Spain’s Olympic men’s basketball team recently posed for a very controversial advertisement. The photo features the entire basketball team pulling at the skin of their eyelids, intentionally mimicking Chinese facial features.

Despite much criticism from the media and from Chinese-rights organizations, pro Spanish basketball player Jose Calderon didn’t see any problem with the photo:

One of our sponsors asked us to make, as a 'wink' to our participation in Beijing, an expression of Eastern eyes. We felt it was something appropriate and that it would always be interpreted as an affectionate gesture. ... Whoever wants to interpret it differently is completely confusing it.

Other team players and supporters have publicly defended the advertisement, claiming that it’s not racist.

But the image has already proven to be a public relations disaster, further rocking Spain's shaky history of racist behavior in sports. [In 2004, FIFA fined the Spanish Football Federation $90,000 after fans shouted racist comments at some Black players on the English team.]

Okay, so they made a mistake—a big mistake. An appropriate course of action would be to make a public apology. But no one on the team has suggested even the slightest bit of remorse. Instead they’ve chosen to pretend that mocking Asian facial features is in some way “honoring” the Chinese.

Why then, are Chinese-rights organizations upset about the photo? Shouldn’t they feel honored, perhaps in the same way that African Americans should have felt “honored” when whites rubbed charcoal on their faces and imitated Black culture in minstrel shows?

African Americans were never consulted about their feelings regarding Black representation in atrociously racist and derogatory minstrel shows. Similarly, I doubt that Spain’s basketball team bothered to ask any Chinese person for her or his thoughts on the photo.

I find it deeply disturbing that no one stood up and said, “Hey guys, I’m not so sure about this.” It makes me very sad to hear that these athletes have refused to take accountability for their actions.

What do you all think?

I didn't catch the opening ceremony for the Beijing Olympics on Friday, but I've sure been reading about a whole lot today. A beautiful little girl, Lin Miaoke, performed "Ode to the Motherland" in a gorgeous, crystal-clear voice as China's flag was proudly displayed in the National Stadium. I could almost put aside the politics and conflicts around the Beijing Olympics for a second and enjoy this little girl singing for her country with such a sweet voice. Too bad that little girl wasn't singing at all!

The girl with the beautiful voice is actually Yang Peiyi, who Chinese officials decided at the last minute was not cute enough to represent China on the world stage. Seriously, China? You don't have enough drama going on right now, what with people protesting internationally against your human rights violations and media censorship? You have to add a little fuel to the fire by telling a 7-year-old girl she's ugly and fat? Maybe you should just steal an old lady's purse or kick a puppy or something. Then maybe your popularity will go up.

This little charade is just representative of the way China operates, trying to disguise reality with a glossy, pretty, dishonest facade. The world is already watching China to see if the Beijing Olympics will motivate any kind of social change-- even the slightest bit of sketchiness makes activists more unwilling to trust the Chinese government.

What do you guys think about this? (And for the record, Yang Peiyi, I think you're beautiful and you sing like an angel.)

 

As the Olympic games quickly approaches there are still some athletes choosing to sit on the sidelines when it comes to speaking out against the Chinese government.

I posted about athletes and activism a little over a week ago.  Some of you commented stating that the decision to boycott the Olympic games is probably most easy for those of us not actually competing.  The decision for activists outside of the Games to support boycotts/protests is perhaps less challenging because we haven’t devoted much of our lives to training for one moment in time to perform at our best.

Joey Cheek, an Olympic athlete, will be going to Beijing – though not to compete, but to represent Team Darfur.  Cheek is co-founder and president of Team Darfur and is representing his organization in Beijing by raising awareness about the atrocities occurring in Darfur, Sudan.

Cheek is one example of an athlete using his status and sources to bring awareness to an international crisis.  However noble of him, most athletes in his situation still choose not to speak out during the Games. 

Like I said before, I can certainly understand why some athletes would rather not speak out.  Yet, I still can’t say for sure that I wouldn’t speak out if were competing in the Olympics this year (heck who am I kidding, I know I would speak out!).

But that’s just me.

Jessica Mendoza will actually be competing this year on the U.S. Olympic baseball team.  She plans on bringing awareness about the issues in Darfur because “As an athlete. I feel like I have some visibility.  I’m a passionate person and when I talk about Darfur, I feel like there’s nothing controversial.  I’m talking about humanity.”

Now I wonder what’s going to happen once the Olympic games are over.  Will the world still be concerned about the crisis in Darfur now that our world athletes have gone home?  And I still have to wonder about the national atrocities we face in the inner cities, where most of our youth in these areas are fighting wars on their own neighborhood streets.  Yesterday, I posted about schools in L.A. and New York experiencing major cutbacks and, as a result, many at risk youth won’t be able to participate in organized sports.

This all brings me to the point of this post.  I think sometimes as activists (whether athletes or not), we need to take a few steps back and reevaluate why we are so passionate about our causes.  Take away the pats on the back, and the corporate kudos, why do we care about victims in Darfur, survivors of hurricane Katrina, and youth in the inner city (just name a few)?  I know that I sometimes have to step back from the idiot box and the Internet make sure my intentions toward giving back to various communities are genuine and not just for “show.”

I’m certainly an advocate for Darfur.  I’m also a hurricane Katrina advocate.  As an activist, I also feel like I’m in “it” for the long haul – not because it’s trendy to be on “Team Darfur,” or because world famous athletes are now supporting the cause during the Olympics.  I just hope those who truly care about these issues will continue to work for social justice because it’s what you/I believe in – not because it’s what’s “in” at the time. 

Seven Iraqi athletes won’t be competing in the Beijing Olympics this summer. The decision has nothing to do with athletic ability or personal qualms; the decision arose from political disputes.

The Iraqi government chose to replace the existing members of its national Olympic Committee with new members and a new chair, chosen exclusively by the Iraqi government. This was a major no-no according to the International Olympic Committee (IOC). In the fuss and fury of the event, Iraq missed its deadline to submit an official team for the Summer Olympics.

Iraq’s government disagreed with the IOC, contesting that the government decision to replace the original committee members was based upon "solid evidence of blatant corruption, lack of legitimate transparent electoral processes and accountability, and absence of ratified legislation.''

Iraq wants to attend the next IOC meeting and present its case. The government hopes that the IOC will lift the ban and allow Iraqi athletes to compete in the summer games.

But the decision is final.

Iraqi athletes and supporters are totally bummed, and the IOC feels badly about the situation, too. After all, when you spend years of your life training for an event, you don’t want political squabbles to ruin your chance at glory.

Iraq has a lot of problems at the moment, which makes their Olympic athletes all the more impressive. It’s not easy to continue training when your nation is plagued by violence and destruction. Rowing and sprinting are healthier than guns and car bombs.

I wish there were more ways to support these athletes who have worked so hard to build something better in their lives, rather than let them fall at the mercy of international disputes and political corruption.

Any ideas?

I can't go very far these days without being reminded of the impending 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics.  More specifically, I can't go very far these days without hearing about the terrible air quality in Beijing or the abysmal history of human rights abuses in The Peoples' Republic Of China.  In a class I was taking last semester, we were discussing these very issues, and the discussion boiled down to one question:

 Is allowing China to host the games just like rewarding its bad policies?  Or is it bringing the issues to an international stage, bringing more attention to the issues and putting some pressure on the governing bodies of China?

I personally think that any additional conversation about those topics is a good thing, and that if China weren't put in the spotlight, a lot of people wouldn't even know about their policies.  However, I also think that all the attention on the Olympic games in general takes away from something much more important-- local communities.

This video is from a city wide basketball league that has games in the West 4th St. Courts in Greenwich Village  every week.  To me, it's so much more exciting to watch local athletes competing against each other than representatives from an entire country.  I can get a lot more excited about a player from my block or my neighborhood, knowing that I'll be seeing them around.  Flying athletes around the world isn't very sustainable either.  Think about all the jet fuel that gets burned moving pro athletes around... we have to breathe that!

So if you want to change the world, start by supporting your local community.  Go to the courts and play ball.