During the 2016 Summer Olympics, African American athletes Simone Biles, Simone Manuel, Michelle Carter, and Ashley Johnson made history by performing extraordinarily well at sports that white athletes normally dominated (gymnastics, swimming, shot put, and water polo, respectively). Commentators explained with excitement that these athletes were “firsts” in their respective sport and named all the ways in which they were exceptional. This course will examine the historical reasons why these black women are exceptional. For African Americans in particular, anti-black racism, sexism, and exclusion from leisure spaces (e.g., parks, gymnasiums, playgrounds, swimming pools) hindered full participation and mastery in sport and recreational programs. In the twentieth century, what one did, or was able to do, in one’s spare time became more than merely personal choice, but battles over women’s rights, civil rights, respectability politics, citizenship, and class status. Through the use of historical essays, photography, documentary film, podcasts, and newspapers, we will explore how certain sports and leisure activities became racialized and gendered in the twentieth century.

This is a first-year seminar—an opportunity for students to critically examine a topic and become familiar with the expectations of college-level intellectual engagement. To these ends, the course will use several formats to enable students to gain their intellectual footing including presentations, short writing assignments, posing questions, active learning activities, class discussion, and a take-home final exam.