It was a dark and stormy night and I almost called my friend Jim to tell him I couldn't make it to the book signing. Boy, am I glad I decided to go. It was really because of Dave Zirin, the sports writer for The Nation magazine and one of the friendliest "public" people ever. He was out with his latest book about John Carlos, the track star and one of the Olypians who had suffered for raising their fists from the podium in 1968.
When Jim and I spotted Dave at a coffee shop, it was just like him to make room for us at his table. That's how I got to meet and be with John Carlos.
When athletes talk about "standing on the shoulders of those whose courage came before", they are talking about John Carlos and Tommie Smith and the late Peter Norman, the Australian who stood in solidarity with his two colleagues.
We are celebrating the anniversary today.
How neat that you got to meet them! Public figures are often more accessible than we think. I was once in Tower Records in Beverly Hills and John Voight started a conversation with me!
ReplyDelete