Peter Norman

==Background==
* http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Norman
==Media==
===Brother of the Fist: The Passing of Peter Norman===
:by Dave Zirin
Almost four decades later, the image can still make
hairs rise on unsuspecting necks. It's 1968, and 200
meter gold medalist Tommie Smith stands next to bronze
winner John Carlos, their raised black gloved fists
smashing the sky on the medal stand in Mexico City.
They were Trojan Horses of Rage -- bringing the Black
revolution into that citadel of propriety and
hypocrisy: the Olympic games.
When people see that image, their eyes are drawn like
magnets toward Smith and Carlos, standing in black
socks, their heads bowed in controlled concentration.
Less noticed is the silver medalist. He is hardly
mentioned in official retrospectives, and people
assume him to be a Forrest Gump-type figure, just
another of those unwitting witnesses to history who
always end up in the back of famous frames. Only the
perceptive notice that this seemingly anonymous
individual is wearing a rather large button emblazoned
with the letters O-P-H-R, standing for the Olympic
Project for Human Rights.
Only those who see the film footage notice that he
never throws a furtive glance back at fellow medal
winners as they raise their fists. He never registers
surprise or alarm. At a moment that epitomized the
electric shock of rebellion, his gaze is cool,
implacable, his back ramrod straight, a fellow soldier
proud to stand with his brothers.
Only those who go beyond official history will learn
about the true motivations of all three of these men.
They wanted the apartheid countries of South African
and Rhodesia to be disallowed from the Olympics. They
wanted more coaches of African descent. They wanted
the world to know that their success did not mean
racism was now a relic of history. The silver medalist
with the white skin stood with Smith and Carlos on
every question and it was agreed before the race, that
if the three, as expected, were the ones on the dais,
they would stand together: three young anti-racists
standing together in struggle.
That silver medalist with the nerves of steel and
thirst for justice was Australian runner Peter Norman.
Norman died of a heart attack last week at the age of
64 and Monday was put to rest.
Two people who knew the depth and conviction of
Norman's solidarity were the two who acted as lead
pallbearers at his funeral: Tommie Smith and John
Carlos. Over the years the three men had stayed
connected, welded together by history and the
firestorm they all faced when the cameras were turned
off.
The backlash endured by Smith and Carlos is well
documented. Less known are Norman's own travails. He
was a pariah in the Australian Olympic world, despite
being a five-time national champion in the 200 meters.
He desired to coach the highest levels, yet worked as
a Physical Education teacher, the victim of a down
under blacklist.
.
As John Carlos said, "At least me and Tommie had each
other when we came home. When Peter went home, he had
to deal with a nation by himself. He never wavered,
never denied that he was up there with us for a
purpose and he never said 'I'm sorry' for his
involvement. That's indicative of who the man was." "
When the 2000 Olympics came to Sydney, Norman was
outrageously outcast from the festivities, still the
invisible man. In a conversation at that time with
sportswriter Mike Wise, Norman was absent of
bitterness and wore his ostracism as proudly as that
solidarity button from 1968. "I did the only thing I
believed was right," he said to Wise. "I asked what
they wanted me to do to help. I couldn't see why a
black man wasn't allowed to drink out of the same
water fountain or sit in the same bus or go to the
same schools as a white guy. That was just social
injustice that I couldn't do anything about from where
I was, but I certainly abhorred it."
Norman never strayed from a life of humility. When a
sculpture was unveiled of Smith and Carlos last year
in California, Norman was left off, the silver medal
platform purposely vacant so others could stand in his
place. Smith and Carlos protested it, feeling it fed
the false idea of Norman as political bystander. But
Norman himself who traveled from Australia to
California for the unveiling said, "I love that idea.
Anybody can get up there and stand up for something
they believe in. I guess that just about says it all."
Norman didn't define himself by self-promotion, book
deals, or the lecture circuit -- only by the quiet
pride that he was a part of a movement much bigger
than himself. By happily surrendering his personal
glory to the greater good, Norman earned the love and
respect of his peers.
As Carlos said about sudden passing of the man his
children called Uncle Pete, "Peter was a piece of my
life. When I got the call, it knocked the wind out of
me. I was his brother. He was my brother. That's all
you have to know."
Dave Zirin is the author of "'What's My Name Fool?':
Sports and Resistance in the United States" (Haymarket
Books) You can receive his column Edge of Sports,
every week by e-mailing
edgeofsports-subscribe@zirin.com. Contact him at
dave@edgeofsports.com]
==Links==
* Tommie Smith
* John Carlos
* Dave Zirin
 
Norman, Peter