U.S. Olympians Tommie Smith and John Carlos raised their black-gloved fists in support of black power on the medals podium, after they had finished first and third in the 200 meters at the Summer Olympics in Mexico City.
As they turned to face their flags and hear the American national anthem (The Star-Spangled Banner), they each raised a black-gloved fist and kept them raised until the anthem had finished. Smith, Carlos and Australian silver medalist Peter Norman all wore human rights badges on their jackets. In his autobiography, Silent Gesture, Tommie Smith stated that the gesture was not a “Black Power” salute, but a “human rights salute”. The event is regarded as one of the most overtly political statements in the history of the modern Olympic Games.
AthleticPoetics 