When Race, Religion, and Sport Collide

This book tells the story of Brandon Davies’ dismissal from BYU’s NCAA playoff basketball team to illustrate the thorny intersection of religion, race, and sport in college athletics. Weaving together the history of black athletes and the black Mormon experience, the book offers a powerful analysis of the challenges facing black athletes today.

Darron T. Smith is a frequent commentator on issues of race, including a New York Times post on transracial adoption and Haiti. He is assistant professor at Wichita State University and the coeditor of the book Black and Mormon.

Introduction The Meaning of Sport in the Popular Imagination: The Collision of Race, Religion and Sport The Origins of Racism and Framing: Setting the Stage for the History of Blacks in Sport The White Racial Framing of Blacks in Mormon Theology Black Student Revolts and Political Uprising in the Late Sixties and Early Seventies: Fanning the Flame of Black Student-Athlete Revolts Mormon Attitudes toward Civil Rights: It's God's Law, We're Not Racist! No Honor in the Honor Code: The Suspension of Brandon Davies and the Incompatibility Nexus between Blackness and Mormonism Colorblindness and the Health Consequences to Black Male Student-Athletes through the Illusion of a Free Education Pipeline to a Pipedream: The Elusiveness of Change in the Era of "Black Lives Matter" Notes