PHILIPPINE SPORTS NOT SPARED BY WORLDWIDE SOCIAL JUSTICE FEVER
Seemingly, sports and politics the world over have intermingled and open the athletes’ eyelids into consciousness in the society they are in. Notwithstanding of the pandemic, some Filipino athletes are slowly becoming politicized and few are going out of their comfort zones and joining the fight against social injustice. Recent national issues have also shaken other athletes, with a number of them using social media to register their own misgivings about the country’s state of affairs. The Anti-Terrorism Act of 2020, for instance, drew criticism from Thirdy Ravena, Jack Animam, CJ Cansino, and Kobe Paras even when it was still a bill being discussed in Congress. They wanted it rejected. (Presently, at least 13 petitions have been brought before the Supreme Court questioning the “overbroad” and “vague” definitions and powers of the ATA.) Historically, sports and politics hardly ever mix. On the occasions that it does, this happens mainly when sports stars, mostly the retired, throw their jerseys into the political arena. We’re not counting those because motives there can be suspect, hardly ever because there is a good cause to champion Social justice messaging appears to be the new normal in sports — and the NBA is leading the way. When the NBA reopened several days ago after suspending activities for more than four months because of COVID-19, players appeared on the court, and they were wearing jerseys with messages against racial injustice and inequality. Among the most popular were “Black Lives Matter,” “Liberty,” “Peace,” and “Enough.” The entire Dallas Mavericks team chose “Equality,” with its foreign players using the word in their native languages. In Europe, where black football players have been subjected to racist slurs — fans throwing bananas on to the field and mimicking monkeys — protests on and off the field have spread far and wide. And in Formula One, where the reigning champion is black, drivers and their crew have knelt as one before each race to show solidarity against racism and inequality Also getting wide condemnation from local athletes was Congress’s move to kill the franchise application of ABS-CBN, with many PBA players posting social messages on their jerseys, much like their NBA counterparts. “Never again,” the jerseys of Jia Morado and Cansino called out. For Alyssa Valdez, the call was “Hindi pa tapos ang laban,” and for Paras and Shaun Ildefonso, it was “Hinde kami mananahimik.” Thirdy Ravena’s jersey reminded everyone that, with the closure of ABS-CBN, people have to “Defend press freedom.” Also supporting the broadcasting giant were Avel Estranero, Animam and Diego Dario, whose jerseys called for “Malayang midya.”#