I listened to the unabridged audio of African American Athletes Who Made History by Louis Moore, which is part of The Great Courses series and narrated by Louis Moore during Black History Month this year.
Listening time for African American Athletes Who Made History by Louis Moore is 4 hours, 19 minutes.
I learned so much through listening to African American Athletes Who Made History by Louis Moore! I highly recommend this audio version of The Great Courses as we not only learn about African American athletes from the 1800s through present day, but also about the racism and discrimination these athletes endured as well.
For instance, I learned what a HUGE role African Americans played in the early days of horse racing when it was one of America's most popular sports. For instance, did you know that 13 of the 15 jockeys in the first Kentucky Derby were African Americans? Additionally, African American jockeys won 15 of the first 28 Kentucky Derbies. There's so much to share on the topic of African Americans in early horse racing in America that one could make an entire blog post on this very topic alone... And this was only one of the many fascinating topics discussed in African American Athletes Who Made History by Louis Moore.
I also enjoyed learning about black athletes during the Civil Rights Movement, the revolt of the black athlete, a more in depth look at major athletes like Jesse Owens, Jackie Robinson, and Joe Louis... As well as the topic of black athletes and endorsements, and black athletes as activists in the 21st century.
Below is a summary for African American Athletes Who Made History by Louis Moore from Amazon:
Professor Louis Moore’s audiobook about the history of African Americans in sports in the United States educates listeners about the fascinating social and cultural history of the nation. For example, integration of major league and professional sports broke a major color barrier for one of the first times in the early years of the Civil Rights Movement. African American athletes competed in America long before the 20th century - in fact, they even competed during the years of slavery.Hear how the struggles and triumphs of these and other African American sports stars opened doors for professional players who came to dominate their fields, including Serena Williams and Michael Jordan. Learn about the founding of Black sports leagues during the years of segregation, how the Great Migration reshaped athletics in America, and how African American athletes balanced their athletic success with the everyday reality of racism and became engines of social change. While sports helped level the playing field in many ways, Black athletes still grapple with the legacy of inequality in America today.
- Boxer Tom Molineaux, who fought for the entertainment of slave masters, went on to earn his freedom, and then became a professional fighter and trainer
- Champion boxer Jack Johnson
- High jumper Rose Robinson
- Track star and four-time Olympic gold medalist Jesse Owens
- Baseball legend Jackie Robinson
- Decathlon gold-medalist Rafer Johnson
- The first female African American Olympians, Tidye Picket and Louise Stokes
I am giving African American Athletes Who Made History by Louis Moore a rating of 4.5 stars out of 5 stars.
Until my next post, happy reading!!
