Smith’s action put the state of race relations in the U.S. Kennedy was shot in California, throwing the presidential race into chaos and in August, thousands of Vietnam War protestors battled with police in Chicago during the Democratic National Convention. was assassinated, sparking riots and fires that devastated the inner core of Washington, Chicago and other cities. It had only been six months earlier that that Martin Luther King Jr. His act of civil disobedience made shock waves across a nation already reeling from a tumultuous year. I was proud of the country, but even the greatest things in the world need attention when they’re not as strong as they could be. … I was just alone in a position that millions were watching and I hope the millions realized that it was a pride in how I felt about a country that did not represent me. “There was nothing there to protect me but God, nothing to distract my feeling of equality. “I felt alone and free,” says Smith, now 72. American bronze medalist John Carlos did the same, and Australian silver medalist Peter Norman stood proudly by their side.

Draped in his gold medal, awarded for his world-record setting performance in the 200 meters, and head bowed, Smith lifted his black-gloved fist into the air, in what the public saw as an embrace of the Black Power movement. As the strains of the Star-Spangled Banner wafted over the winds of Mexico City, sprinter Tommie Smith, a 24-year old athlete from Lemoore, California, stood in his red-white-and-blue tracksuit.

Victory. Stand! by Tommie Smith