By Mircy Coca Soriano
At the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, DC, Tommie Smith and John Carlos are iconic figures in both sports and civil rights history, best remembered for their courageous protest during the 1968 Mexico City Olympic Games. In the fleeting silence of the 1968 Olympic medal ceremony, Tommie Smith and John Carlos raised their black-gloved fists, turning a moment of triumph into one of the most powerful political statements in sports history. Standing on the podium after finishing first and third in the 200-meter dash, they bowed their heads during the American national anthem, protesting racial injustice and inequality.
Smith and Carlos didn't act impulsively. Their demonstration was organized as part of the Olympic Project for Human Rights, a movement created to highlight systemic racism in the United States and around the world. Their protest was a rallying cry not only for Black athletes, but also for Black workers, students, and communities who suffer daily oppression. Without shoes to symbolize poverty and wearing beads to represent the victims of lynchings, they used their bodies and their moment on the world stage to speak a truth that many wanted to ignore.
Writing this article made me see their protest not only as a powerful statement of civil rights, but as a broader symbol of working-class resilience. It's poignant to understand how two athletes, isolated on a podium, could embody the struggles of millions: workers, activists, and everyday people demanding dignity in the face of systemic injustice. Their defiance, especially at a moment meant to celebrate national pride, forces us to ask: whose pride, and at what cost? It left me inspired and reminded me that even the smallest gestures, when grounded in truth, can shake institutions and spark movements.
Mircy Coca Soriano is an intern at LHF.