Sport is often referred to as a microcosm of society. Matters of race and equitable treatment arise in society, as well as in sport. The public nature of sport tends to reflect as well as amplify societal issues, often in visible and dramatic form. This makes necessary that these issues are dealt with in public fashion as well as seen publicly as being dealt with.
It is also imperative that sport exercises its advantage over society with its ability to design and deploy zero-tolerance measures to racism. This is the task at hand.
In his 1999 book, ‘Development as Freedom’, Amartya Sen, the economist, and Nobel Prize laureate talks about the importance “of public discussion as a vehicle for social change and economic progress”.
An opportunity exists for leaders in global sport to publicly take the lead in bringing clarity to these matters, and to point a direction for society. Problem solving is at the core of what leaders exist to do and the various leaders of the global sporting industry need to ensure that practitioners and consumers of sport alike feel that due attention and care is being paid to these matters.
A lot is being done by various sport bodies and organizations with internal discussions and announced initiatives, but there is a strong public perception that not enough is being done to confront and address these issues. This lack of public trust greatly erodes the integrity of the work of leaders, as well as the entertainment and integrity value of sport itself.
Until now, there has never been a forum for public discussion where leaders within the sports world gather to discuss issues critical to their industry. The ‘Race and Equity in Global Sport: The Change Leader’s Summit’, will do just that, gathering critical stakeholders and voices to bring action and justice to bear on achieving a zero tolerance for racism- an insidious, malignant and systemic social evil.
