in your personal life, when youre not happy, it is difficult to continue to be placed under that demand, to be perfect, to be great, to be the best. Please welcome a former washington mystics player, here with a monumental sports broadcaster. [applause] i was telling her in the back, im going to try not to fangirl, because i grew up watching her play. For me, this is an awesome moment, but we are going to have a good conversation about Mental Health. That was a piece of the movie and the documentary that is coming out very soon. Is out already. Okay. With Mental Health, especially in the Africanamerican Community, it is a tough conversation to have. Its a conversation that does not really get spoken about. What do you think plays a role in that . I think if you look at the Africanamerican Community for we are people who have dealt with oppression, who have been dehumanized, and that creates a trauma. The one thing that is been able to guide us forward is our faith. We pray and were headed to church, we get together and we hope for better tomorrow. But when you add in mental illness, you cannot pray everything away. Especially if it is a chemical imbalance. You have to move people forward to get the help that they need. A couple years ago, i would say 10 years ago, you would see churches having Counseling Centers. Back 20 years, the Counseling Center was maybe for marriage counseling, maybe financial literacy. But now i go to churches around the world and now its Mental Health and wellness. Helping people who have lost jobs. Helping people who have lost loved ones. The church plays a big role in the healing of people. To seen out the black church and suicide, conventions and things like that to help people heal is amazing. For people who do not know your story, who was at that pushed you to seek help outside of praying and getting the help to combat the imbalances you are experiencing and having trouble dealing with . In my case, it took a village because i was not in a great place. Really sick. It was something that was going to tear my life apart and i probably wasnt going to be here. The thing that hit home, my coach was battling dementia. I remember calling people calling me and saying the coach needs to see you. And sheving in atlanta drove down three hours to knoxville. She looked me in the eye and she said, since you were young, i always told you to get these people away from you. There are too many distractions. You have to deal with people that know your character. When i think of the people that knew my character and people that called me on my weakest player, a former wnba the head coach of tennessee. They are like, you have always been there for others. Operating in a selfless space. It is time you take care of you. It was fear, too. Fear when you can find yourself , in the Mental Health institution. Fear when things happen, and youre so displaced. People are telling you, hey this happened and you dont even remember. Its a scary situation. How hard was it for you to take that first step after you met with coach summit, then to swallow your pride. As we saw, you felt like a rock star at one point. Everybody was shouting your name and you are on the top of became, but you had to accept that something was wrong. How hard was that first step . Through my days on the court, i am a competitive person and i saw when i would come down from have a fuller i disorder, and when you come down, the lows can keep you trapped in a. I just realized the love around me. I just wanted to be better. I wanted to be a better daughter, sister, a better wife, i just really challengeed myself and im glad i got to the other side. Im not cured or anything. It as an alcoholic going to recovery. I have a coping mechanism in my life. Its one day at a time. I think the thing that is help ing me is transparency. I was in d. C. , amazing support here, the Nations Capital and i was too ashamed. I let the stigma get to me. When you are young, you just run. You just want to get away thinking that the grass is , greener on the other side. That is the mentality i was operating in. What prompted you to transition to become an advocate and basically the face of Mental Health and adding to the others that had become the face of Mental Health . It was probably really looking back, i had a Suicide Attempt and i told myself no one , understands, im the only one dealing with this. I realized, once i got brave enough, i had a reporter call me. She kept stalking my agent, can she do this interview. It was the first time i got on the air and did it. So many people reached out to me like, you are not alone. I am going through this. I probably got thousands of letters and that restored my hope. It allowed me to see this as a comingty of people together. I know now what im having a bad day, i have friends and colleagues i can talk to that offer support and encouragement. Im not here living. Im not afraid anymore. This is me. I do a lot of speaking at colleges, corporate speaking for companies. Sometimes if i am having a bad day, i can get up and say that. Do you know how that feels . Can let go of all the pressure and stress and deal with who you are. Im truly living in my truth. Since you have become an advocate for Mental Health, what would you say has inspired you the most about this journey . What has inspired me the most . It has been over 10 years now and i work with a lot of college aged kids. To see them grow, they are faced with transitions. When they come as freshmen, they are really going to have a lot of anxiety and when they are about to graduate, the same thing. It is like, what do i do . Im feeling down, im nervous, im scared, and to see them go off into the world and cope with the different stresses and pressures, that makes me feel so good, because at the end of the day, im not a therapist, but i try to offer great mentorship. At the end of the day, my friends who are psychiatrists say, i can get in here and say whatever, the kids are going to connect with you because you have been through it. Goes, iriend of mine dont know what it feels like. I suffer seasonal depression. Everybody goes through something. But you have been there. , in i talked to these kids open up about how it feels and their like, oh, you get it. We just come together and try to support one another. Im glad you mentioned mentorship. It perfectly segues into my next question. When it comes to someone in the public eye, another athlete, or someone in the audience that hasnt been able to publicly face what they are dealing with, whether it is talking to their family, talking to the coaches, what can you say to that person for them to take that step . Them, there is so much out there now. Athletes are someone they aspire to be. I never met her, but she helped me through this journey is Catherine Zeta jones. She is the first celebrity i saw who struggled with bipolar disorder. I went to read about here. About her. What is the young lady that used to date Justin Bieber . Selena gomez. Tommy,n eightyearold selena gomez is the most followed person on instagram and she has depression. These kids are able to attach. Just read about these journeys and hopefully, some of the inspires you. At the end of the day, know that youre not alone. Call me if youre feeling down. Up, for friends and family and colleagues, because sometimes that is tough to deal with. Once you deal when to accept that youre dealing with Mental Health, what can you say to the friends and family and colleagues to support that person . I would say be patient. It is a journey. It is a ride. Let them know that the person knows that you love them and youre there for them. Becausey to fix them, if you are constantly trying to fix it, it irritates them. It irritated me. Just knowing that i am processing things, by know you love me and care for me, it helps me get to the other side of things. What a great conversation. Thank you. [applause] here to discuss the big picture, please welcome our guest. I am back. This panel was designed to talk about the subject matter, but kind of put the mood and what happens and what makes athletes decide to take on issues that they are passionate about and that they feel will make society better. I want to start with you. You were part of the wnba blackout in response to black lives matter. About andw that came what made you decide to participate. Collectively, we were trying to figure out what was the best approach to approach the situation. Some teams had protested, some teams have done some media blackouts. For the mystics, we were trying to decide the best way to handle things, knowing that it was a touchy topic. We know what we wanted to get across, but how do we do so in a conducive and constructive way . For us, it was a media blackout. For those who dont know, after the game, the media can ask us any questions and we made it so that we were not answering any questions about the game. We would answer we would have speak onsperson to what was happening within our society, within our country at the time. For us, that was our best approach to be united, to have a united front. We were all playing lack shirts, no logos. We wanted to come across as a united front, from all walks of life. Gay, welack, straight, are all united in this fight going on right now in our country. In the last few days, you and some of your teammates spoke out against the abortion ban. What made you decide to lend your voice to that particular issue . In all aspects, my mindset is, i have been blessed with a platform. I feel i would be doing a disservice to a lot of people that look like me that are suffering from inequality or injustice if i do not speak out. I feel like thats part of the problem. With our platform here, i chose to speak on the abortion law and how asinine i think those laws are. [applause] right now in this country , we have decided that we can allow for majority of white men to sit down in a room and decide what is the best decision for a womans body and for Womens Health moving forward. What is more frustrating is that we have women in those rooms making those decisions as well. So, for us in the wnba we want to have our voices heard that we are not a piece of property that needs laws and regulations. We are our own individuals. I like to say i am promind your business. At the end of the day, no one has a right to tell me what i can and cannot do with my body that i dont have the right to my body, that i cant make decisions [applause] for my best interest and my health for the best interest of my life and when youre talking about criminalizing women for making decisions that have the ir best interest of life and health. We can all go home now, that was great. During the playing height of the Colin Kaepernick protest. On your own team, in the locker room, what conversations did not did that protest create . Each team ive been on is a different conversation depending on location and where the guys come from. The biggest thing i think missing was empathy. There is a lot of empathetic approaches to what the conversation was about. Everyone was so firm and they thought that we wanted sympathy. No one wanted their sympathy we wanted you to empathize was going on in the world. There was no true direction to where the conversation should go. That was one of the major issues with the protest. The information is being received and delivered was a bunch of individuals attacking a major problem that included every person in the room. How did you choose to respond . I did all kinds of stuff. I was one of the guys that sat there that sat during the national anthem. I did a lot of political cartoons that spoke on the issues. Writer, i tryas a to make things that the best way i can talk most of the times is by making things. I make things that reflect how i feel. When i make art, people have to approach it and make decisions for themselves. We speak to a lot of people who get defensive about the conversation or dont want to have it. Im trying to get my white teammates to understand they are a part of this as well. If we dont have you as allies, we cannot make the impact we want to make. Folks, we have been so much that we can advise with everyone. Its like, yeah, i feel you on that. That is messed up. They say, yeah, i know that happened to my cousin. Everyone, butwith not everyone can advise with us. A few Football Players also spoke out when the fight for samesex marriage is going on, what is it about football, maybe it is just popular. You are better situated to answer than me, but what is about football when you see a protester play speaking about samesex marriage that it registers differently in the public. I think weve heard it from a lot of different panelists, athletes have a tremendous amount of Cultural Capital. We live in a sport obsessed country, a sport obsessed world. You go to any high school or middle school to high school are and the halls are lined with sports trophies. When you look at the amount of coverage that certain sports get that microphone is bigger and , larger in certain sports that than it is in others. Issues,with lgbtq sometimes the person you think is the most is the least likely to be an ally, when they show up and Say Something in support of the quality and open peoplescan eyes and get them to listen. I think still in 2019, theres assumption that sport is not welcoming space for the lgbtq community. Theres an assumption that the Football Players are homophobic and more male athletes are homophobic and whenever you have somebody who has the confidence to disprove that assumption, it connects with people in a really unique way. Again, we heard from so many people today. Sport speaks to people across language barriers. It brings people together across political opinions. When you get that right messenger to deliver the right message, it has a huge impact. We are in a time where it is fair to say this is the best time in history to be a professional athlete when you consider the financial power athletes have, the influence, social media and all the things they are doing there. Our athletes still scared to speak out on issues, because they think they will risk losing endorsements or money, or Cultural Capital . I dont have any endorsements so [laughter] with guysversations who wanted to join me, but they were like, what would nike or cocacola say . They didnt want to step on that platform. You have a lot of guys with platforms and their false activists. You have to be active and educated on what you are active about. A lot of guys like to join a conversation because it looks cool but not really part of the conversation. Im on your team but theyre not on your team. They want to put that position out there so someone would say i was a part of it but theyre , not really a part of it. It a part of it. Things,risk a lot of but like she said, it is a disservice when you get a platform its your purpose to be , the voice of the voiceless. There are lot of people that can be heard. No platform is too big or too small. If you heard about being heard by five people is better than being heard by nobody. Sorry, i feel like im talking for everybody. When we were protesting, there werent that many guys. There were maybe two handfuls of guys through the entire league that was truly protesting. Guys didnt jump into the conversation until trump said something that being sons of or s or of bastards that wasnt quite the word he used. The sons of female dogs. Theres kids here. But then the whole conversation was protesting against trump and the words they said. Wasnt protesting for what the actual conversation was about. We saw a situation recently where with the boston red sox, all the players of color chose not to go to the white house to celebrate having won the world series, all the white players did choose to go. As summit he has been part of a team protest, how did you prevent maybe everybody not only not on the same page . How did you prevent his being a split or there would be some uncomfortable dynamics, maybe everybody in that locker room did not want to follow through with the blackout. You try to tread lightly because everyone might not be on on the page, but what we did is be set down as a team and had discussions. That is the biggest part when you are talking about social advocacy. Thank you, i got it out. Its having open dialogue and having tough conversations and that is what we did as the mistakes. We collectively figured out what would be in the best interests of everyone, not just individually who this was affecting in their everyday life. This may not affect the majority of white players, but they support us. Lets find a way youre comfortable supporting us. Even of that means we stand soley and someone speaks for us and we stand behind them, that is okay moving forward. And a reminder, if you have any questions you can go to slideo. Com and ask your question and it will be addressed on the panel. Hudson, can you comment on the impact of lgbtq athletes wanting to be advocates but potentially not wanting to come out in the spotlight . One of the challenge in sport is that, whether youre an athlete in middle school or a professional athlete, theres this language that says stick to sports, shut up and dribble, dont be a distraction, and the professional level, the average career of many professional athletes is three or four or five years. And so, the risk doesnt outweigh the reward in sports spaces, so i think one of the challenges is that we see and that we have in this space is, i see Colin Kaepernick not being on a team connected to the pressure that might keep an lgbtq athlete in the closet. Unless and until we have a sports culture that welcomes and embraces athlete activism are there will still be a culture that says dont be a distraction, dont talk about the things you care about. Dont share your identity with the world. I spent the last eight years working on lgbtq issues in sports and its important for athletes to come and share their story. I also dont think i have any right to ask an athlete to share their personal story with the world. For me, as somebody who is not lgbt, i put so much of the onus on the apathetic allies who say theyre supportive and then do nothing to actually impact systems of oppression, and so i dont think i need to be a person of color to care about Racial Justice. I dont need to be a woman to care about gender equality, and the same way when we look at sports spaces, we need more allies to stand up and speak out and use their privilege to help dismantle some of these systems. You said something important there that i want to follow up on. About how the culture support has to be there. A lot of people feel like the culture support has to be there within the ownership or Team Structure or whoever it is you play for. I am reminded of someone who spoke about the fact that she was encouraged to not come out because she was at baylor, which is a christian university. She was pressured not to come out. I came from baylor itself. Coaches,can ownership, what can they do to foster a better culture of support, and not use that term distraction, which i think is lazy when they say speaking out against Racial Justice or on behalf of lgbtq issues that that is a distraction from the team. Dot can owners and coaches to have a more supportive environment for for their players . They need to realize that they dont own people. [applause] else . One that was a might drop there. Look at what monumental did. Look at what mystics did. Were sitting on stage because our company, our team, our organization, believes in giving us the voice and giving us the platform to talk about hard discussions and discussions that need to happen. This is a prime example of what it means to be supported as a player. I can remember my rookie season, the coach coming into the locker room and there was something going on within that day, also fell on the game day, and i can remember exactly, he said today is big day for our game. Today is an even bigger day for you after our game. When the media comes in talk , about what is going on, feel free to discuss it and bring light to it, and from that to feel that as a player, you know, opposed to the nfl where you fear repercussions for speaking out, fear losing endorsements and sponsorships for speaking out and using your voice for the greater majority. To not have that fear with your organization and your company is everything. I think it starts at a young age. Kids once you Start Playing football, that individualism is taken away and theyre raising athletes and not raising people. The coaches need to be raising people to be human beings, not just to be great athletes. I think they miss the point. They spend so much time teaching the kids to shoot a basketball, but they dont teach them to become people. Whole people. And so i think thats super interesting conversation because i always felt like once you sign a waiver to play sports you sign over their identity, because they are shaped by being part of something that is bigger than they are and they lose themselves in that. They never get to form as an individual and form a point of view of their own. I would just say i think the way in which we shift that perceived fear or actual fear or eliminate risks is twofold. Theres a bottomup strategy and a topdown strategy. From the bottomup, theres a myth that gets perpetuated that you have these billion Dollar Industries that are based on the labor of very few people. Theres everything that surrounds sports does not exist if the athletes dont play, and so the only way in which that power is maintained is if athletes stay divided. And so, by keeping athletes to, like, protect what is yours, teaching them that, thats how you people continue to be taken advantage of. I think when athletes speak in one voice, which we have heard from so many different people who are boycotting and boycotting and organizing mobilizing their teammates, when athletes speak in one voice, people have to listen. Is gettingside people to say the words of what they stand for and what they believe in. Supportive but what does that theres a lot of people who say, yeah, im an an an ally and im supportive but what does that mean in their behavior. And you can find very few examples. So its actually just getting the owners to say i would welcome an openly gay athlete on my team. I think that would be an asset to what were trying to do here. If i was to look at most professional sports teams and ask who on that team is a champion of the lgbtq community, you would probably have to and that is a choice that those that the apathy is a choice that i think people in positions of power have a responsibility to change. I think the issue with the players is, the number one way people lose power is by thinking they dont have power. Athletes dont realize how powerful they and are the impact they can make on culture. The number one way begin up power is by thinking we dont have power. We need to reeducate the athletes to understand how powerful they are and then they will start to make changes. And also its important to keep in mind, if youre an athlete, when it comes to management, you can do what they do. They cant do what you do. That is true. We have another question here. Domestic violence seems endemic in mens sports. Are the nfl statements and acts against the mystic violence and child abuse adequate . I mean, Domestic Violence is an issue not with just men in sports but men in the world, it is not just there are 1500 guys in the nfl but theres so many other people in the world who have gone through the same issues. Just when it happens on this level, it gets a bigger platform. We have to stop the epidemic of Domestic Violence in the entire culture of being a man. It doesnt start with guys in the nfl. Nfl, you take the ray rice incident. Theres not a tape, he doesnt get banned from the league. You have the thing in kansas city which is ridiculous, two or threeyearold kid getting his arm broke by your star athlete he gets to play, but then someone who smokes weed gets kicked out. Then someone beating women and kids and get a Second Chance and third chance. And dont kneel. Oh, yeah, dont take a knee , because that is the worst thing you can do ever to the nfl. But the thing but taking a knee, you are talking about joining a conversation. Its different when it is a wide receiver or a running back taking a knee. When its quarterback, the face of the franchise, that is a bigger issue, because that is who they put up on a pedestal. If Peyton Manning joined the conversation, the nfl would change. If drew brees came in and joined the conversations it would change. Tom brady, all the great white heroes throwing the football, if they jump into the conversation, it would be so much bigger. [applause] yes, so just like like i was said earlier, chris long, he can join the conversation, but he is a defensive end. No one pays attention i love chris long chris long is my boy, shoutout to chris. But it is anonymous. Once the positions of the people you look at nfl advertisements, its all quarterbacks. Sixth every single quarterback doing something stupid. Im just getting real for a minute. If they were to take a knee, that conversation would totally change. If tom brady took a knee, White America would be like, oh my god. What is this that tom brady is talking about . Doing researcht and join. Since it is a black guy, theyre like, here they go again. Violence,n domestic guys should be punished. If you hit a woman. If you hit a woman, you should not be playing football. Ill feel like there is any excuse for child abuse. Mya father, i dont with daughter, i just look at her like this [laughter] hands are so big, my feet are big, my body is big. I am strong. Hitting a child at this position is ridiculous. Discipline your child how you want, but things get extreme. Theing a woman, watching video of the ray rice, i wanted to choke ray rice. I wanted to punch him in the face. On 19, i haveare issues with those guys. Hit me. Im serious. Me when iakes see these things going on, the other thing is, Colin Kaepernick has been in the news forever and especially through the nfl outlets. These conversations about Domestic Violence, they come into the news cycle and they get out on the backend and nobody thinks about it. These conversations need to be talked about on all the platforms. Espn, they need to have actual conversations about Mental Health and what it takes to raise a man. The idea of what a man is, a gets changed when it comes to sports. Actually, being a man has nothing to do with dominating another man on a sport. Sorry, guys. Its all good. I will just briefly add, it would be helpful if, before a player is in the league, or does commit an act of violence, that our Justice System to their job. Part of the reason why these guys are available to play is because on that end, something doesnt happen. We all know the Justice System sucks. Im not going to get you started. We will be here all day. A round of applause for our panel. [applause] [laughter] new one on one interview coming up next. First and foremost, how dope is that jersey . Uhoh. We need a mic. Here we are. Hello. I thought we were going to between today. Thats why i were this jersey. I thought you would wear it, too. You have to send me the memo. A to send me the memo. A lot of people may not be familiar with your background. What you explain to the audience how you got into fencing. I started fencing at 12 years old. My mom and i were driving past a local high school, and when i was growing up and playing these different sports we had to alter the uniform as a kid who was muslim and didnt wear tank tops or team shorts. I would wear spandex or a tshirt underneath, but i remember we drove past the local high school and resolve fencers, and my mom was like, i dont know what that it is but i want you to try it out. That is how i got into fencing. Fencing, i think most people, its perception and reality its an elitest sport so as a muslim woman of color, how did you navigate that elitism that seems to be a part of fencing . It hasnt always been easy. I dont know if it has ever been easy. I saw from the first time as a kid when i would travel with my team that was very supportive of me being a black athlete, black black fencer when i would travel to my team within different townships in new jersey for kids who had never seen someone black on the fencing strip, that is when i noticed the difficulty. Even with referees and parents. I was aware from a pretty young age, and i think the frustration lies in that you see very little change, the older you get the further you get in the sport, and thats why i choose to speak out against the things i see. As a muslim woman, there are some nuances to how you want and need to live your life that are not necessarily conducive in the sport that you chose. You told a story before about ramadan. You were fasting, and your coachs reaction to that, what you tell everyone the story . So, im sure most of us at this point know what ramadan is but for those who dont, muslims observe a fast, 29 or 30 days we fast from sunup to sundown and we abstain from food, any liquids, water, anything. And i am often training for the last few years during ramadan, we all World Championships always fall during ramadan and at training camps, the National Coach would call me so stupid. What are you doing . Youre going to kill yourself. And he imagine in that kind of public space to be antagonized and made to feel different but also made to feel inadequate as an athlete. He didnt see the connection, how important my faith is to me, and for me i always put my faith over my sport, but i know that abstaining from food and water it is in the mind. I know where my food is coming from and i know when he the sun goes down, i can eat again. Not everybody have that opportunity. Knowpeople who fast dont where their next meal is coming from and may not have access to clean water. It is definite way harder when the people around you make it more difficult. Did you find your experiences as a muslim athlete that was a shared experience with other muslim athletes . Were you kind of experiencing the same things. I dont know of any other professional muslim athletes. Not while i was competing. I know of a few who participate in the nfl, and a few that maybe we have heard of. Habib, i dont know how to pronounce his last name. The russian mme fighter. There is a few, but for me growing up, a lot of the references i had a muslim athletes were the ghosts like muhammad ali or Kareem Abduljabbar and i know the y fasted and observed ramadan and played in playoffs or had really big matches. So for me it seemed relatively easy. If these people can win championships, i can make it through the first few rounds rounds of a world championship. You had a very i wouldnt call it startling, but it was just one of those comments that you made that made me good, wow, made me go, wow, never thought of it that way. In an interview with espn youve said the muslim experience post 9 11 and the muslim experience now are dearly similar. Rily similar. What makes you say that . During during 9 11 i was a kid and i remember i was in high school, i was in ap english, and the rest of us watched the towers fall from a television in our classroom. I grew up 30 minutes outside of new york city. A lot of the kids in my township had parents who worked in new york city, and i had relatives who worked in new york. It hit very close to home but i grew up in a very inclusive environment, diverse town. I didnt feel what maybe other muslims would feel in that moment of isolation or this kind of bigotry that was taking us by storm in our nation, or even globally, but i would say now , especially when i qualified for the olympics, it was the height of the president ial election its become commonplace to think of Muslim Community in a way thats often dark and negative, and ive always felt like my journey in sport and qualifying for an olympic team during this time, its always meant to happen that way because it forced people to rethink the narrative that were all so used to. People turn on the television and think its okay to watch programs that depict muslims as terrorists, to think that all muslim women are arab or are opressed or uneducated or forced to cover by some man and its like im american by birth mitch by birth. Im africanamerican, i only speak english. Im educated, super verbal. Im going to tell you exactly how i feel and i won an olympic medal for my country so im everything that you think im not. [applause] i feel like this is an opportunity for me to tell my story. It is one of my american identity my africanamerican , identity, my muslim identity, my female identity, my jersey identity and all the things and i have the opportunity to delve a story not just for me but for everybody who is made to feel they dont belong. Its frustrating, and im sure you feel the same, when you walk in the room and different stereotypes proceed you. I know that for me ive struggled with that, especially as an athlete. You essentially just want to play. You just want to go out there and win. You dont want people to try to label you before you even start the game. A reminder you can go to slideo. Com if you have any questions and we already have one. How much attention did you get for wearing a hijab and did you expect all the attention and did you enjoy it . The spotlight isnt really my thing, but i think its important for us to knowledge first, it is problematic when a is justke fencing reserved for one group of people who have a certain amount of money. It is frustrating. I know, without the support of a nonprofit, i would not have the career that i have in sports. When i hear from people who say you get attention because you wear a hijab, no, i get attention because i won a lipid metal. An olympic medal. I do think it is important to celebrate first. One thing people never talk about his eye in the first woman of color to represent the United States womans saber team. That becomes lost, because people identify me as wearing a he job, but im also the first woman of color. There is a lot of barrier breaking within fencing, but it is not for me. I actually dont want people to celebrate me. I want people to celebrate the fact that we have this moment of inclusion and diversity within the sport, but also hopefully it opens our eyes, especially for the youth, to see themselves in this space. It is hard to never see of you. Tation for me, it would have been easier had i had someone who looked like me in that space. It is easier for the young kids of color coming up, because they can unconsciously grasp their aspirations. They know it is possible. For some of us come about is not the case. Question, what was the most challenging thing you had to overcome and how did you do it . Most challenging thing is just to block out all the noise. It can be really easy to get caught up in things you cant control. Lives have people in our who come dressed as friends, who pretend to support us but are really haters. They are not there to hype you up. They are there to break you down. Do not support your abilities and your strengths and help you identify that you are gifted and you can accomplish whatever you put your mind to. Some many of us wait around for people in our lives to give us permission to chase down what we want and i feel like with me, i am fortunate in that i arrived at this notion early on that i dont need other people. For a long time, i was waiting for people to support me, but i was that kid who had my hand at first, who wanted in a all the time. An a all the time. I wanted to be good on the field. That is not always the most popular thing to do. I was bullied as a kid and that was tough. Having those moments is what shaped me into who i am today. I dont care what people think. I am at here to chase down what i want whether you like it or not. I dont need permission and we all need that for ourselves. Too old tous say im chase down what i want or am not smart enough. Im not bright enough. I always say, why do you need other people to tell you what you can do . Why do you need other people to give you that permission . You need to learn to give that permission yourself. Whats the old phrase everybody in your circle is not in your corner . Have there been repercussions for speaking out against ignorance that you faced and has been worth it . Repercussions . I dont know. I kind of phased out of sport. I only spent a year after the olympic games. I did one more year and then i took a break to write my book and kind of never came back. I had people who were not happy with the book, nobody ever approached me about it. Maybe they were afraid of me. Im not really sure. Nobody ever said anything to me. When you are telling the truth, what can you say . In my book, i document how difficult the journey was as a muslim, as a black woman coming up through a very white sport, and a sport that is very much intentional to keep it that way. Uncomfortable, but what are you going to do if it is true . Im shining a light on something i feel is a problem, and hopefully it will change. When you acknowledge something, you are forcing someone to realize the mistakes that they make, and hopefully going forward, they change. Host i think you recently said you wouldnt compete in tokyo in 2020. What went into that decision . Hardest decision i have ever made. Many of my friends who have played professional sports and been on olympic teams and im like, how do you arrive at this decision when you decide to retire from sport . Nobody has a definitive answer. You just pray you are making the right decision. I dont know if i will ever be 100 on it. But i feel like like my impact in sport is so much greater than fencing, but fencing was a vehicle for me. Impacting it is about the world in a way that is positive, and always being an agent of change. And i think fencing was just, fencing has always been a vehicle for me. And i know i can do so off the fencing strip as well. Host how can young people in southeast washington dc get involved in fencing . People may not be aware how they can get involved in the sport. Google, that is what i would do. [laughter] im not from here, but i would google it. This is forever ago, but when i was a kid and saw the sport, i parents didnt know what it was. It might have been al while at the time, but it but that is how we found it. Aol at the time, but that is how we found it. I would say just google it. There are so many fencing hotspots around the country, d. C. , new york, san francisco, texas, some places you can find the sport. Sabrewhat made you choose versus foil . There are three different weapons in fencing. The difference is the target area and at the weapon itself. In foil you hit with a point, in foil the target area is the torso, in fa is the full body and sabre use slashing motions to score. So we are more like zorro, right . Im your bodyguard. My High School Team needed a sabre fencer and that is why. To the fencing person who asked that. Wrap it up, there are a lot of athletes, young people who want to get involved and share their stories, who want to do what you have been able to do, turn your store into a testimony. What advice do you have for people who wish to do what you did. They may not have led the same life but they want to turn their story into something beyond just a story. I always say that youre following, your audience, is what you make it. You dont have to have millions of followers to reach people. We can have a few hundred, you can have a few, like one or two, and you can reach people and it is all about trying to impact people in a positive way and always trying to be an agent of change. It is really important to me that i use sport in a way that and justeoples lives, finding activism, i feel strongly about athletes using their platforms for good. I encourage everybody out there to do the same. You dont have to be a professional athlete to use your voice. We all have a responsibility to speak up, especially in this moment because things are very difficult. Even if it is not for you, it is for your neighbors, your friends, people who dont look like you and share the sim experiences. So it is important for all of us to find our footing in activism for sure. Do what you always, can where you are. Everybody cant be number seven, so whatever it is, your way of expressing something you are passionate about, do that. It could just be bringing meals to senior citizens. Could be a number of Little Things you could do to change somebody is life. I think that concludes the talking portion of this panel. A big round of applause. [applause] you all in general for your attention, your questions, and for staying engaged. So thank you. [captions Copyright National cable satellite corp. 2019] [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. Visit ncicap. Org] athletes using their platform for good, thank you so much. That is a wrap. [applause] how inspiring these athletes are off the court and on the stage, talking with passion and power about what they believe in. Hale is our jemele champion for carrying this afternoon of conversation. I want to thank our speakers and give a giant shout out to the washington mystics for making this afternoon possible. I thank all of you for being here today, your time is valuable and we are grateful you give so much of it to us. I hope you leave here with lots of new things to consider. One program note, and celebration of the washington mystics inaugural season here at the entertainment and sports arena, they are teaming up with events d. C. To host a Pregame Party this saturday. It is free, open to all fans, the party will take lace outside the arena on oak drive from 2 30 p. M. Until 6 30 p. M. Right after that the mystics host the atlantic dream the atlanta dream at 7 00 p. M. In a rematch of the wnba semifinals. We hope to see you all there. Have a great afternoon. Thank you, so much. Narrator taking a look at our prime time schedule on the cspan networks, at 8 00 p. M. Eastern on cspan, commencement addresses from Supreme Court justice dona sotomayor and cindy mccain. On cspan2, authors who have written about president ial history. And on cspan3, American History tdb, with grahams looking at u. S. Soldiers who invaded europe and fought on the day. Fought on dday. Cspans washington journal, live every day with news and policy issues that impact you. Saturday morning, Jason Russell of the Washington Examiner talks about political dynamics driving campaign 2020 and president trumps reelection strategy. And in our spotlight on magazine segment, the new republics matt article,s about his make the irs great again, and how democrats can use the issue in the race for the white house. Also, a new report examining the loopholes federal lawmakers used to pay personal expenses. Be sure to watch cspans washington journal, live at 7 00 eastern saturday morning. Join the discussion. At our table this morning. Cq roll calls appropriations and budget reporter. Explain, why does it keep getting blocked, this 19. 1 billion disaster aid package . Guest trying to get to a bipartisan agreement on disaster aid is something that has been taking months. Theres