The Salute

America's battles with racism and prejudices were at its height in 1968, when this picture was taken. Tommie Smith and John Carlos were American athletes in the 1968 Mexico City Olympic Games, and they won gold and bronze in the 200m dash, respectively. As the Star Spangled Banner played, Smith and Norman each raised a fist and dropped their head in one of the most overt political statements of all time. Australian Peter Norman won the silver medal, and wore a human rights badge to show his support.
This photo intrigues me because it makes me contemplate just how far we have come as a country. Less than 50 years ago, we were a divided nation over the subject of race, clearly shown by this photo. But now where are we? We are in a place where black and white are different but equal.... not separate but equal. We are able to see these differences and recognize them, but not persecute one race or another.
This blatant demonstration of social defiance that Tommie Smith and John Carlos took at the 1968 Games is one of the most notable in history, and they received hell for it when they got back home. But thankfully they made a difference, and we don't have to live in a country that is divided by the idea of racism anymore. This picture makes me love that we as a country can look at ourselves and point out the differences, joke about the differences, but above all appreciate the differences.