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My great grandfather
came to America in 1923.

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He traveled on a
Dutch ocean liner

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called the Nieuw Amsterdam.

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Cramped in a steerage
with his mother

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and younger sister by his side.

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I grew up hearing his stories
of success in business,

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starting a family
and most of all,

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his stories of speed skating.

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I intended this film to focus
solely on Jack Brooke's life,

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about his struggles
in an unknown land.

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It's a tale that fits
neatly in the story books

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and history lessons.

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The young immigrant escaping
the violence of the old world

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for the promises of the new one.

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But I've come to realize

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that this is a story
about many lives.

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It's about more
than any one man.

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This is a story about
how we conduct ourselves

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and treat each other
not only as athletes,

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but also as brothers, sisters,
neighbors and citizens.

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This is a story about what
it means to play the game

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when the field isn't level.

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To find the will to succeed

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when the prospects of success
remain so persistently grim.

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This is a story about
the fight for fairness,

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for acceptance on the
field and off of it.

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This isn't the stuff
of Hollywood lore,

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my great grandfather
and the men and women

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who come after him,
don't die rich.

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Sometimes they're
not even remembered,

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but they lived real lives.

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And their lives, their
story deserves to be told.

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Because in the end,

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this is a story about us.

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Most of his family was
killed in the Holocaust,

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but he brought over maybe
about a half a dozen people

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that were still alive.

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He got them jobs, he helped
them out financially,

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he got them apartments, he
always took care of his family.

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Speed skating was his
passion, his life passion.

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Whenever he found a spare moment

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whether in the middle of the day

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or in the morning or afternoon,

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he would just take the skates
which he always had with him

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and just go skating.

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The ice meant
everything to him,

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meeting his wife, meeting...

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His medals, it's everything.

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It's his whole life is the ice.

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My father
really worked hard

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to become a world
class speed skater.

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And it would have been a very
special experience for him

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to compete at the Olympics.

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Unfortunately, even though
he went to Lake Placid

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on the US skating team,

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he wasn't able to
skate in the Olympics

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because he wasn't a citizen.

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Today, I believe he would
have been granted citizenship,

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would have been able to
compete in the Olympics.

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Jack Brooks wasn't able
to compete in the Olympics

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in 1928 or 1932, because
he was an immigrant Jew.

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He wasn't a citizen,

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so they wouldn't
make him a citizen

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based on his natural
gifts as an athlete,

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even though he was
qualified and made the team

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and beat Olympic champions.

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He couldn't do that
because of who he was

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and where he came from.

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Now, there was another
speed skater at the time,

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Irving Jaffee, who was Jewish
but he was an American,

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he was a citizen.

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Very proud that
he beat the world champion,

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Irving Jaffee, in
one of the races,

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that was his high
point of his life

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that he beat an Olympic star.

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That moment
was very special to him.

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He proved to himself,
to the Olympic champion

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and all of the skaters

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that Jack Brooks
was a contender.

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I'm sure he would have loved
to been able to step on the ice

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at the Olympics and
prove that to the world.

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Even though he made
the Olympic team,

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he worked his whole life, became
a world-class speed skater,

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beat Olympic champions,
it didn't matter.

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At the time they didn't
give citizenship to athletes

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based on their natural
gifts as an athlete.

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Now, today that
happens all the time.

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In Sochi, there was
over 120 athletes

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that competed for nations
other than their birth nation,

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so it happens today.

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That was 4% of the 3000
athletes that competed in Soshi.

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And it happened again in Rio

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and American athletes competed
for other nations as well,

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a lot of them.

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And it's sad, to think that
Jack if he was around today,

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he probably would be able

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to compete in the
Olympics definitely.

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So, that's a hard
pill to swallow,

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knowing what it meant to
him to skate on Olympic ice,

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to skate against a competitor
like Irving Jaffee.

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And for Jack Brooks
to potentially end up

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being the Olympic gold medalist,

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the Olympic champion,

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it's something that he was
never able to accomplish

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and,

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something that ate him alive
for the rest of his life.

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The Olympics
held a different place

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in American society

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then in the 1920s and thirties,

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as it does today.

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It was more captured by a
blue blood establishment

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that sort of ran how it was

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and they wanted
the Olympics to run

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with a certain sort of class.

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Also at this time, there's
a tremendous nativism

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that's striking up in America.

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It had already started
in the twenties

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with the limitation on
immigration in 1924.

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Partly because of the fear
that many of these Europeans

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who were coming over
were likely radical.

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Well, you don't want a
radical in sports either,

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you want the right type
of person in sports.

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You'd have to earn your
citizenship in the normal way,

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you'd have to prove
that you are an American

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before you could
compete for America.

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The first winter
Olympics were held in 1924

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in Chamonix, France.

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And the star of the
US team that year

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was a skater from New
York in Lake Placid

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named Charles Jewtraw.

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Who was actually the
first gold medalist ever

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at a winter Olympics.

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He won the 500 meter speed
skating event for the US.

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And, he sort of started the
sport to become popular again

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in the 1920s in that era.

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And he was followed by a
guy named Irving Jaffee,

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who was a Jewish speed skater.

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Jaffee ended up
winning two gold medals

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at the 1932 Olympics.

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And he really
popularized the sport

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and was the biggest
hero of speed skating

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around New York
city in that era.

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He was always
proud to be a Jew

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as far as I understand.

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And he contributed to Jewish
causes Lifelong apparently.

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What I do know in Lake Placid,

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there was overt antisemitism.

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Some of the other athletes

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were making life
miserable for him.

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And they were pouring water
on his mattress to make it wet

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so he couldn't sleep at night.

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Apparently, they would shine
bright lights in his eyes

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when he was trying to sleep.

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They were trying to
get him out of there

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and not let him compete.

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And so he went and spent
the night before the race

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with some friends so that
he could get some sleep

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and he went back and he won
two races in Lake Placid.

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Quite an accomplishment for Jews

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and for the Olympics
and for Irving Jaffee.

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And I'm proud of that.

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I am proud of that.

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The games were organized by
a guy named him Godfrey Dewey.

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And Dewey ran the
Lake Placid Club.

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And he was actually
a rabid anti-Semite.

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Now he did not ha-

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Allowed Jews to be members
of the Lake Placid Club.

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So this was a big
thing for a Jaffee

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to go there and win gold
medals right in front of him.

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I'm sure Dewey wasn't happy.

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When Jews come to America,

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they're often seen by
nativists and racists

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as being unathletic.

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Being Jewish was
regarded as a handicap.

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And you had to
overcome that handicap,

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in order to succeed you
had to be twice as smart,

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twice as tough, twice as
good, twice as strong,

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twice as committed,
twice as determined.

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And many young Jews
of that generation

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who wanted participate
in American society

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understood that it wasn't
an even playing field

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and they had to be
determined to get ahead.

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Jews get involved
in basketball, baseball,

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of course boxing, and
they move up the ladder.

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But then there's an issue

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of do we want Jews to
play for us as Americans?

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We've done all
America's asked of us,

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we've become Americanized,
we speak the language,

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we played the games.

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And yet at that point

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there's a great deal of
discrimination against Jews

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in those arenas, those
arenas of sports.

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Irving Jaffee, making
it in speed skating

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was also astounding

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because speed skating
wasn't supposed

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to be an underclass sport.

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Speed skating was not
supposed to be something done

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by people who grew up in less
than privileged environments

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and it wasn't supposed
to be a Jewish sport.

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What did
happen with Jaffee

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was he won his two
gold medals in 1932.

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And even though he was
still skating by 1936,

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he refused to go to
the Winter Olympics

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in Garmisch-Partenkirchen
in Germany,

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because it was in Germany
during Hitler's era

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and he knew what Hitler
was doing with the Jews,

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so he refused to skate.

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I'd like to think that
winning an Olympic medal

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is a pure endeavor and
to many athletes it is.

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Unfortunately it was impure
leading up to the 1936 Olympics,

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00:11:40,561 --> 00:11:44,945
which were the most
polluted politically ever.

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00:11:46,084 --> 00:11:48,121
Nazi Germany essentially paid

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00:11:48,155 --> 00:11:51,400
to have the Olympics
in Berlin in Garmisch.

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00:11:51,434 --> 00:11:52,608
And anybody who played a role

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in what happened
in Nazi Germany,

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should have gone away with
their head buried in some hole.

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And that didn't happen.

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A pre-Holocaust moment
takes place in 1936,

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when two outstanding
Jewish runners;

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00:12:15,596 --> 00:12:18,289
Marty Glickman and Sam Stoller,

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00:12:18,323 --> 00:12:22,120
are kept off the four
by 100 relay team

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because that event in the
Olympic stadium in Berlin

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was one of the signature
events in the Olympics.

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And it's been said
that the leaders

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of the American Olympic
Committee led by Avery Brundage,

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00:12:40,518 --> 00:12:42,485
didn't want to
embarrass Adolf Hitler

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by having Jews stand
on the victory platform

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as winners in this race.

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Now, everyone knows that Jesse
Owens wins four gold medals.

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00:12:53,703 --> 00:12:55,809
So why is an African-American
allowed to compete

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00:12:55,844 --> 00:12:57,121
and a Jew isn't?

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Well, it goes to the
root of racial ideology.

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Jews are seen as
corruptors, as outsiders.

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00:13:04,645 --> 00:13:07,614
Jesse Owens is viewed
as an auxiliary,

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00:13:07,648 --> 00:13:11,549
as a hired hand who's who's
running for white Americans.

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00:13:11,583 --> 00:13:13,447
Jesse Owens
to his credit said,

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00:13:13,482 --> 00:13:16,450
"Let these guys run,
I've won enough."

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00:13:16,485 --> 00:13:19,005
This great African-American
athlete Jesse Owens,

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00:13:19,039 --> 00:13:23,319
won four gold medals, an
unprecedented four gold medals.

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00:13:23,354 --> 00:13:25,977
And Hitler left the stadium

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00:13:26,012 --> 00:13:29,981
before the golden medal was
presented to Jesse Owens,

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00:13:30,016 --> 00:13:32,294
so he wouldn't have to
be seen with blacks,

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00:13:32,328 --> 00:13:35,159
because blacks were
regarded as inferior.

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00:13:44,030 --> 00:13:45,825
And after he wins
four gold medals

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00:13:45,859 --> 00:13:47,550
and he comes back to New York,

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00:13:47,585 --> 00:13:51,313
there's a victory celebration
at the Waldorf-Astoria

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00:13:51,347 --> 00:13:54,730
and Owens is allowed
to participate,
except for one thing,

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he has to go up the
back service elevator

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00:13:56,870 --> 00:13:58,492
to get to the ballroom.

252
00:13:58,527 --> 00:14:01,219
Community defined situation
through the world of sports.

253
00:14:01,254 --> 00:14:05,879
To me, Jesse Owens, he's
someone who was so courageous,

254
00:14:05,914 --> 00:14:09,434
who competed in such
a time of adversity.

255
00:14:09,469 --> 00:14:12,196
And for him to go out there
and really just be courageous

256
00:14:12,230 --> 00:14:16,890
and stand up for himself and
for a whole group of people,

257
00:14:16,925 --> 00:14:19,341
is just amazing and something

258
00:14:19,375 --> 00:14:21,550
that I feel like we
should never forget.

259
00:14:21,584 --> 00:14:24,691
He paved the way,
not just in sports,

260
00:14:24,725 --> 00:14:26,693
but for life.

261
00:14:26,727 --> 00:14:29,282
So I think that's amazing.

262
00:14:29,316 --> 00:14:32,009
The great athletes who are
African-Americans in our past,

263
00:14:32,043 --> 00:14:35,702
like Jesse Owens, Jackie
Robinson, Muhammad Ali,

264
00:14:35,736 --> 00:14:39,085
who got all the hate being
the discriminated against,

265
00:14:39,119 --> 00:14:42,951
so we like myself and
other African Americans

266
00:14:42,985 --> 00:14:44,607
don't have to be
discriminated against,

267
00:14:44,642 --> 00:14:46,471
don't have to be
called the N word

268
00:14:46,506 --> 00:14:48,197
when we're trying to perform.

269
00:14:48,232 --> 00:14:51,821
Or go to the restroom and
get jumped by white people.

270
00:14:51,856 --> 00:14:52,753
It's--

271
00:14:53,962 --> 00:14:54,928
I'm getting a little
emotional right now

272
00:14:54,963 --> 00:14:56,585
actually just thinking about it.

273
00:14:56,619 --> 00:15:00,589
It means a lot for those who
are our founding fathers,

274
00:15:01,624 --> 00:15:03,799
to set those example for us.

275
00:15:03,833 --> 00:15:05,076
For--

276
00:15:05,111 --> 00:15:07,251
Not only for me, but for
all African-Americans

277
00:15:07,285 --> 00:15:09,322
like me and after me.

278
00:15:09,356 --> 00:15:12,428
I think sports is
an incredible conduit

279
00:15:12,463 --> 00:15:14,948
for change in society.

280
00:15:14,983 --> 00:15:16,432
All the amount of propaganda

281
00:15:16,467 --> 00:15:17,917
that Hitler was
putting out there,

282
00:15:17,951 --> 00:15:21,851
was just silenced by this
four Olympic victories

283
00:15:21,886 --> 00:15:23,474
in all gold medals.

284
00:15:23,508 --> 00:15:27,512
It's like you can't get
more definitive than that.

285
00:15:27,547 --> 00:15:30,653
I think it takes merit
to be seen as an equal

286
00:15:30,688 --> 00:15:31,585
on the playing field.

287
00:15:31,620 --> 00:15:33,346
I mean, the numbers don't lie.

288
00:15:33,380 --> 00:15:35,279
I'm not saying it's
just that easy,

289
00:15:35,313 --> 00:15:40,318
racism and sexism and
prejudice have persisted

290
00:15:41,561 --> 00:15:44,322
even in the face of
excellent athletes.

291
00:15:45,530 --> 00:15:47,636
It has to do with the dignity,

292
00:15:47,670 --> 00:15:49,017
with which you carry yourself.

293
00:16:00,821 --> 00:16:03,617
In the state of
Georgia when I was a kid,

294
00:16:03,652 --> 00:16:06,206
the white kid got the favor.

295
00:16:06,241 --> 00:16:07,449
If it's the fighting club,

296
00:16:07,483 --> 00:16:09,554
the white kid was
gonna get the decision.

297
00:16:09,589 --> 00:16:10,831
The fact of the matter

298
00:16:10,866 --> 00:16:12,730
is things like that
happened to me all the time.

299
00:16:12,764 --> 00:16:15,043
I was always getting cheated.

300
00:16:15,077 --> 00:16:17,114
Matter of fact,
the kid be crying

301
00:16:17,148 --> 00:16:19,150
and he got the decision, he won.

302
00:16:20,048 --> 00:16:21,842
But for one thing, he own it,

303
00:16:21,877 --> 00:16:23,741
he don't wanna box no more,

304
00:16:23,775 --> 00:16:25,777
because you would turn him up.

305
00:16:26,709 --> 00:16:28,159
It was like that
for me all the time.

306
00:16:28,194 --> 00:16:30,886
Yeah, not so much
with white people,

307
00:16:30,920 --> 00:16:34,510
it's just discrimination
is just...

308
00:16:34,545 --> 00:16:36,754
The person got more
money than you,

309
00:16:36,788 --> 00:16:40,689
they family came a lot smarter,

310
00:16:40,723 --> 00:16:42,725
they speak a little different.

311
00:16:42,760 --> 00:16:45,694
Discrimination is in so
many different areas.

312
00:16:47,765 --> 00:16:50,768
I was that kid that
got a lot of trouble,

313
00:16:50,802 --> 00:16:54,392
but somehow I was
a good fighter.

314
00:16:54,427 --> 00:16:57,706
I fight good, why
did I fight good?

315
00:16:57,740 --> 00:16:59,742
I trained all the
time, I trained hard,

316
00:16:59,777 --> 00:17:02,193
regardless of how bad it
hurt, I just kept doing that,

317
00:17:02,228 --> 00:17:03,988
I kept doing it and
I kept doing it.

318
00:17:14,205 --> 00:17:15,793
I love the challenge
of working hard

319
00:17:15,827 --> 00:17:17,795
and I love to be successful.

320
00:17:17,829 --> 00:17:19,797
And somehow I--

321
00:17:19,831 --> 00:17:21,764
You can put the fires out.

322
00:17:21,799 --> 00:17:23,973
You know when I'm
sending peeps out.

323
00:17:24,008 --> 00:17:25,872
You will never do it
because you're poor,

324
00:17:25,906 --> 00:17:27,874
you never do it
because you black,

325
00:17:27,908 --> 00:17:30,049
you never do it because
you ain't got no money,

326
00:17:30,083 --> 00:17:33,052
you never get it in it 'cause
you're a father wasn't there.

327
00:17:33,086 --> 00:17:35,640
But life is not by advantage,

328
00:17:35,675 --> 00:17:37,884
it's by, are you gon' do it?

329
00:17:45,443 --> 00:17:48,757
My goal was to make the
Olympic team and I made it.

330
00:17:48,791 --> 00:17:52,071
When they called my
name everybody cheered,

331
00:17:52,105 --> 00:17:54,142
that has been the
thrill of my life.

332
00:17:54,176 --> 00:17:57,110
I'd never ever had
everybody on my side,

333
00:17:57,145 --> 00:18:00,079
but when I fought in
the Olympics I did.

334
00:18:12,988 --> 00:18:16,025
Do sports perpetuate
institutional racism?

335
00:18:16,060 --> 00:18:17,579
Of course they do.

336
00:18:17,613 --> 00:18:18,925
But American business is
built in institutional racism.

337
00:18:18,959 --> 00:18:20,754
Our entire nation was built
in institutional racism

338
00:18:20,789 --> 00:18:23,757
called slavery, that's
an institution, right?

339
00:18:23,792 --> 00:18:25,414
So there is--

340
00:18:25,449 --> 00:18:29,625
And our entire wealth of our
nation was built on slavery.

341
00:18:29,660 --> 00:18:34,320
Our success, quote unquote,
was built on slavery.

342
00:18:34,354 --> 00:18:36,494
The emergence of a nation,

343
00:18:36,529 --> 00:18:39,152
of an independent nation
was built on slavery.

344
00:18:39,187 --> 00:18:44,157
So the institutions of racism
are embedded in our system.

345
00:18:46,366 --> 00:18:48,334
For someone like a Evander,

346
00:18:48,368 --> 00:18:50,819
it seems like maybe it
gave him more strength.

347
00:18:52,165 --> 00:18:55,617
But if I'm sure, for many
kids it deflates the dream

348
00:18:55,651 --> 00:18:57,170
and those kids don't end up

349
00:18:57,205 --> 00:18:58,378
the heavyweight
champion of the world.

350
00:18:58,413 --> 00:18:59,690
Those kids might end
up in the street corner

351
00:18:59,724 --> 00:19:00,518
or might end up in prison

352
00:19:00,553 --> 00:19:01,726
or might end up--

353
00:19:01,761 --> 00:19:03,176
And sadly some of them are dead.

354
00:19:03,211 --> 00:19:05,730
So the fact that Evander
could overcome that

355
00:19:05,765 --> 00:19:08,285
is triumphant, but
doesn't necessarily mean

356
00:19:08,319 --> 00:19:11,219
that it's not happening anymore.

357
00:19:14,912 --> 00:19:16,741
The thing I admire
about Olympic athletes

358
00:19:16,776 --> 00:19:18,812
is the commitment and training.

359
00:19:18,847 --> 00:19:21,884
You have to have such
undying belief in yourself.

360
00:19:21,919 --> 00:19:24,024
An example would
be Aimee Mullins.

361
00:19:24,059 --> 00:19:26,648
Here's someone who has such
belief in her abilities

362
00:19:26,682 --> 00:19:28,305
and her talents as a runner,

363
00:19:28,339 --> 00:19:30,824
that even without
part of her legs,

364
00:19:30,859 --> 00:19:34,725
she persists and
does it with force.

365
00:19:34,759 --> 00:19:35,829
And that's the kind of thing

366
00:19:35,864 --> 00:19:39,108
that requires pure
belief in oneself.

367
00:19:40,040 --> 00:19:41,559
When I think about sport,

368
00:19:41,594 --> 00:19:44,942
I think about in a way
how it's the lost art.

369
00:19:44,976 --> 00:19:48,911
If we look at dance
and cinema and music,

370
00:19:48,946 --> 00:19:51,362
as these kinds of outlets
of creative expression

371
00:19:51,397 --> 00:19:55,953
that impact our society, and
I think sport also does that.

372
00:19:55,987 --> 00:19:59,059
These kinds of facing
your fears and self doubt

373
00:19:59,094 --> 00:20:02,994
or insecurity, testing your
will, testing your endurance,

374
00:20:03,961 --> 00:20:07,206
are things that are
intensely private

375
00:20:07,240 --> 00:20:09,415
and athletes do them
in a very public way.

376
00:20:09,449 --> 00:20:11,382
I think that's why
it's so infectious.

377
00:20:12,901 --> 00:20:16,870
My days of running in the NCAA
and running for Georgetown

378
00:20:16,905 --> 00:20:18,562
were really special for me.

379
00:20:18,596 --> 00:20:21,979
To be the first person in the
world on these Cheetah legs

380
00:20:22,013 --> 00:20:24,982
and to be a teenage
girl and to walk out

381
00:20:25,016 --> 00:20:27,295
and do a track meet
on Saturday morning

382
00:20:27,329 --> 00:20:31,230
with everybody staring at you
and kind of just inviting it.

383
00:20:32,817 --> 00:20:36,856
There's nowhere to hide
when you're wearing those.

384
00:20:38,202 --> 00:20:40,894
And I hadn't realized that
I had ever wanted to hide,

385
00:20:40,929 --> 00:20:43,103
but I think I certainly
didn't wanna be known

386
00:20:43,138 --> 00:20:45,934
as the girl with the legs.

387
00:20:45,968 --> 00:20:49,938
To be a teenager and really
kind of face that head-on,

388
00:20:49,972 --> 00:20:54,943
required a lot of kind of
emotional stamina on my part.

389
00:20:55,806 --> 00:20:57,186
For me, I was born that way.

390
00:20:57,221 --> 00:20:59,810
It just, it came
with the package.

391
00:21:00,707 --> 00:21:02,502
I was such a natural athlete,

392
00:21:02,537 --> 00:21:04,573
I was always very
comfortable in my body,

393
00:21:04,608 --> 00:21:08,750
but the randomness of being
born without fibula bones

394
00:21:08,784 --> 00:21:10,027
was such that...

395
00:21:10,061 --> 00:21:12,305
Yeah, there was a
period in my life

396
00:21:12,340 --> 00:21:15,964
where I really questioned
why it had happened.

397
00:21:15,998 --> 00:21:17,966
You kind of come up
with different things

398
00:21:18,000 --> 00:21:20,417
to comfort yourself.

399
00:21:20,451 --> 00:21:23,868
If you think it's some
kind of divine will,

400
00:21:23,903 --> 00:21:25,801
you're being tested.

401
00:21:25,836 --> 00:21:27,009
My grandmother used to say

402
00:21:28,563 --> 00:21:31,600
that God doesn't give you
anything you can't handle.

403
00:21:31,635 --> 00:21:35,121
The fact that we just don't
know why certain things happen

404
00:21:35,155 --> 00:21:36,536
and

405
00:21:36,571 --> 00:21:39,298
we have to deal with it.

406
00:21:40,540 --> 00:21:43,785
My only real annoyance
was people who would,

407
00:21:43,819 --> 00:21:46,788
whether it was doctors
or even some teachers,

408
00:21:46,822 --> 00:21:49,342
that would sort of set
the bar really low.

409
00:21:49,377 --> 00:21:51,827
It wasn't like I innately
had something to prove

410
00:21:51,862 --> 00:21:56,315
because I knew I was
capable, really capable.

411
00:21:56,349 --> 00:21:57,833
And it just sort of annoyed me

412
00:21:57,868 --> 00:22:00,905
when people presumed I wasn't.

413
00:22:03,943 --> 00:22:05,841
When I look back at those days

414
00:22:05,876 --> 00:22:09,811
I'm thinking about lining up
in the blocks and doing it

415
00:22:09,845 --> 00:22:14,194
because I wanted to be the
fastest woman on prosthetics

416
00:22:14,229 --> 00:22:16,058
in the world.

417
00:22:16,093 --> 00:22:18,095
I still use it as a touchstone,

418
00:22:18,129 --> 00:22:23,031
I need to remember that
I was able to do that.

419
00:22:24,101 --> 00:22:24,998
Thank you.

420
00:22:30,072 --> 00:22:33,352
10 years after me there
were hundreds and hundreds

421
00:22:33,386 --> 00:22:37,079
of top tier athletes running
with prosthetic legs.

422
00:22:37,114 --> 00:22:40,151
But my experience of
competing when I did,

423
00:22:42,153 --> 00:22:45,294
it felt a lot of
times very lonely.

424
00:22:46,537 --> 00:22:49,022
The best thing I took
out of it was knowing

425
00:22:49,057 --> 00:22:52,440
I had done something that no
one could ever take from me.

426
00:22:53,751 --> 00:22:56,236
And it was a transformation
within myself

427
00:22:56,271 --> 00:23:01,034
that doesn't leave you and
it affects everything you do

428
00:23:01,069 --> 00:23:02,381
for the rest of your life.

429
00:23:04,175 --> 00:23:07,040
Sometimes I still can't
believe that I did it.

430
00:23:07,075 --> 00:23:10,872
It's an extraordinary
feeling to remember

431
00:23:10,906 --> 00:23:15,532
that you were able to
have this crazy dream

432
00:23:15,566 --> 00:23:19,052
ask for help, have the
discipline to follow through

433
00:23:19,087 --> 00:23:20,433
and get there.

434
00:23:20,468 --> 00:23:23,919
And whatever part
my story has played

435
00:23:23,954 --> 00:23:26,163
in the larger narrative of track

436
00:23:26,197 --> 00:23:28,614
and the even larger
narrative of the Olympics

437
00:23:28,648 --> 00:23:30,823
and ,then sport,

438
00:23:30,857 --> 00:23:35,862
I'm proud to have a little
line next to my name

439
00:23:37,968 --> 00:23:40,349
that says, world record setting.

440
00:23:50,014 --> 00:23:51,809
To be a woman's speed skater

441
00:23:51,844 --> 00:23:55,295
in kind of the era
that I grew up in,

442
00:23:55,330 --> 00:23:59,817
unfortunately, I didn't
have a lot of other females

443
00:23:59,852 --> 00:24:02,786
that were kind of right at
the same level that I was.

444
00:24:02,820 --> 00:24:04,960
I trained with the boys

445
00:24:04,995 --> 00:24:07,687
and even started racing
against some of the boys.

446
00:24:07,722 --> 00:24:09,275
And that kind of gave me

447
00:24:09,309 --> 00:24:12,278
that fuel for my fire,
so that when I got

448
00:24:12,312 --> 00:24:14,522
to those bigger
international competitions

449
00:24:14,556 --> 00:24:17,179
and would have to go
against those other women

450
00:24:17,214 --> 00:24:20,010
who were top notch
within our sport,

451
00:24:20,044 --> 00:24:24,152
I was ready for
those competitions,
physically, mentally,

452
00:24:24,186 --> 00:24:26,534
emotionally, everything
that went with it.

453
00:24:26,568 --> 00:24:29,191
I had some pretty good
friendly rivalries

454
00:24:29,226 --> 00:24:33,126
with two of the guys that
I skated with in my era.

455
00:24:33,161 --> 00:24:38,166
And it really gave me
that great nervous energy

456
00:24:38,994 --> 00:24:40,306
that I really wanted to have

457
00:24:40,340 --> 00:24:43,689
and be ready for it when it
came to those big competitions.

458
00:24:50,419 --> 00:24:51,662
One of the
things that I think

459
00:24:51,697 --> 00:24:54,320
it's really important
to also address in this,

460
00:24:54,354 --> 00:24:57,530
is the ways in which the
institution of sports

461
00:24:57,565 --> 00:24:59,670
seeks to masculinize
male athletes

462
00:24:59,705 --> 00:25:01,569
and feminize female athletes.

463
00:25:01,603 --> 00:25:06,263
So we see this in
very random ways.

464
00:25:06,297 --> 00:25:08,334
For instance, when
women's boxing

465
00:25:08,368 --> 00:25:09,680
was being introduced
in the Olympics,

466
00:25:09,715 --> 00:25:11,717
they were required
to or it was proposed

467
00:25:11,751 --> 00:25:13,339
that they were
gonna wear skirts,

468
00:25:13,373 --> 00:25:16,031
something that served
zero utility to the sport.

469
00:25:16,066 --> 00:25:19,241
Both men and women compete
in gymnastics at the floor,

470
00:25:19,276 --> 00:25:21,899
women compete to
music, the men do not.

471
00:25:21,934 --> 00:25:23,729
When you look at figure skating,

472
00:25:23,763 --> 00:25:28,078
the men disproportionately
get judged on athleticism,

473
00:25:28,112 --> 00:25:32,013
the women disproportionately
get judged on artistic merit.

474
00:25:32,047 --> 00:25:33,842
So again, there are
these weird ways

475
00:25:33,877 --> 00:25:35,706
in which this structure of sport

476
00:25:35,741 --> 00:25:38,398
tries to put men in
a masculine bucket

477
00:25:38,433 --> 00:25:40,366
and women in a feminine bucket.

478
00:25:40,400 --> 00:25:42,230
What its all
connected to is this idea

479
00:25:42,264 --> 00:25:44,543
that somehow athleticism,

480
00:25:44,577 --> 00:25:47,200
which for men it's
always been argued,

481
00:25:47,235 --> 00:25:51,619
it gives men a sense
of leadership, of
strength, of control,

482
00:25:51,653 --> 00:25:54,207
that women who possess
those same attributes

483
00:25:54,242 --> 00:25:55,726
would challenge men for power,

484
00:25:55,761 --> 00:25:58,315
and you still have
that to this day.

485
00:25:58,349 --> 00:26:00,559
All the boys races, they're
always on on prime time,

486
00:26:00,593 --> 00:26:02,043
the ladies, they have
to go a little bit--

487
00:26:02,077 --> 00:26:03,389
They get showed a
little later at night.

488
00:26:03,423 --> 00:26:05,771
Which I heard from anybody
that watched my races

489
00:26:05,805 --> 00:26:07,635
would email me like,
"We watched the boys,

490
00:26:07,669 --> 00:26:09,257
they're on on prime time,

491
00:26:09,291 --> 00:26:10,603
but we had to stay up till
midnight to watch your race."

492
00:26:12,605 --> 00:26:15,332
The boys do attract a
bit bigger of a crowd.

493
00:26:15,366 --> 00:26:19,612
But I do think that any woman
with a strong personality,

494
00:26:19,647 --> 00:26:20,751
which I would say
most women in sports

495
00:26:20,786 --> 00:26:22,615
have a strong personality,

496
00:26:22,650 --> 00:26:24,962
And that's something that I
have to kind of struggle with

497
00:26:24,997 --> 00:26:27,275
in my work life to
make sure that...

498
00:26:27,309 --> 00:26:29,795
To get work done, you do,
you have to be assertive,

499
00:26:29,829 --> 00:26:32,107
see what you want and go
after what you need to get

500
00:26:32,142 --> 00:26:33,453
to make your job successful.

501
00:26:33,488 --> 00:26:35,283
But women aren't always
considered assertive,

502
00:26:35,317 --> 00:26:37,665
sometimes we go
straight to the B word.

503
00:26:42,635 --> 00:26:45,017
When sports became
professionalized and organized

504
00:26:45,051 --> 00:26:46,432
in the late 19th century,

505
00:26:46,466 --> 00:26:50,988
it was something that young
girls were just largely denied.

506
00:26:51,023 --> 00:26:52,611
The main reason why
we have any progress

507
00:26:52,645 --> 00:26:54,785
or could even speak about
progress in women's sports

508
00:26:54,820 --> 00:26:56,442
in any serious way,

509
00:26:56,476 --> 00:26:58,686
is because of the federal
legislation of Title IX.

510
00:26:58,720 --> 00:27:00,170
Like it's not
something that happened

511
00:27:00,204 --> 00:27:01,792
organically from below,

512
00:27:01,827 --> 00:27:04,277
it was something that is
part of the women's movement,

513
00:27:04,312 --> 00:27:06,452
that profoundly changed
the percentages of women

514
00:27:06,486 --> 00:27:08,350
who had access to sports.

515
00:27:08,385 --> 00:27:09,282
So what Title IX did,

516
00:27:09,317 --> 00:27:12,527
is it basically rebaked
part of the cake

517
00:27:12,561 --> 00:27:15,979
or baked a new cake
that's now on the table

518
00:27:16,013 --> 00:27:17,325
with the old sexist cake,

519
00:27:17,359 --> 00:27:19,707
but the old sexist
cake still exists

520
00:27:19,741 --> 00:27:22,399
and they're still
handing out pieces.

521
00:27:31,442 --> 00:27:32,789
Okay.

522
00:27:32,823 --> 00:27:34,376
So I'm gonna to just give
you some actions to do.

523
00:27:34,411 --> 00:27:36,482
And just do the first
thing that comes to mind.

524
00:27:36,516 --> 00:27:39,278
Show me what it looks
like to run like a girl.

525
00:27:41,832 --> 00:27:44,283
Oh, my hair, oh my God.

526
00:27:49,081 --> 00:27:51,877
Show me what it
looks like to fight like a girl.

527
00:27:52,740 --> 00:27:53,775
Stop, stop.

528
00:27:55,881 --> 00:27:57,468
Now
throw like a girl.

529
00:28:00,782 --> 00:28:01,610
Aah.

530
00:28:05,649 --> 00:28:08,031
My name is Dakota
and I'm 10 years old.

531
00:28:08,065 --> 00:28:10,861
Show me what it
looks like to run like a girl.

532
00:28:15,486 --> 00:28:16,453
Throw like a girl.

533
00:28:18,420 --> 00:28:19,490
Fight like a girl.

534
00:28:20,768 --> 00:28:24,185
What does it mean to you
when I say run like a girl?

535
00:28:24,219 --> 00:28:26,394
It means run fast as you can.

536
00:28:34,782 --> 00:28:36,300
Over
the last 100 years

537
00:28:36,335 --> 00:28:39,579
we've made remarkable progress
in closing the gender gap.

538
00:28:39,614 --> 00:28:42,134
Women have been able to
gain the right to vote,

539
00:28:42,168 --> 00:28:44,723
women have been able to gain
the right to an education,

540
00:28:44,757 --> 00:28:46,552
women have entered
the workforce.

541
00:28:46,586 --> 00:28:48,554
Still where we stand
today is not enough.

542
00:29:12,543 --> 00:29:15,443
What we're seeing today
is a renewed momentum.

543
00:29:15,477 --> 00:29:18,066
There's such a clear
understanding that
the world's economy

544
00:29:18,101 --> 00:29:19,965
cannot do without
the talents of women,

545
00:29:19,999 --> 00:29:22,795
that the world society
cannot do without the voices

546
00:29:22,830 --> 00:29:24,417
and opinions of women.

547
00:29:24,452 --> 00:29:25,694
There's
plenty of research now

548
00:29:25,729 --> 00:29:29,802
that shows that you cannot
underutilize 50% of your talent.

549
00:29:29,837 --> 00:29:32,115
All
American, Jeneva McCall,

550
00:29:33,668 --> 00:29:34,738
makes that throw.

551
00:29:36,636 --> 00:29:38,155
And McCall will
take the gold medal.

552
00:29:38,190 --> 00:29:40,606
You have a combination
of the efficiency argument,

553
00:29:40,640 --> 00:29:44,472
which is, your economies
will be more efficient.

554
00:29:45,714 --> 00:29:47,026
And then you've got
the equity argument,

555
00:29:47,061 --> 00:29:48,994
which is, "Hey, it's just fair."

556
00:29:49,028 --> 00:29:50,650
Change is a funny thing,

557
00:29:50,685 --> 00:29:53,205
it goes from the unthinkable,

558
00:29:53,239 --> 00:29:56,277
to the impossible,
to the inevitable,

559
00:29:56,311 --> 00:29:58,348
but you just gotta make
your way through that.

560
00:30:18,920 --> 00:30:23,925
It's great to have your
accomplishments recognized.

561
00:30:24,788 --> 00:30:27,756
And to me, it's a proud moment.

562
00:30:27,791 --> 00:30:30,518
And also really, just--

563
00:30:30,552 --> 00:30:32,589
I hope that it's an
example for younger people

564
00:30:32,623 --> 00:30:35,212
coming up as well, that you
can accomplish these things

565
00:30:35,247 --> 00:30:37,628
and you should strive for them.

566
00:30:40,804 --> 00:30:44,497
Being a minority on any team,

567
00:30:44,532 --> 00:30:47,915
whether it be an Olympics
or world championships,

568
00:30:49,054 --> 00:30:53,265
it really can set you apart.

569
00:30:56,716 --> 00:30:59,374
When I was diving, it was,
it's an individual sport

570
00:30:59,409 --> 00:31:01,860
and everybody's kind
of out for themselves.

571
00:31:03,275 --> 00:31:07,900
I definitely had more
supporters from the women's team

572
00:31:07,935 --> 00:31:09,626
than I had the men's team.

573
00:31:09,660 --> 00:31:13,112
And got a lot of snide comments

574
00:31:13,147 --> 00:31:18,048
of when I was at my first
Olympic games and I was 16.

575
00:31:20,775 --> 00:31:24,054
And all my other teammates
were college graduates

576
00:31:24,089 --> 00:31:26,608
and they were older, I
was still in high school.

577
00:31:26,643 --> 00:31:29,370
So I hung out with
the Soviet divers

578
00:31:29,404 --> 00:31:31,579
'cause they were
closer to my age.

579
00:31:31,613 --> 00:31:33,995
And so then I became
the commie fag.

580
00:31:36,791 --> 00:31:39,035
A lot of the people
in USA diving

581
00:31:39,069 --> 00:31:41,106
knew about my sexual identity.

582
00:31:42,624 --> 00:31:43,971
And then it was always an issue,

583
00:31:44,005 --> 00:31:46,456
we're a small team,
so it was like,

584
00:31:46,490 --> 00:31:48,768
"Okay, who's going in
the room with the fag?"

585
00:31:48,803 --> 00:31:52,393
And, I wasn't a part
of those conversations,

586
00:31:52,427 --> 00:31:54,671
but I learned about it later.

587
00:31:58,951 --> 00:31:59,848
The amount of things

588
00:31:59,883 --> 00:32:01,298
that you hear in a locker room

589
00:32:01,333 --> 00:32:03,300
that are extremely
homophobic, they just scar you

590
00:32:03,335 --> 00:32:06,821
and they slowly chip away at
you and chip away at your soul.

591
00:32:06,855 --> 00:32:08,927
The guys will be sitting next
to you in a full on discussion

592
00:32:08,961 --> 00:32:10,652
on like, "How could
someone even be gay?

593
00:32:10,687 --> 00:32:11,964
Like how disgusting is that?

594
00:32:11,999 --> 00:32:14,415
How can someone
love another man?"

595
00:32:14,449 --> 00:32:15,761
So it just makes you believe,

596
00:32:15,795 --> 00:32:18,246
like there's no way that I'd
be accepted in this atmosphere.

597
00:32:18,281 --> 00:32:19,972
So that's why you're so afraid

598
00:32:20,007 --> 00:32:21,318
and you think that
if you do come out,

599
00:32:21,353 --> 00:32:22,768
then you're gonna have
to get away from that.

600
00:32:22,802 --> 00:32:23,838
And that you just--

601
00:32:23,872 --> 00:32:25,460
I mean going back
into locker room,

602
00:32:25,495 --> 00:32:27,014
you think that they'll just
be like walking on eggshells,

603
00:32:27,048 --> 00:32:28,532
everyone would be silent,

604
00:32:28,567 --> 00:32:30,638
that people would be
whispering behind your back.

605
00:32:30,672 --> 00:32:32,260
I mean, those are the fears
that go through your mind

606
00:32:32,295 --> 00:32:33,606
because you hear
that kind of stuff.

607
00:32:33,641 --> 00:32:34,849
And then you do come out

608
00:32:34,883 --> 00:32:36,471
and those are same
guys that support you

609
00:32:36,506 --> 00:32:39,716
and you realize, that they're
not necessarily homophobic,

610
00:32:39,750 --> 00:32:40,993
but it's more of
that pack mentality

611
00:32:41,028 --> 00:32:42,512
where they kind of
feed off each other

612
00:32:42,546 --> 00:32:44,859
and say things that they
think the other wants to hear

613
00:32:44,893 --> 00:32:46,274
and it's a banter
going back and forth.

614
00:32:46,309 --> 00:32:48,000
So, it's really weird,
it was so strange to me

615
00:32:48,035 --> 00:32:50,140
that those people were saying
is that they'll support me

616
00:32:50,175 --> 00:32:51,728
and still a lot of
my best friends.

617
00:32:51,762 --> 00:32:53,040
And they would
send me texts like,

618
00:32:53,074 --> 00:32:54,696
"Oh, you know when I
said certain things,

619
00:32:54,731 --> 00:32:56,043
please forgive me.

620
00:32:56,077 --> 00:32:58,321
I didn't mean to hurt
anyone's feelings."

621
00:32:58,355 --> 00:33:00,185
And just to go back to
those times in my mind,

622
00:33:00,219 --> 00:33:02,670
I'm like, it's crazy that you
would say something like that.

623
00:33:02,704 --> 00:33:05,811
But I understand, it's again,
that athlete stereotype

624
00:33:05,845 --> 00:33:07,813
that guys wanna live up to.

625
00:33:15,027 --> 00:33:17,581
Growing up in Texas as a
gay football player, it was...

626
00:33:17,616 --> 00:33:18,824
It had its challenges.

627
00:33:18,858 --> 00:33:21,206
Because football
Thursday, football Friday,

628
00:33:21,240 --> 00:33:23,656
football Saturday,
church on Sunday,

629
00:33:23,691 --> 00:33:25,417
then after church we'd
watch some more football.

630
00:33:25,451 --> 00:33:29,766
It is, that is our
life during the fall.

631
00:33:29,800 --> 00:33:34,805
And it was rough because if
you did not play football

632
00:33:35,806 --> 00:33:38,568
or any type of sport,
people would bully you

633
00:33:38,602 --> 00:33:39,603
or make fun of you.

634
00:33:39,638 --> 00:33:40,708
"Oh, you're not playing sports,

635
00:33:40,742 --> 00:33:42,710
you must be a
sissy or whatever."

636
00:33:42,744 --> 00:33:44,608
And, I had to--

637
00:33:44,643 --> 00:33:45,885
Knowing that I was different,

638
00:33:45,920 --> 00:33:50,752
I had to try to make
myself in a manly position,

639
00:33:52,099 --> 00:33:55,723
I had to play all sports and
do anything that's possible,

640
00:33:55,757 --> 00:33:57,759
people didn't think
that or assumed

641
00:33:57,794 --> 00:33:59,899
that I was a sissy or a gay.

642
00:34:04,283 --> 00:34:06,561
I don't know many people
if they'd know this

643
00:34:06,596 --> 00:34:10,117
about me or not, but sports
pretty much saved my life.

644
00:34:10,151 --> 00:34:11,739
And the reason why is,

645
00:34:11,773 --> 00:34:16,916
I was being bullied to a level,

646
00:34:18,021 --> 00:34:19,954
maybe it wasn't even
bullying, maybe it was just--

647
00:34:22,267 --> 00:34:23,613
I don't know, it was--

648
00:34:23,647 --> 00:34:24,924
I was not--

649
00:34:24,959 --> 00:34:27,306
I did not grow up in
a safe environment

650
00:34:27,341 --> 00:34:30,999
and I was always been
tortured and tormented

651
00:34:31,034 --> 00:34:33,105
by my older brothers.

652
00:34:33,140 --> 00:34:35,797
And they made my life a
living hell growing up.

653
00:34:35,832 --> 00:34:39,042
And sports, pretty much
and especially football,

654
00:34:39,870 --> 00:34:41,079
saved my life.

655
00:34:41,113 --> 00:34:43,357
And without it, I
wouldn't be here today.

656
00:34:45,876 --> 00:34:50,881
I don't know how much
of it was true homophobia

657
00:34:51,710 --> 00:34:54,264
or how much of it was jealousy.

658
00:34:54,299 --> 00:34:56,853
Because I've been in touch
with a lot of the divers

659
00:34:56,887 --> 00:34:58,130
that I used to dive against

660
00:34:58,165 --> 00:35:01,133
and they have no issue
with my sexual identity,

661
00:35:01,168 --> 00:35:03,929
but it was a way to
beat me off the board.

662
00:35:03,963 --> 00:35:05,862
If they can't beat
you on the board,

663
00:35:05,896 --> 00:35:10,901
then they'll try and take
jabs at you off the board.

664
00:35:12,213 --> 00:35:14,629
I was homophobic myself
and repressed that stuff.

665
00:35:14,664 --> 00:35:18,840
And dated girls, had girlfriends
or joining in the banter.

666
00:35:20,359 --> 00:35:22,879
I think as I got older, I
became more and more silent

667
00:35:22,913 --> 00:35:26,779
because I realized
that this is depressing

668
00:35:26,814 --> 00:35:29,610
and that this isn't for me.

669
00:35:29,644 --> 00:35:31,922
But definitely in
my teenage years,

670
00:35:33,200 --> 00:35:34,856
I was part of all that

671
00:35:34,891 --> 00:35:37,342
and tried to live up
to the stereotype.

672
00:35:37,376 --> 00:35:38,826
And I think a lot of gay men do

673
00:35:38,860 --> 00:35:40,483
and that's where a lot
of the shame comes in

674
00:35:40,517 --> 00:35:42,070
for a lot of gay men that
you hear they deal with.

675
00:35:42,105 --> 00:35:43,865
And I think a lot of
gay men deal with that

676
00:35:43,900 --> 00:35:45,626
for the rest of
their lives actually.

677
00:35:45,660 --> 00:35:48,007
Everything you think
that you are is bad,

678
00:35:48,042 --> 00:35:50,182
you're taught that
that's like evil.

679
00:35:50,217 --> 00:35:52,288
So, then when you're
also part of that banter

680
00:35:52,322 --> 00:35:53,151
and

681
00:35:56,050 --> 00:35:58,363
making jokes about someone
being gay or whatever,

682
00:35:58,397 --> 00:36:00,019
and you're part of
that and you hear that,

683
00:36:00,054 --> 00:36:01,849
it's like, it's the
worst thing in the world.

684
00:36:01,883 --> 00:36:05,508
You can imagine what that
does to your whole body.

685
00:36:05,542 --> 00:36:08,027
So as you get older
and you realize that,

686
00:36:08,062 --> 00:36:09,063
you get, you become more mature

687
00:36:09,097 --> 00:36:12,031
and you realize this
isn't the life for me,

688
00:36:12,066 --> 00:36:14,068
then you have to deal
with all those emotions.

689
00:36:14,102 --> 00:36:17,554
And, you remember all
those experiences.

690
00:36:17,589 --> 00:36:19,694
So again, like when
people say like,

691
00:36:23,042 --> 00:36:24,320
"Why was it so hard
for you to come out?"

692
00:36:24,354 --> 00:36:26,391
and is it--

693
00:36:26,425 --> 00:36:27,668
Why do people have to
even talk about it?

694
00:36:27,702 --> 00:36:28,945
It's like, Oh my gosh, please.

695
00:36:28,979 --> 00:36:30,912
It's the stupidest
question in the world.

696
00:36:30,947 --> 00:36:33,191
We talk about it because
there are no gay athletes.

697
00:36:33,225 --> 00:36:34,778
And there are no gay athletes

698
00:36:34,813 --> 00:36:36,953
because of the amount of
things that are being said

699
00:36:36,987 --> 00:36:38,230
in the locker room

700
00:36:38,265 --> 00:36:41,095
and the atmosphere that athletes
of the world has created.

701
00:36:42,441 --> 00:36:44,581
So it's just really damaging.

702
00:36:49,068 --> 00:36:51,692
I went to college at
University of Missouri,

703
00:36:51,726 --> 00:36:55,558
I played there
from 2009 to 2013.

704
00:36:57,111 --> 00:37:00,252
In 2013, I came
out to my teammates

705
00:37:00,287 --> 00:37:02,875
and we had a successful year.

706
00:37:02,910 --> 00:37:06,154
We had ended up having
a 12 in two record.

707
00:37:06,189 --> 00:37:08,536
Our second year in the SEC,

708
00:37:08,571 --> 00:37:10,918
I was voted a
unanimous All-American

709
00:37:10,952 --> 00:37:15,060
and also SEC defensive
player of the year.

710
00:37:15,094 --> 00:37:16,095
I was--

711
00:37:16,130 --> 00:37:17,373
And during that
time, I was picked

712
00:37:17,407 --> 00:37:19,098
to go in the top three
rounds in the draft.

713
00:37:20,997 --> 00:37:24,311
I came out to the world
in February nine, 2014.

714
00:37:24,345 --> 00:37:26,244
A standout college
football player

715
00:37:26,278 --> 00:37:29,074
may become the first
openly gay player

716
00:37:29,108 --> 00:37:30,593
in the National Football League.

717
00:37:30,627 --> 00:37:32,664
Michael Sam told
interviewer Sunday,

718
00:37:32,698 --> 00:37:34,942
that he is a proud gay man.

719
00:37:34,976 --> 00:37:37,738
Sam is an All-American
defensive lineman

720
00:37:37,772 --> 00:37:39,498
for the University of Missouri

721
00:37:39,533 --> 00:37:43,675
and 2013's SEC defensive
player of the year.

722
00:37:43,709 --> 00:37:47,299
The NFL draft takes place in
may as for Sam's prospects,

723
00:37:47,334 --> 00:37:50,820
every previous SEC
defensive player of the year

724
00:37:50,854 --> 00:37:53,132
has been prominently drafted.

725
00:37:53,167 --> 00:37:55,445
And the day of
my announcement,

726
00:37:55,480 --> 00:37:58,931
I instantly dropped
down in the draft.

727
00:37:58,966 --> 00:38:03,350
I wouldn't know how far I
dropped down until draft day.

728
00:38:03,384 --> 00:38:05,662
On draft day I found out

729
00:38:05,697 --> 00:38:08,286
that I dropped down
to the seventh round,

730
00:38:08,320 --> 00:38:11,116
pick 263, I believe.

731
00:38:11,150 --> 00:38:13,946
St. Louis Rams
select Michael Sam.

732
00:38:13,981 --> 00:38:15,603
No SEC
defensive player

733
00:38:15,638 --> 00:38:17,295
ever went that low but me.

734
00:38:18,572 --> 00:38:20,884
I got drafted to
the St. Louis Rams.

735
00:38:22,714 --> 00:38:23,853
I ended up having--

736
00:38:23,887 --> 00:38:26,511
Leading that team with Sachs,

737
00:38:26,545 --> 00:38:29,548
one of the top guys
and tackles that year.

738
00:38:30,756 --> 00:38:33,518
I was released at
the end of the camp.

739
00:38:33,552 --> 00:38:36,072
Michael Sam's NFL
dream is over for now.

740
00:38:36,106 --> 00:38:38,971
The first openly gay player
drafted by an NFL team

741
00:38:39,006 --> 00:38:41,353
was cut earlier this afternoon.

742
00:38:41,388 --> 00:38:44,183
And I then
went to Dallas Cowboys

743
00:38:44,218 --> 00:38:46,324
and for the remainder
of that year,

744
00:38:46,358 --> 00:38:48,360
I was with the Dallas Cowboys.

745
00:38:48,395 --> 00:38:50,535
But they too
unfortunately released me

746
00:38:50,569 --> 00:38:52,364
at the end of the year.

747
00:38:52,399 --> 00:38:54,124
When you have a
vision and you have it

748
00:38:55,367 --> 00:38:56,989
and you want
something to get done,

749
00:38:57,024 --> 00:38:59,923
you have to realize there
are gonna be some sacrifices.

750
00:39:01,408 --> 00:39:02,685
I was drafted

751
00:39:02,719 --> 00:39:06,102
as the first openly gay
football player in NFL.

752
00:39:06,136 --> 00:39:08,173
Right now, I'm
currently a free agent.

753
00:39:08,207 --> 00:39:11,832
And it shows that
progress takes time.

754
00:39:11,866 --> 00:39:13,178
The fact that he
was drafted so low,

755
00:39:13,212 --> 00:39:14,213
I do think had to do
with him being gay,

756
00:39:14,248 --> 00:39:15,111
I think a lot of
experts say that.

757
00:39:15,145 --> 00:39:16,354
We've had coaches info--

758
00:39:16,388 --> 00:39:17,113
Seventh round.

759
00:39:17,147 --> 00:39:18,356
Yes, seventh round.

760
00:39:18,390 --> 00:39:19,253
- But see I--
- Hold on, hold on.

761
00:39:19,287 --> 00:39:20,565
We've had coaches on the record

762
00:39:20,599 --> 00:39:22,187
and former coaches say,
"I would not draft him,

763
00:39:22,221 --> 00:39:23,222
I would not have him."

764
00:39:23,257 --> 00:39:25,604
Because he would be
a quote, distraction.

765
00:39:29,401 --> 00:39:31,783
Competing at such a high level

766
00:39:31,817 --> 00:39:36,684
and I had a very long
career and I won a lot,

767
00:39:36,719 --> 00:39:40,550
it's human nature to
root for the underdog

768
00:39:40,585 --> 00:39:44,209
and I was not the underdog.

769
00:39:44,243 --> 00:39:49,248
So there was this whole
beat the fag campaign

770
00:39:50,077 --> 00:39:51,078
at one of the competitions.

771
00:39:51,112 --> 00:39:56,083
And that was really a
motivating factor for me

772
00:39:58,085 --> 00:40:01,122
to prove myself that
I deserve to be there,

773
00:40:01,157 --> 00:40:03,435
that I deserved to do well.

774
00:40:03,470 --> 00:40:06,956
And for me doing well
was usually winning.

775
00:40:06,990 --> 00:40:08,820
I remember that one competition,

776
00:40:08,854 --> 00:40:11,236
I looked down into the crowd

777
00:40:11,270 --> 00:40:12,962
and there was this whole--

778
00:40:12,996 --> 00:40:15,585
I knew so many of
the individuals

779
00:40:15,620 --> 00:40:19,071
who were part of that
beat the fag campaign.

780
00:40:19,106 --> 00:40:24,111
And I looked down into the
audience and another diver

781
00:40:25,319 --> 00:40:27,977
who has always been
quietly supportive of me,

782
00:40:28,011 --> 00:40:30,807
she smiled up at me and
she gave me a thumbs up.

783
00:40:30,842 --> 00:40:34,432
And that was just enough to say,

784
00:40:34,466 --> 00:40:37,193
"Oh my God, I've got
somebody in my corner."

785
00:40:37,227 --> 00:40:40,230
And that is something
that is so valuable.

786
00:40:43,026 --> 00:40:45,270
I'm grateful that I've
been able to share

787
00:40:45,304 --> 00:40:48,618
that story with her, how
important that was to me

788
00:40:48,653 --> 00:40:50,931
at that moment in time.

789
00:40:50,965 --> 00:40:54,797
And I ended up winning
that competition.

790
00:41:06,015 --> 00:41:06,947
When I
realized I was gay

791
00:41:06,981 --> 00:41:08,327
and I was playing sports,

792
00:41:08,362 --> 00:41:09,328
I knew I had to either
stop playing the sport

793
00:41:09,363 --> 00:41:11,261
or I need to not be gay.

794
00:41:12,677 --> 00:41:14,402
So I decided to play the sport

795
00:41:14,437 --> 00:41:18,303
and just to completely hide
the other side of me and to--

796
00:41:18,337 --> 00:41:21,030
And even to myself, I
really kept that inside

797
00:41:21,064 --> 00:41:22,480
and didn't talk to
anyone about it.

798
00:41:22,514 --> 00:41:25,966
So, it's a scary place to be
and I think a lot of people

799
00:41:26,000 --> 00:41:28,175
will come to a place in
their life where they decide

800
00:41:28,209 --> 00:41:30,902
one way or the other and
I think that's not right.

801
00:41:34,940 --> 00:41:36,666
When I was 24 years old
and I moved to England,

802
00:41:36,701 --> 00:41:37,840
I was like, "I just--

803
00:41:37,874 --> 00:41:39,807
I can't do this
anymore, I'm depressed."

804
00:41:39,842 --> 00:41:42,189
Even winning championships
or going to Olympics

805
00:41:42,223 --> 00:41:43,224
or playing for
the national team,

806
00:41:43,259 --> 00:41:44,640
things that I all--

807
00:41:44,674 --> 00:41:45,675
And playing in Europe, all
things I dreamed of doing,

808
00:41:45,710 --> 00:41:47,366
I wasn't quite happy.

809
00:41:47,401 --> 00:41:50,715
And I couldn't quite be myself
around my friends, my family.

810
00:41:50,749 --> 00:41:52,993
And so I just couldn't imagine
my life being like this

811
00:41:53,027 --> 00:41:53,994
for the rest of my life.

812
00:41:54,028 --> 00:41:55,374
I mean, it just felt miserable.

813
00:41:55,409 --> 00:41:58,654
So, I got to a point
where I just decided

814
00:41:58,688 --> 00:42:02,450
that I need to come out and
tell my family at least,

815
00:42:02,485 --> 00:42:04,038
my friends.

816
00:42:04,073 --> 00:42:05,764
And if that meant that I
needed to stop playing soccer,

817
00:42:05,799 --> 00:42:07,076
then I need to
stop playing soccer

818
00:42:07,110 --> 00:42:08,767
and discover myself
away from that.

819
00:42:08,802 --> 00:42:09,561
So,

820
00:42:11,045 --> 00:42:12,391
it just showed
how fearful I was.

821
00:42:12,426 --> 00:42:14,359
'Cause I thought really
that my career was over.

822
00:42:25,750 --> 00:42:26,958
And the public
found out about it,

823
00:42:26,992 --> 00:42:29,270
then I realized that
now it is a possibility.

824
00:42:29,305 --> 00:42:32,757
Because I heard then from so
many people around the world,

825
00:42:32,791 --> 00:42:34,310
like, "Please continue to play."

826
00:42:34,344 --> 00:42:36,415
Like, "I love you
as a soccer player

827
00:42:36,450 --> 00:42:39,280
and I'll continue
to support you."

828
00:42:39,315 --> 00:42:41,144
And then it was also my
teammates and coaches

829
00:42:41,179 --> 00:42:42,560
that reached out to
me that supported me.

830
00:42:42,594 --> 00:42:44,113
And it made be like,

831
00:42:44,147 --> 00:42:46,149
"Okay, well, if these
guys are gonna support me

832
00:42:46,184 --> 00:42:48,393
and if they come on and
continue to play with me,

833
00:42:48,427 --> 00:42:51,430
then I can at least
try to do it."

834
00:42:51,465 --> 00:42:52,708
Even though it was scary.

835
00:42:52,742 --> 00:42:53,916
A few months after I came out

836
00:42:53,950 --> 00:42:55,400
I went back to playing
for the Galaxy,

837
00:42:55,434 --> 00:42:56,643
it was really scary for me.

838
00:42:56,677 --> 00:43:00,129
And I felt like I didn't
wanna let myself down,

839
00:43:00,163 --> 00:43:01,164
my family, my team,

840
00:43:01,199 --> 00:43:03,339
but also I felt a little bit of

841
00:43:03,373 --> 00:43:05,065
I didn't want to let
the LGBT community down.

842
00:43:05,099 --> 00:43:06,307
I was a little
nervous about that,

843
00:43:06,342 --> 00:43:08,275
it was because
there was no other,

844
00:43:08,309 --> 00:43:11,623
there were no other gay men in
sports and especially soccer.

845
00:43:11,658 --> 00:43:13,280
So it was like, I don't know,

846
00:43:13,314 --> 00:43:17,664
if I mess up, am I letting
you this community down?

847
00:43:17,698 --> 00:43:19,355
And finally,

848
00:43:19,389 --> 00:43:21,909
I wanna recognize what Robbie
Rogers of the Galaxy has done

849
00:43:21,944 --> 00:43:24,360
for a lot of people
by blazing a trail

850
00:43:24,394 --> 00:43:28,433
as one of professional sports
first openly gay players.

851
00:43:28,467 --> 00:43:29,952
My guess is that as an athlete,

852
00:43:29,986 --> 00:43:32,955
that Robbie wants to
win first and foremost,

853
00:43:32,989 --> 00:43:36,130
that's what
competition's all about.

854
00:43:36,165 --> 00:43:38,512
But Robbie, you've also
inspired a whole lot of folks

855
00:43:38,546 --> 00:43:41,204
here and around the world
and we are very proud of you.

856
00:43:41,239 --> 00:43:42,343
So, where is Robbie?

857
00:43:45,036 --> 00:43:46,865
When I realized
the impact that it had

858
00:43:46,900 --> 00:43:48,556
on so many people
around the world,

859
00:43:48,591 --> 00:43:50,179
that's when I realized that,

860
00:43:50,213 --> 00:43:51,767
oh my, I can go back and
kick a soccer ball around

861
00:43:51,801 --> 00:43:52,664
and help people.

862
00:43:52,699 --> 00:43:53,976
That--

863
00:43:54,010 --> 00:43:56,392
I'll get messages from
people still once a day

864
00:43:56,426 --> 00:43:59,360
or one every other day,
where someone's like,

865
00:43:59,395 --> 00:44:00,776
"You really like saved my life."

866
00:44:00,810 --> 00:44:02,847
Now, never did I ever
think when I came out

867
00:44:02,881 --> 00:44:04,469
that I would be doing that.

868
00:44:04,503 --> 00:44:05,504
Hopefully there's more
gay athletes that come out

869
00:44:05,539 --> 00:44:07,334
and then younger
men and women see

870
00:44:07,368 --> 00:44:09,681
that they can just be themselves

871
00:44:09,716 --> 00:44:11,165
and they can be out
and doing their thing

872
00:44:11,200 --> 00:44:12,339
and still have success.

873
00:44:14,548 --> 00:44:15,963
Here's
Robbie Keane now.

874
00:44:15,998 --> 00:44:16,723
Oh, its lovely.

875
00:44:16,757 --> 00:44:18,034
Robbie Rogers!

876
00:44:18,069 --> 00:44:18,863
Oh, yes!

877
00:44:21,555 --> 00:44:23,488
It's a special night for him,

878
00:44:23,522 --> 00:44:26,353
it's a special night for LA.

879
00:44:26,387 --> 00:44:29,356
And he's waited a long,
long time, Robbie Rogers.

880
00:44:30,771 --> 00:44:34,706
Going back to this trophy,
Cotton Bowl's trophy ceremony

881
00:44:34,741 --> 00:44:37,364
back in February of 2014,

882
00:44:37,398 --> 00:44:39,366
was something really
special to me.

883
00:44:39,400 --> 00:44:44,371
Seeing over 4,000 students

884
00:44:44,405 --> 00:44:47,892
and faculty and just
people in the community

885
00:44:49,410 --> 00:44:53,242
blockade these certain people
who are just full of hate.

886
00:44:53,276 --> 00:44:55,278
Westboro
Baptist Church members

887
00:44:55,313 --> 00:44:58,040
are known for their protests
at funerals of fallen soldiers

888
00:44:58,074 --> 00:45:00,870
because they believe God is
punishing the United States

889
00:45:00,905 --> 00:45:04,287
for tolerating homosexuality.

890
00:45:04,322 --> 00:45:07,359
This time the group targeted
openly gay football player,

891
00:45:07,394 --> 00:45:08,740
Michael Sam.

892
00:45:08,775 --> 00:45:10,880
Mizzou sophomores, Kelaney
Lakers and Alix Carruth,

893
00:45:10,915 --> 00:45:13,780
used Facebook to organize
a counter protest.

894
00:45:13,814 --> 00:45:17,611
Hundreds showed up and
created a silent human wall

895
00:45:17,645 --> 00:45:21,304
in solidarity to Sam
and their Mizzou family.

896
00:45:21,339 --> 00:45:25,032
And just seeing that and
showing that so much love for me

897
00:45:25,067 --> 00:45:28,311
and for my community,
it was heartwarming.

898
00:45:29,519 --> 00:45:33,731
And I know no one saw this,
but I was in the booth

899
00:45:33,765 --> 00:45:37,044
and I was just by
myself and I was just--

900
00:45:37,079 --> 00:45:39,495
I knew there was something
special about this school.

901
00:45:39,529 --> 00:45:40,807
And it was--

902
00:45:40,841 --> 00:45:43,257
And I had a little moment
to myself and I had--

903
00:45:43,292 --> 00:45:45,466
I cried a little
bit, but I was just--

904
00:45:45,501 --> 00:45:48,504
I felt loved, I felt loved.

905
00:46:07,799 --> 00:46:09,974
The reason why athletes
have had a hard time

906
00:46:10,008 --> 00:46:12,321
standing up for their beliefs
in professional sports

907
00:46:12,355 --> 00:46:13,253
is twofold.

908
00:46:13,287 --> 00:46:14,530
A, they won't become accepted

909
00:46:14,564 --> 00:46:16,359
and they'll be shunned
by either their peers

910
00:46:16,394 --> 00:46:18,983
and/or their
coaches or whatever.

911
00:46:20,674 --> 00:46:23,539
And then in sponsorship,
corporate America, right?

912
00:46:23,573 --> 00:46:27,439
A lot of times, unfortunately,
an athlete's well-being

913
00:46:27,474 --> 00:46:30,546
is being taken care of by those
types of corporate sponsors.

914
00:46:30,580 --> 00:46:33,342
And sometimes in those
corporate environments

915
00:46:33,376 --> 00:46:36,655
they're specific, very
conservative viewpoints

916
00:46:36,690 --> 00:46:39,003
on how they should
or they should not be

917
00:46:39,037 --> 00:46:41,039
expressing themselves
or conducting themselves

918
00:46:41,074 --> 00:46:42,316
in the professional spotlight.

919
00:46:42,351 --> 00:46:44,180
So, there is a
little bit of game

920
00:46:44,215 --> 00:46:45,664
I think the athlete has to play.

921
00:47:01,715 --> 00:47:03,406
The sports world,
particularly athletes,

922
00:47:03,441 --> 00:47:05,650
are heavily policed
and heavily censored

923
00:47:05,684 --> 00:47:07,514
by the people who run sports.

924
00:47:07,548 --> 00:47:11,345
Because most of them are
actually very right wing.

925
00:47:11,380 --> 00:47:13,727
Most of them are billionaires

926
00:47:13,761 --> 00:47:15,246
who are connected to hedge funds

927
00:47:15,280 --> 00:47:17,662
that are incredibly
hostile unions,

928
00:47:17,696 --> 00:47:21,321
incredibly hostile to any sort
of worker self-organization.

929
00:47:21,355 --> 00:47:25,256
And they do not like the idea
of their workers speaking out

930
00:47:25,290 --> 00:47:28,673
whether it's in an electric
factory in upstate New York,

931
00:47:28,707 --> 00:47:31,365
or whether it's in a sweat
shop in Southeast Asia

932
00:47:31,400 --> 00:47:33,609
or whether it's the athletes
on their basketball team.

933
00:47:33,643 --> 00:47:35,542
And when you couple
that with the ways

934
00:47:35,576 --> 00:47:37,613
in which the media, sports media

935
00:47:37,647 --> 00:47:41,548
traditionally has been
very older, very white,

936
00:47:41,582 --> 00:47:44,033
largely somewhat conservative,

937
00:47:44,068 --> 00:47:47,071
it creates a kind of
three-headed monster of people

938
00:47:47,105 --> 00:47:50,108
telling the young,
disproportionately poor

939
00:47:50,143 --> 00:47:51,351
at least from birth

940
00:47:51,385 --> 00:47:53,560
or disproportionately
people of color,

941
00:47:53,594 --> 00:47:55,873
athletes that they need
to just shut up and play

942
00:47:55,907 --> 00:47:58,703
and be grateful for the
opportunities that they have.

943
00:47:58,737 --> 00:48:02,224
It just shows to this day
like how difficult it is,

944
00:48:02,258 --> 00:48:05,434
especially when anything you do

945
00:48:05,468 --> 00:48:08,264
could get you labeled
a distraction.

946
00:48:08,299 --> 00:48:10,232
And if you're labeled
a distraction,

947
00:48:10,266 --> 00:48:13,373
then your earning potential
and your time in the pros

948
00:48:13,407 --> 00:48:15,789
becomes limited dramatically.

949
00:48:15,823 --> 00:48:17,825
Unfortunately,
one of the things

950
00:48:17,860 --> 00:48:19,966
that comes along with a
very corporate environment

951
00:48:20,000 --> 00:48:21,312
aside from big profits,

952
00:48:21,346 --> 00:48:23,279
is that they want it
to be very neutral,

953
00:48:23,314 --> 00:48:24,625
they don't want
to offend anyone.

954
00:48:24,660 --> 00:48:27,042
You don't wanna drive
away any consumers

955
00:48:27,076 --> 00:48:29,216
who might purchase your product.

956
00:48:29,251 --> 00:48:30,769
And so in the case of sports,

957
00:48:30,804 --> 00:48:32,840
it's unfortunate because
a lot of these teams,

958
00:48:32,875 --> 00:48:35,843
a lot of these
entities have this view

959
00:48:35,878 --> 00:48:39,261
that a gay player is going
to bring negative attention

960
00:48:39,295 --> 00:48:40,987
and it will drive people away.

961
00:48:41,021 --> 00:48:42,643
But that's not the case.

962
00:48:42,678 --> 00:48:44,162
People watch your sport

963
00:48:44,197 --> 00:48:46,682
because they wanna watch
someone do something very well.

964
00:48:46,716 --> 00:48:48,787
And yeah, you might
lose some people

965
00:48:48,822 --> 00:48:52,170
who don't agree with
LBGTQ individuals,

966
00:48:52,205 --> 00:48:54,241
who have whatever
their objections are,

967
00:48:54,276 --> 00:48:57,486
but at the same time that
will be offset by other people

968
00:48:57,520 --> 00:49:00,523
who say, "Hey, that's
fantastic, you let anyone play."

969
00:49:00,558 --> 00:49:03,630
It truly is about being
good at the sport.

970
00:49:03,664 --> 00:49:05,114
It is a meritocracy.

971
00:49:05,149 --> 00:49:08,807
And so, if any
corporations are listening,

972
00:49:08,842 --> 00:49:10,016
I would encourage you.

973
00:49:10,050 --> 00:49:11,707
Because--

974
00:49:11,741 --> 00:49:14,020
And this is actually true,
they found on Wall Street

975
00:49:14,054 --> 00:49:15,435
and in the banking industry

976
00:49:15,469 --> 00:49:18,196
that there's this huge
push for diversity,

977
00:49:18,231 --> 00:49:20,095
because it makes their
businesses better.

978
00:49:20,129 --> 00:49:21,786
They can appeal
to more customers,

979
00:49:21,820 --> 00:49:23,857
they can make more profits,

980
00:49:23,891 --> 00:49:25,617
they can provide
a better service

981
00:49:25,652 --> 00:49:27,619
because they have these
different viewpoints.

982
00:49:27,654 --> 00:49:30,726
And so the fact, you know that
from a business standpoint,

983
00:49:30,760 --> 00:49:33,280
the facts are diversity is
better for your business.

984
00:49:33,315 --> 00:49:36,559
And so, I would hope
that sports teams

985
00:49:36,594 --> 00:49:38,906
would take a look at
that and follow that lead

986
00:49:38,941 --> 00:49:40,460
and say, "You know,

987
00:49:40,494 --> 00:49:43,049
if we want to have better
athletes out there,

988
00:49:43,083 --> 00:49:44,671
if we want to have
a better product,

989
00:49:44,705 --> 00:49:46,500
then we need to encourage every
athlete to be who they are,

990
00:49:46,535 --> 00:49:47,881
no matter what that is."

991
00:49:53,714 --> 00:49:54,750
♪ Yo, yo, yo

992
00:49:54,784 --> 00:49:57,166
When people say sports
and politics don't mix,

993
00:49:57,201 --> 00:49:58,857
what they're usually saying,

994
00:49:58,892 --> 00:50:02,861
is that sports and a certain
kind of politics don't mix.

995
00:50:02,896 --> 00:50:04,380
Because they usually
have no problem

996
00:50:04,415 --> 00:50:07,383
with things like
hypernationalism, sexism,

997
00:50:07,418 --> 00:50:11,732
a football team in a certain
city named after a racial slur,

998
00:50:11,767 --> 00:50:13,251
they're fine with
all of that stuff.

999
00:50:13,286 --> 00:50:14,839
What they're not fine with

1000
00:50:14,873 --> 00:50:17,876
is athletes using their
hyper-exalted platform

1001
00:50:17,911 --> 00:50:19,671
to actually speak
about the world,

1002
00:50:19,706 --> 00:50:21,052
that's when you
usually hear people

1003
00:50:21,087 --> 00:50:25,194
come down with the, "Keep your
politics out of my sports."

1004
00:50:25,229 --> 00:50:27,231
Sports and politics
have always mixed.

1005
00:50:29,543 --> 00:50:32,512
The desegregation of
major league baseball

1006
00:50:32,546 --> 00:50:34,686
when Jackie Robinson became
the first black player

1007
00:50:34,721 --> 00:50:38,069
in major league
baseball was politics.

1008
00:50:38,104 --> 00:50:39,760
Even before that,
the Negro leagues

1009
00:50:39,795 --> 00:50:42,867
and segregating black
athletes was politics.

1010
00:50:42,901 --> 00:50:46,043
Not allowing black players to
play in the NBA was politics.

1011
00:50:46,077 --> 00:50:47,734
Not letting black players
play In the NFL was politics.

1012
00:50:47,768 --> 00:50:51,393
Jesse Owens and Hitler
refusing to shake his hand

1013
00:50:51,427 --> 00:50:52,739
was politics.

1014
00:50:52,773 --> 00:50:54,292
Muhammad Ali throwing
his gold medal

1015
00:50:54,327 --> 00:50:57,468
from 1960 Olympics
in Rome was politics.

1016
00:50:57,502 --> 00:50:58,779
Tommie Smith and John Carlos

1017
00:50:58,814 --> 00:51:00,264
raising their black
fist in the air

1018
00:51:00,298 --> 00:51:02,611
1968 Olympics in Mexico
city was politics.

1019
00:51:02,645 --> 00:51:05,614
I've always felt right that
this the sporting arena

1020
00:51:05,648 --> 00:51:10,170
is such a powerful place
to make a statement

1021
00:51:11,344 --> 00:51:13,898
about politics,
about social justice.

1022
00:51:13,932 --> 00:51:16,901
It's a level playing
field if you will,

1023
00:51:16,935 --> 00:51:19,938
in terms of the fans
who watch these sports.

1024
00:51:19,973 --> 00:51:21,940
The Republicans and the
Democrats, the independents,

1025
00:51:21,975 --> 00:51:24,115
people who hate politics, who
watch basketball and football

1026
00:51:24,150 --> 00:51:25,427
and baseball and tennis

1027
00:51:25,461 --> 00:51:28,740
and everyone comes
together in one space.

1028
00:51:28,775 --> 00:51:29,810
And,

1029
00:51:31,295 --> 00:51:33,262
when Eric Garner was killed

1030
00:51:34,539 --> 00:51:37,439
and there's a non-indictment
that came out,

1031
00:51:37,473 --> 00:51:39,130
we took to the
streets in protests.

1032
00:51:39,165 --> 00:51:40,821
And we were trying to figure out

1033
00:51:40,856 --> 00:51:42,823
what was the best way for
us to get the message out.

1034
00:51:42,858 --> 00:51:47,276
And the royal couple
of the United Kingdom

1035
00:51:47,311 --> 00:51:49,865
was on a trip here
visiting our country.

1036
00:51:49,899 --> 00:51:51,142
And they were going to...

1037
00:51:51,177 --> 00:51:52,868
It was actually a
Nets, Cavaliers game.

1038
00:51:52,902 --> 00:51:54,939
And we had LeBron James,

1039
00:51:54,973 --> 00:51:58,839
perhaps the biggest star on
the planet playing in Brooklyn.

1040
00:52:00,047 --> 00:52:01,842
And we had some connections.

1041
00:52:03,154 --> 00:52:05,846
My dear friend, Dream Hampton
who's a phenomenal writer

1042
00:52:05,881 --> 00:52:09,471
and activist and thought
leader and a friend of Jay Z,

1043
00:52:09,505 --> 00:52:10,886
who has a part--

1044
00:52:10,920 --> 00:52:14,061
At that time part
ownership of the team,

1045
00:52:15,580 --> 00:52:17,962
we reached out to them and
Dream and then to Jay Z,

1046
00:52:17,996 --> 00:52:19,481
and then, "Could we get
t-shirts into the arena

1047
00:52:19,515 --> 00:52:20,827
to get to the Nets?

1048
00:52:20,861 --> 00:52:22,173
And then could we
get one to LeBron

1049
00:52:22,208 --> 00:52:24,002
because Jay and LeBron
are good friends?"

1050
00:52:24,037 --> 00:52:26,626
And all of a sudden we
were printing t-shirts

1051
00:52:26,660 --> 00:52:28,214
at two o'clock in the afternoon.

1052
00:52:28,248 --> 00:52:30,906
And by five o'clock,
three hours later,

1053
00:52:30,940 --> 00:52:33,046
we were getting t-shirts
across the bridge

1054
00:52:33,080 --> 00:52:34,323
as fast as we can.

1055
00:52:34,358 --> 00:52:36,014
And ultimately they
got into the arena

1056
00:52:36,049 --> 00:52:37,499
and to the players'
locker rooms.

1057
00:52:37,533 --> 00:52:38,914
And we had no idea.

1058
00:52:38,948 --> 00:52:40,157
We had no idea
what would happen.

1059
00:52:40,191 --> 00:52:42,642
I happened to be on
TV that night on CNN.

1060
00:52:42,676 --> 00:52:47,094
And I was in the green
room with Russell Simmons

1061
00:52:47,129 --> 00:52:48,579
who I was working
for at the time,

1062
00:52:48,613 --> 00:52:52,824
who was also going on
television and Eric Garner Jr,

1063
00:52:52,859 --> 00:52:54,826
Eric Garner's son was there.

1064
00:52:54,861 --> 00:52:57,208
And we had to drive
the t-shirts off

1065
00:52:57,243 --> 00:52:58,382
and then all of a
sudden on the news,

1066
00:52:58,416 --> 00:53:01,178
there was the pregame
of LeBron James

1067
00:53:01,212 --> 00:53:03,939
wearing the, I can't
breathe t-shirt warming up,

1068
00:53:03,973 --> 00:53:05,354
making news.

1069
00:53:05,389 --> 00:53:07,114
And a remarkable scene
just unfolded moments ago

1070
00:53:07,149 --> 00:53:09,738
here in New York, at
tonight's MBA matchup

1071
00:53:09,772 --> 00:53:12,016
between the Brooklyn Nets
and the Cleveland Cavaliers,

1072
00:53:12,050 --> 00:53:15,399
with the Duke and Duchess
of Cambridge in attendance,

1073
00:53:15,433 --> 00:53:17,746
alongside Beyonce and Jay Z.

1074
00:53:17,780 --> 00:53:19,920
Calves' star, LeBron James
took the court for the warmups

1075
00:53:19,955 --> 00:53:22,923
in this t-shirt bearing the
words, "I can't breathe."

1076
00:53:22,958 --> 00:53:26,272
The ast words uttered by Eric
Garner and repeated 11 times

1077
00:53:26,306 --> 00:53:29,965
as he was subjected to the
police chokehold and restraint

1078
00:53:29,999 --> 00:53:31,518
that caused his death.

1079
00:53:31,553 --> 00:53:33,796
So myself and Eric
Garner Jr got into the car

1080
00:53:33,831 --> 00:53:36,972
and we went over to Barclays
arena where the Nets play

1081
00:53:37,006 --> 00:53:39,906
and stayed outside the
arena and in protest, right?

1082
00:53:39,940 --> 00:53:42,460
Of what was happening
in this city.

1083
00:53:42,495 --> 00:53:45,739
So, in the past few years
whether it was Trayvon Martin,

1084
00:53:45,774 --> 00:53:48,984
whether it was Eric Garner

1085
00:53:50,192 --> 00:53:54,645
or whether it was Tamir
Rice, folks are speaking out.

1086
00:53:55,853 --> 00:53:59,097
When I spoke out
for LBGTQ rights

1087
00:53:59,132 --> 00:54:02,653
and ended up losing
my job for it,

1088
00:54:02,687 --> 00:54:06,001
it wasn't so much
courage really,

1089
00:54:06,035 --> 00:54:08,279
as more recognizing the fact

1090
00:54:08,314 --> 00:54:10,074
that the society I wanna live in

1091
00:54:10,108 --> 00:54:12,249
is one where I'm free
to do what I want

1092
00:54:12,283 --> 00:54:13,457
and be who I wanna be.

1093
00:54:13,491 --> 00:54:16,736
And so in order for that
society to flourish,

1094
00:54:16,770 --> 00:54:18,427
when I'm in a position of power,

1095
00:54:18,462 --> 00:54:20,187
when I'm in a position
to say something,

1096
00:54:20,222 --> 00:54:22,155
then I need to speak up
for those who aren't,

1097
00:54:22,189 --> 00:54:24,675
because I'd want them
to do the same for me,

1098
00:54:24,709 --> 00:54:26,608
if the positions
were ever reversed.

1099
00:54:26,642 --> 00:54:31,302
And so it's almost more of a
kind of a self-serving position

1100
00:54:31,337 --> 00:54:32,614
in that you recognize,

1101
00:54:32,648 --> 00:54:34,443
if you want the freedom
to live your own life,

1102
00:54:34,478 --> 00:54:36,687
you have to make sure everyone
else has that freedom.

1103
00:54:36,721 --> 00:54:39,172
Otherwise, if it gets
taken away from one group,

1104
00:54:39,206 --> 00:54:41,485
it can just as easily be
taken away from another group.

1105
00:54:41,519 --> 00:54:42,934
And so the only way it works

1106
00:54:42,969 --> 00:54:45,420
is if everyone has
that same freedom.

1107
00:54:45,454 --> 00:54:47,525
Discriminating against
people based on skin color

1108
00:54:47,560 --> 00:54:49,044
or based on their gender

1109
00:54:49,078 --> 00:54:50,701
or based on their
sexuality is so silly.

1110
00:54:50,735 --> 00:54:53,773
Because at the end of
the day it boils down to,

1111
00:54:53,807 --> 00:54:55,706
can you help your team win?

1112
00:54:55,740 --> 00:54:57,328
Or can you put forward
the performance

1113
00:54:57,363 --> 00:54:58,295
that allows you to win?

1114
00:54:58,329 --> 00:55:00,331
If you're playing a solo sport.

1115
00:55:00,366 --> 00:55:03,955
And I think that people
need to understand that

1116
00:55:03,990 --> 00:55:06,475
and that really, from
the athlete perspective.

1117
00:55:06,510 --> 00:55:08,615
From those of us that
are playing the game,

1118
00:55:08,650 --> 00:55:11,618
we don't care what
you look like.

1119
00:55:11,653 --> 00:55:15,139
We don't care what
your sexuality is,

1120
00:55:15,173 --> 00:55:18,211
what we care about is can
you score a touchdown for us?

1121
00:55:18,245 --> 00:55:20,144
Can you catch that pass?

1122
00:55:20,178 --> 00:55:21,835
Can you save a goal?

1123
00:55:21,870 --> 00:55:23,216
Can you serve the
ball over the net?

1124
00:55:23,250 --> 00:55:25,391
And that's what matters
out on the sporting field.

1125
00:55:25,425 --> 00:55:27,013
And so, it's a very--

1126
00:55:27,047 --> 00:55:28,014
It's supposed to
be a meritocracy.

1127
00:55:28,048 --> 00:55:29,671
It's supposed to be the
ultimate meritocracy

1128
00:55:29,705 --> 00:55:31,155
that if you're good
enough to play,

1129
00:55:31,189 --> 00:55:32,190
if you're good enough
to reach that level,

1130
00:55:32,225 --> 00:55:33,399
that's the only
thing that matters

1131
00:55:33,433 --> 00:55:35,332
and it's the only thing
that should matter.

1132
00:55:35,366 --> 00:55:37,541
I really hadn't gotten involved

1133
00:55:37,575 --> 00:55:39,163
in a lot of stuff
before in the NFL,

1134
00:55:39,197 --> 00:55:41,165
because I didn't know
that I could get involved.

1135
00:55:41,199 --> 00:55:44,341
It never occurred to me
that this was something

1136
00:55:44,375 --> 00:55:46,343
or that there were issues
that I could speak out on,

1137
00:55:46,377 --> 00:55:47,896
that I could make
my voice heard.

1138
00:55:47,930 --> 00:55:50,070
And really, I didn't think
it was going to become

1139
00:55:50,105 --> 00:55:51,071
such a big deal as it became.

1140
00:55:51,106 --> 00:55:53,557
It was more, "Okay, I'm
going to help defeat

1141
00:55:53,591 --> 00:55:55,386
"this amendment in Minnesota."

1142
00:55:55,421 --> 00:55:57,699
An amendment that would have
banned same-sex marriage

1143
00:55:57,733 --> 00:55:59,390
enshrined it in the United
States constitution.

1144
00:55:59,425 --> 00:56:01,358
'Cause I was like,
"That's not a great idea."

1145
00:56:01,392 --> 00:56:04,222
I think discrimination in the
state constitution is bad.

1146
00:56:04,257 --> 00:56:05,776
And so a group approached me

1147
00:56:05,810 --> 00:56:07,950
and asked me if I was
willing to help defeat it.

1148
00:56:07,985 --> 00:56:08,710
I was like, "Sure."

1149
00:56:08,744 --> 00:56:10,125
That, I would love to.

1150
00:56:10,159 --> 00:56:12,403
This is an unnecessary
and restrictive amendment

1151
00:56:12,438 --> 00:56:14,578
that does not belong in
the state's constitution.

1152
00:56:14,612 --> 00:56:16,925
I'm Chris Kluwe, and I'm
urging you to vote no

1153
00:56:16,959 --> 00:56:18,444
on the voter
restriction amendment.

1154
00:56:18,478 --> 00:56:20,894
Let's punt this thing
back to the legislature.

1155
00:56:23,172 --> 00:56:25,554
As athletes, you were focused
on the game so much sometimes

1156
00:56:25,589 --> 00:56:27,591
that we forget that we
do have that platform,

1157
00:56:27,625 --> 00:56:29,040
that we can make that change.

1158
00:56:29,075 --> 00:56:32,147
And, it also comes
down to as athletes

1159
00:56:32,181 --> 00:56:33,562
are we willing to
make that change?

1160
00:56:33,597 --> 00:56:35,702
Because it's very easy to
just keep your mouth shut

1161
00:56:35,737 --> 00:56:37,083
and play the game and say,

1162
00:56:37,117 --> 00:56:39,154
"I just wanna be known for
what I do on the field."

1163
00:56:39,188 --> 00:56:41,639
And for a lot of guys, there's
nothing wrong with that,

1164
00:56:41,674 --> 00:56:42,951
like that's fine.

1165
00:56:42,985 --> 00:56:43,952
You just wanna be an
athlete, that's fine,

1166
00:56:43,986 --> 00:56:45,263
you just wanna be an athlete,

1167
00:56:45,298 --> 00:56:46,575
that's cool, that's
your life to live.

1168
00:56:46,610 --> 00:56:49,716
But, if you want to do
something more then you can.

1169
00:56:49,751 --> 00:56:51,546
And yeah, it might
come with some risks.

1170
00:56:51,580 --> 00:56:53,237
You might face some things

1171
00:56:53,271 --> 00:56:54,825
that you otherwise
wouldn't have faced,

1172
00:56:54,859 --> 00:56:57,172
but at the same time,
if at the end of the day

1173
00:56:57,206 --> 00:57:00,071
you've done something to
help out other people,

1174
00:57:00,106 --> 00:57:02,177
then I consider that a win.

1175
00:57:02,211 --> 00:57:04,317
Because there are many
things more important

1176
00:57:04,351 --> 00:57:06,284
than playing a children's
game for money.

1177
00:57:06,319 --> 00:57:07,424
And

1178
00:57:07,458 --> 00:57:09,805
the stable functioning
of society,

1179
00:57:09,840 --> 00:57:12,843
it ranks kind of above
that in my opinion.

1180
00:57:12,877 --> 00:57:14,189
My name
is Hudson Taylor,

1181
00:57:14,223 --> 00:57:17,468
I'm the founder and executive
director of Athlete Ally.

1182
00:57:17,503 --> 00:57:20,091
And we work to end homophobia
and transphobia in sports

1183
00:57:20,126 --> 00:57:23,440
and to educate and activate
athletic communities

1184
00:57:23,474 --> 00:57:25,476
to really exercise
their leadership

1185
00:57:25,511 --> 00:57:27,236
to champion LGBT equality.

1186
00:57:28,514 --> 00:57:30,826
So I was a three time
All-American wrestler

1187
00:57:30,861 --> 00:57:33,380
at the University of
Maryland and a theater major.

1188
00:57:33,415 --> 00:57:36,176
So I was sort of this
unique breed of athlete

1189
00:57:36,211 --> 00:57:38,282
who was in a locker
room every day,

1190
00:57:38,316 --> 00:57:41,319
hearing my teammates say
homophobic and sexist things.

1191
00:57:41,354 --> 00:57:44,357
And in the theater department
where I had LGBT friends

1192
00:57:44,391 --> 00:57:46,497
who were being
valued and respected

1193
00:57:46,532 --> 00:57:48,465
and appreciated
for who they were.

1194
00:57:48,499 --> 00:57:50,605
And I think that
context made me realize

1195
00:57:50,639 --> 00:57:52,469
that that was not what
I wanted with my sport,

1196
00:57:52,503 --> 00:57:55,989
of my team or the legacy that
I wanted to leave behind.

1197
00:57:56,024 --> 00:57:57,370
So in my senior year in college,

1198
00:57:57,404 --> 00:57:59,959
I was ranked number one in the
country in my weight class,

1199
00:57:59,993 --> 00:58:01,823
training to win
that national title.

1200
00:58:01,857 --> 00:58:04,308
And I realized that my
sort of cultural capital,

1201
00:58:04,342 --> 00:58:07,242
my voice as an athlete is
tied to my time as an athlete.

1202
00:58:07,276 --> 00:58:10,003
And so I wanted to use that
opportunity to speak out.

1203
00:58:10,038 --> 00:58:11,488
And so I started
my senior season

1204
00:58:11,522 --> 00:58:14,525
wearing that LGBT equality
sticker on my head gear

1205
00:58:14,560 --> 00:58:17,355
to use my platform,
to use my privilege,

1206
00:58:17,390 --> 00:58:19,392
to hopefully make a
positive difference.

1207
00:58:29,575 --> 00:58:34,234
They want freedom,
they wanna be free.

1208
00:58:34,269 --> 00:58:35,650
Whether you're black,

1209
00:58:35,684 --> 00:58:38,342
whether you're part of
the LGBTQ community,

1210
00:58:38,376 --> 00:58:40,102
whether you're a young woman,

1211
00:58:40,137 --> 00:58:41,345
whether you're a young immigrant

1212
00:58:41,379 --> 00:58:42,346
or the descendants of immigrants

1213
00:58:42,380 --> 00:58:44,348
or the parents of immigrants,

1214
00:58:44,382 --> 00:58:46,592
these young people
they wanna be free.

1215
00:58:46,626 --> 00:58:48,766
And they're willing
to risk their lives,

1216
00:58:48,801 --> 00:58:50,112
they're willing to
risk their bodies,

1217
00:58:50,147 --> 00:58:51,458
they're willing to
risk their reputations,

1218
00:58:51,493 --> 00:58:55,566
risk their careers
to get that freedom.

1219
00:58:55,601 --> 00:58:57,395
And it's hard for us white
people to understand that

1220
00:58:57,430 --> 00:58:59,536
because we're already free.

1221
00:58:59,570 --> 00:59:01,227
And so we don't get it.

1222
00:59:01,261 --> 00:59:02,849
So we don't say, "Why
are they so angry?"

1223
00:59:02,884 --> 00:59:04,851
or "Why they lie in the
middle of the road?"

1224
00:59:04,886 --> 00:59:06,301
Or "Why do they shut
down my highways?

1225
00:59:06,335 --> 00:59:07,889
I can't get home."

1226
00:59:07,923 --> 00:59:10,201
'Cause they don't wanna live
in fear from the police.

1227
00:59:10,236 --> 00:59:12,065
And they didn't want to live
in fear of going to school

1228
00:59:12,100 --> 00:59:15,068
and being bullied because they
think or they're not sure yet

1229
00:59:15,103 --> 00:59:17,312
whether it was the
right time to come out.

1230
00:59:17,346 --> 00:59:18,865
They don't want to live in fear

1231
00:59:18,900 --> 00:59:23,283
that they might have a
undocumented parent at home,

1232
00:59:24,353 --> 00:59:25,285
that parent's gonna be deported

1233
00:59:25,320 --> 00:59:26,977
because of bad immigration law.

1234
00:59:28,185 --> 00:59:29,566
They wanna live in freedom.

1235
00:59:29,600 --> 00:59:32,879
And we don't tell 'em to
shut up, we speak louder.

1236
00:59:32,914 --> 00:59:34,398
We raise our voices even louder.

1237
00:59:34,432 --> 00:59:35,744
If that means we gotta
go to jail for them,

1238
00:59:35,779 --> 00:59:37,401
that means we gotta
go to jail for them,

1239
00:59:37,435 --> 00:59:38,436
If that means we gonna lie
in the middle of the street,

1240
00:59:38,471 --> 00:59:39,955
means we just lie in
middle of the street.

1241
00:59:39,990 --> 00:59:40,887
If that means that you
loose some fans on Twitter,

1242
00:59:40,922 --> 00:59:42,233
we lose some fans on Twitter.

1243
00:59:42,268 --> 00:59:44,822
We know we on the right
side of history, we know it.

1244
00:59:44,857 --> 00:59:45,961
And they know it too.

1245
00:59:47,169 --> 00:59:49,309
They just have some
anger in their heart,

1246
00:59:49,344 --> 00:59:51,933
they have some pain
somewhere in their life

1247
00:59:51,967 --> 00:59:53,348
that prohibits them
from seeing the world

1248
00:59:53,382 --> 00:59:55,074
in a compassionate way.

1249
00:59:55,108 --> 00:59:57,248
So we don't judge
them, we're not.

1250
00:59:57,283 --> 00:59:59,423
We don't wanna
fight against them,

1251
00:59:59,457 --> 01:00:01,459
we're fighting for us.

1252
01:00:04,393 --> 01:00:05,671
I do feel a responsibility

1253
01:00:05,705 --> 01:00:10,365
to promote a message of
inclusiveness and equality,

1254
01:00:10,399 --> 01:00:12,747
especially because
of my background.

1255
01:00:12,781 --> 01:00:14,611
My family brought me to
the US when I was four,

1256
01:00:14,645 --> 01:00:17,199
it was a huge sacrifice
for my parents

1257
01:00:17,234 --> 01:00:19,339
to leave Mexico
and come to the US

1258
01:00:19,374 --> 01:00:22,101
in search for a better
opportunity for themselves

1259
01:00:22,135 --> 01:00:23,378
and also for us.

1260
01:00:23,412 --> 01:00:27,865
Sports for me was in a sense,
it was a way out for me.

1261
01:00:27,900 --> 01:00:29,453
As a child, you don't
know any better.

1262
01:00:29,487 --> 01:00:32,870
You think, you
live in the moment

1263
01:00:32,905 --> 01:00:35,286
and you make do
with what you have.

1264
01:00:35,321 --> 01:00:38,324
And sometimes as a child,
you don't really think

1265
01:00:39,532 --> 01:00:40,878
that you have it bad.

1266
01:00:40,913 --> 01:00:42,190
You--

1267
01:00:42,224 --> 01:00:43,536
I mean, I was always
a very happy child

1268
01:00:43,570 --> 01:00:45,365
and I was--

1269
01:00:47,574 --> 01:00:49,818
I think it wasn't until
later that I realized

1270
01:00:49,853 --> 01:00:51,578
that maybe that I didn't have

1271
01:00:51,613 --> 01:00:53,650
what all the other children had.

1272
01:00:53,684 --> 01:00:56,860
So I became a citizen right
after my 18th birthday.

1273
01:00:56,894 --> 01:00:58,655
So I hope that it is a very--

1274
01:00:58,689 --> 01:01:00,518
That it is a positive message.

1275
01:01:00,553 --> 01:01:04,971
And to kind of show
showing inaction

1276
01:01:05,006 --> 01:01:07,422
that there are many immigrants

1277
01:01:07,456 --> 01:01:09,527
or people from
immigrant backgrounds

1278
01:01:09,562 --> 01:01:13,808
that are here to contribute,
that they're not here to take,

1279
01:01:13,842 --> 01:01:16,914
that they're here
to give, to help

1280
01:01:16,949 --> 01:01:19,572
and they're here to work.

1281
01:01:19,606 --> 01:01:21,919
Fear is usually just--

1282
01:01:21,954 --> 01:01:26,441
You fear usually the unknown
or what's not common.

1283
01:01:26,475 --> 01:01:28,754
But we are all equal.

1284
01:01:28,788 --> 01:01:32,516
And the only thing
that does separate us

1285
01:01:32,550 --> 01:01:34,829
on that particular
day on race day,

1286
01:01:34,863 --> 01:01:38,522
is making sure and have
you done everything

1287
01:01:38,556 --> 01:01:42,112
that you were supposed to
do leading up to the race.

1288
01:01:42,146 --> 01:01:43,458
And that's it.

1289
01:01:58,507 --> 01:02:00,958
The one thing that I'm
really impressed with

1290
01:02:00,993 --> 01:02:03,374
is the Canadian Olympic team.

1291
01:02:03,409 --> 01:02:06,308
They started this
whole one team program

1292
01:02:06,343 --> 01:02:08,794
and that we're all one team.

1293
01:02:08,828 --> 01:02:13,246
It doesn't matter race,
religion, sexual orientation,

1294
01:02:13,281 --> 01:02:14,731
any of that.

1295
01:02:14,765 --> 01:02:19,736
And we also have it in the
IOC Charter in charter six

1296
01:02:21,289 --> 01:02:26,294
that Olympism does
not discriminate.

1297
01:02:27,467 --> 01:02:31,989
And it does state about
religion, race, sexual identity.

1298
01:02:33,128 --> 01:02:34,474
So I think that we've
come a long way,

1299
01:02:34,509 --> 01:02:37,892
I think that the athletes
have come a lot further

1300
01:02:37,926 --> 01:02:39,514
than the powers that be.

1301
01:02:39,548 --> 01:02:44,553
But I feel that they're
beginning to catch up

1302
01:02:45,554 --> 01:02:49,627
and be much more open
and much more accepting.

1303
01:02:50,628 --> 01:02:54,322
So I think we're in a
really positive path.

1304
01:02:55,495 --> 01:02:58,153
As athletes, from
everywhere in the world,

1305
01:02:58,188 --> 01:03:00,500
you wanna go at the
Olympics and perform.

1306
01:03:00,535 --> 01:03:03,849
For us, the COC, the
Canadian Olympic Committee,

1307
01:03:03,883 --> 01:03:08,854
was able to take all
those little things around

1308
01:03:10,062 --> 01:03:13,168
that are not performance
stuff away from us,

1309
01:03:13,203 --> 01:03:17,552
so we can think only about
going in the Olympics, skate

1310
01:03:19,209 --> 01:03:21,970
and get focused to win medals.

1311
01:03:22,005 --> 01:03:24,524
Anyone can come, can
go to the Olympics

1312
01:03:24,559 --> 01:03:26,457
and they will not have--

1313
01:03:26,492 --> 01:03:28,701
They will not be discriminated.

1314
01:03:29,667 --> 01:03:32,187
So I think it's
a good thing to--

1315
01:03:32,222 --> 01:03:37,227
When the Olympics is there,
you put all those things away

1316
01:03:38,400 --> 01:03:42,163
and let the athletes
play and do their best.

1317
01:03:42,197 --> 01:03:45,028
This specific culture is
evolving in the United States,

1318
01:03:45,062 --> 01:03:47,651
I'm not always accepted internationally.

1319
01:03:47,685 --> 01:03:49,342
It's definitely a
sensitive topic.

1320
01:03:49,377 --> 01:03:52,863
I'd love for there to be one
kind of global acceptance.

1321
01:03:52,898 --> 01:03:55,590
Unfortunately, that's just
not how the world works.

1322
01:03:55,624 --> 01:03:57,316
And I think we're moving in
the right direction though.

1323
01:03:57,350 --> 01:04:00,871
And I think we've seen,
especially lately,

1324
01:04:00,906 --> 01:04:04,564
larger countries who've
had previous political

1325
01:04:04,599 --> 01:04:06,843
and specific cultural beliefs,

1326
01:04:06,877 --> 01:04:09,397
are starting to really
make the progressive change

1327
01:04:09,431 --> 01:04:11,088
towards something
that is positive

1328
01:04:11,123 --> 01:04:12,676
and more liberal
and more accepting,

1329
01:04:12,710 --> 01:04:14,851
which I think is a
good thing overall.

1330
01:04:18,785 --> 01:04:22,272
We're given these moments
and these challenges

1331
01:04:22,306 --> 01:04:26,276
as really kind of a
test to our character.

1332
01:04:26,310 --> 01:04:30,245
And I think that if you can
go out and draw strength

1333
01:04:30,280 --> 01:04:32,213
and be able to overcome
those obstacles,

1334
01:04:32,247 --> 01:04:35,388
then you're gonna be stronger
as a person inside and out.

1335
01:04:35,423 --> 01:04:37,045
You don't necessarily
really know somebody

1336
01:04:37,080 --> 01:04:39,565
until you've walked
in their shoes.

1337
01:04:39,599 --> 01:04:43,465
And once you have, I think
you as a person or whoever

1338
01:04:43,500 --> 01:04:46,813
would probably understand
why they're there.

1339
01:04:46,848 --> 01:04:49,920
Many people don't choose to
be in a certain position,

1340
01:04:49,955 --> 01:04:51,784
sometimes things happen.

1341
01:04:51,818 --> 01:04:55,063
Whether we like them or not
certain situations just happen.

1342
01:04:55,098 --> 01:04:56,306
For the most part,

1343
01:04:56,340 --> 01:05:00,310
I think that the Latino
community in the US,

1344
01:05:00,344 --> 01:05:02,277
there has been a
lot of progress done

1345
01:05:02,312 --> 01:05:05,591
and they're still working
on doing more things.

1346
01:05:05,625 --> 01:05:08,663
And I think that the goal here

1347
01:05:08,697 --> 01:05:13,461
is to become better,
not only great people,

1348
01:05:13,495 --> 01:05:17,568
but great community leaders

1349
01:05:17,603 --> 01:05:20,571
or great teachers,
whatever it may be.

1350
01:05:20,606 --> 01:05:21,814
And I think that
that's the goal,

1351
01:05:21,848 --> 01:05:23,471
that's the goal for all of us

1352
01:05:23,505 --> 01:05:26,267
to continue bettering
ourselves in every way.

1353
01:05:27,682 --> 01:05:28,752
When I think about

1354
01:05:28,786 --> 01:05:30,271
the most memorable
sporting moments,

1355
01:05:30,305 --> 01:05:32,652
they are not world series
or Super Bowl games,

1356
01:05:32,687 --> 01:05:35,276
they're the moments
where social justice

1357
01:05:35,310 --> 01:05:37,140
intersected with sports.

1358
01:05:37,174 --> 01:05:41,938
There are those moments when
athletes went above and beyond

1359
01:05:41,972 --> 01:05:43,836
all the obstacles
standing in their way

1360
01:05:43,870 --> 01:05:45,527
and broke down barriers,

1361
01:05:45,562 --> 01:05:49,186
that's when we moved
societies forward.

1362
01:05:49,221 --> 01:05:54,226
There is tremendous,
tremendous, progress made

1363
01:05:54,916 --> 01:05:56,504
because of the Olympics

1364
01:05:56,538 --> 01:05:58,989
in terms of relationships
around the world and sport.

1365
01:05:59,024 --> 01:06:02,372
Ping-pong diplomacy, Richard
Nixon going to China.

1366
01:06:02,406 --> 01:06:03,649
And my first movie I ever made

1367
01:06:03,683 --> 01:06:05,340
was on Cuban baseball in 1999.

1368
01:06:05,375 --> 01:06:07,273
And seeing the president
just there last month,

1369
01:06:07,308 --> 01:06:10,552
attending a baseball
game with Tampa Bay Rays,

1370
01:06:10,587 --> 01:06:13,659
coming together with him
sitting next to Raul Castro

1371
01:06:13,693 --> 01:06:15,730
at the front seats
of the front row

1372
01:06:15,764 --> 01:06:19,044
of the Havana baseball
stadium, Estadio de Havana.

1373
01:06:20,666 --> 01:06:23,151
When you see athletes
can't compete

1374
01:06:23,186 --> 01:06:25,222
because of their religion,
whether it's Judaism,

1375
01:06:25,257 --> 01:06:27,638
the antisemitism
that was rampant

1376
01:06:27,673 --> 01:06:29,468
in the twenties and
thirties and forties

1377
01:06:29,502 --> 01:06:31,056
and certainly the Holocaust,

1378
01:06:31,090 --> 01:06:32,643
which was a result
of that hatred,

1379
01:06:32,678 --> 01:06:34,162
And they continue antisemitism
around the world today.

1380
01:06:34,197 --> 01:06:35,888
But you see it around the world

1381
01:06:35,922 --> 01:06:37,510
where there's Muslim countries

1382
01:06:37,545 --> 01:06:38,822
not allowing their athletes
to play in Olympic games.

1383
01:06:38,856 --> 01:06:42,377
Or whether it's corrupt
Olympic committees,

1384
01:06:42,412 --> 01:06:44,655
not allowing the
best to compete.

1385
01:06:44,690 --> 01:06:46,899
And so some never
get that potential

1386
01:06:46,933 --> 01:06:50,903
to be at the best sporting
event in the world.

1387
01:06:53,561 --> 01:06:54,527
It's sad.

1388
01:06:54,562 --> 01:06:56,046
It's sad and it's a disservice

1389
01:06:56,081 --> 01:06:59,567
to the journey we all
are on as human beings.

1390
01:07:00,775 --> 01:07:05,400
But when you do see
a Iranian soccer team

1391
01:07:06,091 --> 01:07:07,609
playing a US soccer team

1392
01:07:07,644 --> 01:07:08,886
and they can shake
hands at the end,

1393
01:07:08,921 --> 01:07:10,060
you know we're not enemies,

1394
01:07:11,786 --> 01:07:14,340
you know we just
have politicians who
wanna position us.

1395
01:07:14,375 --> 01:07:17,757
Or you see, as I saw
when I was in Cuba,

1396
01:07:17,792 --> 01:07:19,725
Cuban baseball players
and at that time,

1397
01:07:19,759 --> 01:07:22,348
the Baltimore Orioles,
American baseball players

1398
01:07:22,383 --> 01:07:24,799
playing catch on the field
together, laughing and joking

1399
01:07:24,833 --> 01:07:28,458
and slap each other high
five, we're not enemies.

1400
01:07:28,492 --> 01:07:30,977
And so sports has been an
incredible place for us

1401
01:07:31,012 --> 01:07:32,048
to realize that.

1402
01:07:33,118 --> 01:07:36,742
I hope these barriers of entry

1403
01:07:36,776 --> 01:07:39,986
on race or class or creed
or color or religion

1404
01:07:40,987 --> 01:07:43,369
are consistently knocked down

1405
01:07:43,404 --> 01:07:45,889
and continuously knocked down

1406
01:07:45,923 --> 01:07:48,616
no matter who you
are in this world

1407
01:07:48,650 --> 01:07:49,962
and everywhere you
live in this world.

1408
01:07:49,996 --> 01:07:54,449
Because there's great joy and
excitement for me at least

1409
01:07:55,278 --> 01:07:58,212
when I see our country compete

1410
01:07:58,246 --> 01:08:00,766
against someone who
we're told we don't like.

1411
01:08:00,800 --> 01:08:04,218
Or when you see young
Iraqis or young Afghanis

1412
01:08:04,252 --> 01:08:05,909
begin to compete in the Olympics

1413
01:08:05,943 --> 01:08:08,498
and begin to see a country
that they can be proud of

1414
01:08:08,532 --> 01:08:11,259
and wave the flag of which
maybe before they couldn't.

1415
01:08:13,330 --> 01:08:16,126
it's a beautiful,
beautiful thing.

1416
01:08:17,265 --> 01:08:18,956
Most athletes
would tell you,

1417
01:08:18,991 --> 01:08:20,786
it doesn't matter
where you come from,

1418
01:08:20,820 --> 01:08:24,134
what color your skin
is, what you believe,

1419
01:08:24,169 --> 01:08:27,137
who your God is,
you become friends.

1420
01:08:27,172 --> 01:08:30,140
And I think it's going through
those sort of experiences

1421
01:08:30,175 --> 01:08:32,177
of being an athlete and knowing

1422
01:08:32,211 --> 01:08:34,144
that he's training just
as hard as you are,

1423
01:08:34,179 --> 01:08:37,320
and you're going through
those same ups and downs,

1424
01:08:37,354 --> 01:08:39,598
it makes them
pretty strong bonds.

1425
01:08:39,632 --> 01:08:40,978
When I was a skater,
there's was this big thing,

1426
01:08:41,013 --> 01:08:43,188
you had the iron curtain,
there's the East Germans

1427
01:08:43,222 --> 01:08:44,879
or the Russians.

1428
01:08:44,913 --> 01:08:47,606
And I'm gonna tell you, some
of the Russians at that time

1429
01:08:47,640 --> 01:08:48,848
were some of my best friends.

1430
01:08:48,883 --> 01:08:50,885
I got some of my best friends
who were East Germans.

1431
01:08:50,919 --> 01:08:53,888
Those are guys that
I'll still talk to

1432
01:08:53,922 --> 01:08:55,683
and I can count on.

1433
01:08:55,717 --> 01:08:57,271
I think that's one of the
cool things about sports,

1434
01:08:57,305 --> 01:08:59,721
it sort of transcends
all that stuff.

1435
01:08:59,756 --> 01:09:02,345
At some point in time in life,

1436
01:09:02,379 --> 01:09:05,313
you gonna be them or not.

1437
01:09:05,348 --> 01:09:06,970
So you--

1438
01:09:07,004 --> 01:09:09,869
The way you treat somebody,
it gon' come back on you.

1439
01:09:09,904 --> 01:09:11,837
So either way it go,

1440
01:09:11,871 --> 01:09:15,392
it's that vicious
circle that go around.

1441
01:09:18,050 --> 01:09:21,053
There's still room to grow
in reaching equality in sports.

1442
01:09:22,019 --> 01:09:23,814
I think it's an
ongoing struggle,

1443
01:09:23,849 --> 01:09:26,334
but I would definitely say
that there's been progress.

1444
01:09:26,369 --> 01:09:27,542
And there's been people

1445
01:09:27,577 --> 01:09:29,889
who have been leading
the way in that.

1446
01:09:29,924 --> 01:09:31,650
And I hope that a lot
of the athletes now

1447
01:09:31,684 --> 01:09:35,516
are just adding to that and
that we can make change.

1448
01:09:35,550 --> 01:09:36,862
We live in a day and age

1449
01:09:36,896 --> 01:09:41,936
where antisemitism is not
as prevalent as it was

1450
01:09:43,938 --> 01:09:48,356
in the early stages of sport,
Jack Brooks, Irving Jaffee.

1451
01:09:49,530 --> 01:09:53,016
Individuals who have
had to truly understand

1452
01:09:53,050 --> 01:09:56,882
what passion for something
they believe in and want,

1453
01:09:56,916 --> 01:09:59,436
overcome and could
overcome anything,

1454
01:09:59,471 --> 01:10:02,128
any challenges from an
outside perspective.

1455
01:10:05,408 --> 01:10:06,754
I think to go forward,

1456
01:10:06,788 --> 01:10:08,963
it's often important
for us to look back

1457
01:10:08,997 --> 01:10:12,242
and understand where
the sport has come from,

1458
01:10:12,277 --> 01:10:13,968
who were some of
the key players,

1459
01:10:14,002 --> 01:10:16,039
who was performing and
what they had to do

1460
01:10:16,073 --> 01:10:17,454
to go through those
elements, right?

1461
01:10:17,489 --> 01:10:20,940
There's been no triumph
without immense struggle.

1462
01:10:20,975 --> 01:10:23,564
There's been no victory
without incredible obstacle.

1463
01:10:23,598 --> 01:10:27,084
And stories like that, I
think resonate within myself,

1464
01:10:27,119 --> 01:10:30,364
but also for our younger
generation, the next millennials

1465
01:10:30,398 --> 01:10:32,435
who are looking to
achieve their own dreams,

1466
01:10:32,469 --> 01:10:33,643
hopes and aspirations.

1467
01:10:34,989 --> 01:10:38,441
Well, I think what happened
to Jack Brooks was a travesty

1468
01:10:39,338 --> 01:10:42,824
to be denied your rightful spot.

1469
01:10:42,859 --> 01:10:43,963
It had to be devastating.

1470
01:10:43,998 --> 01:10:45,413
And there's no--

1471
01:10:45,448 --> 01:10:46,966
I have no way of--

1472
01:10:47,001 --> 01:10:51,108
There's nothing in my life
I couldn't even compare

1473
01:10:51,143 --> 01:10:56,113
to that type of feeling that
he must have experienced.

1474
01:10:57,114 --> 01:10:59,945
That kind of let down,
frustration, anger,

1475
01:10:59,979 --> 01:11:04,121
it's just something that I
hope never happens again.

1476
01:11:04,156 --> 01:11:07,953
And also something
that we have to give

1477
01:11:07,987 --> 01:11:11,991
a certain amount of respect
and acknowledgement,

1478
01:11:12,026 --> 01:11:13,027
that we should give more

1479
01:11:13,061 --> 01:11:15,512
to the guys who had
to experience this

1480
01:11:15,547 --> 01:11:16,996
in order for us to not have to.

1481
01:11:19,965 --> 01:11:20,966
Knowing
what they went through

1482
01:11:21,000 --> 01:11:22,312
is kind of inspiring to me,

1483
01:11:22,347 --> 01:11:26,005
'cause I hope that today
we can make a difference

1484
01:11:26,040 --> 01:11:28,145
in the sport and
hopefully in culture,

1485
01:11:28,180 --> 01:11:30,009
and realizing that if
you have struggles now,

1486
01:11:30,044 --> 01:11:32,805
it could make a difference
for generations to come.

1487
01:11:32,840 --> 01:11:34,186
Everybody should
have equal access

1488
01:11:34,220 --> 01:11:35,808
and opportunity to sports

1489
01:11:35,843 --> 01:11:38,846
and really, anything that
they're interested in life.

1490
01:11:38,880 --> 01:11:42,056
And whenever that
opportunity is being denied,

1491
01:11:42,090 --> 01:11:46,336
whenever an equally positive
experience is being denied,

1492
01:11:46,371 --> 01:11:49,028
that is probably one of the
saddest things in the world.

1493
01:11:49,063 --> 01:11:53,170
Jack Brooks wasn't able
to compete in the Olympics

1494
01:11:53,205 --> 01:11:54,724
because of who he was.

1495
01:11:54,758 --> 01:11:58,037
And I can have a little
parallel with him

1496
01:11:58,072 --> 01:12:01,834
not competing in the
NFL because of who I am.

1497
01:12:01,869 --> 01:12:05,148
And hopefully we can
all be like Jack Brooks

1498
01:12:05,182 --> 01:12:07,323
who just stand up for
what they believe in.

1499
01:12:08,876 --> 01:12:12,155
I really can't imagine what
Jack Brooks went through,

1500
01:12:12,189 --> 01:12:14,399
being denied his
rightful spot to compete.

1501
01:12:14,433 --> 01:12:18,472
I feel so blessed not to have
to face anything like that.

1502
01:12:18,506 --> 01:12:21,233
And really just grateful
for people like him

1503
01:12:21,267 --> 01:12:23,097
who have paved the way,

1504
01:12:23,131 --> 01:12:26,203
so that I can be afforded
the privilege to compete.

1505
01:12:26,238 --> 01:12:28,378
I can't even pretend
to know what that would be like

1506
01:12:28,413 --> 01:12:31,001
to have to go out there
under those conditions.

1507
01:12:31,036 --> 01:12:35,212
If people are against you
simply for being who you are.

1508
01:12:35,247 --> 01:12:37,698
And I'm a little actually
disappointed sometimes

1509
01:12:37,732 --> 01:12:40,908
because I don't think
all our athletes

1510
01:12:40,942 --> 01:12:43,082
know the history of our sport.

1511
01:12:43,117 --> 01:12:44,429
And it's--

1512
01:12:44,463 --> 01:12:46,431
I think it's so important
for any athlete in any sport

1513
01:12:46,465 --> 01:12:49,434
to know the history,
to know who--

1514
01:12:49,468 --> 01:12:53,023
The ones who were,
that came before.

1515
01:12:53,058 --> 01:12:55,405
And why are they there now?

1516
01:12:55,440 --> 01:12:57,959
They're there maybe a little
bit because I was there,

1517
01:12:57,994 --> 01:13:00,237
but I'm there very much so

1518
01:13:00,272 --> 01:13:03,137
because of those
that came before me.

1519
01:13:03,171 --> 01:13:04,794
Sports' come a long way,

1520
01:13:04,828 --> 01:13:08,798
but we have a lot of
people think for it.

1521
01:13:23,433 --> 01:13:25,124
In my great
grandfather's hundred years

1522
01:13:25,159 --> 01:13:28,196
on this earth, our world
changed for the better.

1523
01:13:29,025 --> 01:13:31,303
Our society became more equal,

1524
01:13:31,337 --> 01:13:33,754
our politics more humane,

1525
01:13:33,788 --> 01:13:35,480
our sport more inclusive.

1526
01:13:36,929 --> 01:13:40,277
But for many that
progress has come slowly,

1527
01:13:40,312 --> 01:13:42,314
sometimes not at all.

1528
01:13:43,591 --> 01:13:45,317
Athletes still hide in closets.

1529
01:13:45,351 --> 01:13:48,078
Others hide from
deportation, discrimination

1530
01:13:48,113 --> 01:13:50,460
or marginalization.

1531
01:13:50,495 --> 01:13:53,187
Some who are different,
who love differently

1532
01:13:53,221 --> 01:13:55,016
or worship differently,

1533
01:13:55,051 --> 01:13:57,674
are still sometimes
relegated to the sidelines.

1534
01:13:57,709 --> 01:13:59,883
Still cast off as
second stringers.

1535
01:14:01,126 --> 01:14:03,611
That's the unfinished
work of this generation,

1536
01:14:03,646 --> 01:14:06,303
to build a more just
and more equal world,

1537
01:14:07,822 --> 01:14:12,033
one sport and one
athlete at a time.