Moving Forward Part 2: Everyone Has a Role

The Work in Sports podcast is brought to you by EMPOWRD This is the most important election of our time. And let’s be honest, voting during a pandemic is a little confusing right now. There is so much misinformation out there aimed toward making you believe your vote doesn’t matter  Well, your vote does matter.   Voting is the most important responsibility of citizens. Don’t give up that power or that right! Get engaged, informed & ready to vote - all with ONE app.  You know who is engaged, informed, and ready to vote with EMPOWRD -  Trey Flowers,  Detroit Lions Whitney Mercilus, Houston Texans Justin Reid, Houston Texans Anfernee Simons, Portland Trailblazers  All of these top athletes are out there supporting this great app that will make it easier for you to get all the information you need to vote!  Download the app today at EMPOWRD.com  And the Work InSports Podcast Moving Forward is brought to you by High Point Gamer:  High Point Gamer is Central Florida’s premiere Esports consultant for forward-thinking gamers, brands and organizations. They help you add gaming to your marketing strategy. Their custom gaming-centric activations are tailored to support your business goals. Visit High Point Gamer dot com for more information. Welcome to Part 2 of our 4-part Moving Forward mini series analysing social justice through the eyes of ten young, diverse aspiring sports professionals, I’m your host, Brian Clapp from WorkinSports.com. The sports industry has long been our nations main source of entertainment. Look no further than the most popular tv series of 2019-2020. Sunday Night FootballThursday Night FootballMonday Night FootballThe Masked Singer The Last Dance Ahead of the bachelor, survivor, american idol, grey’s anatomy, this is us and a bevy of other highly dicsussed shows.  If you look at the most popular individual TV shows - 19 out of the top 25 most watched shows of 2019 were sports. And not just football. The World Series, The NBA finals, The College Football Championship, the NCAA Men’s basketball championships. Sports dominates. With that in mind, you would hope and imagine that the industry itself would be representative of the stars in the games that have become so popular. It is not.  For example, more than 45% of college football players are black, but black men only represent 9% of athletic directors and 8% of head coaches.  We can play these numbers out down the line in all facets of the sports industry - women’s sports, men’s sports, college, pro, media companies, leagues.  The disparity is real, and tangible.  Progress only comes when the majority aims to help, support and advocate for the minority. If the majority persists as if the norm they are living in is what they want to see continue, things will never change.  But, if a large enough group of allies from the majority are mobilizd and activated for change, they can hold the power and the key to stimulate positive change. As award-winning diversity, equity and inclusion leader Sheree Atcheson wrote in Forbes,  Allyship is: a lifelong process of building relationships based on trust, consistency, and accountability with marginalized individuals and/or groups of people.not self-defined—work and efforts must be recognized by those you are seeking to ally with.an opportunity to grow and learn about ourselves, whilst building confidence in others. This is an important step for all listeners, to understand what minority groups, whether it be women, LGBTQ, or People of color - need, and how they need it.  To be an ally, requires an ability to listen, support, self-reflect & change.  Something all of us can and should do.  The Work in Sports podcast Moving Forward is a 4-part discussion with 10 young, diverse, aspiring sports professionals sharing the issues that confront them every day as they attempt to embark on their sports careers and change the world.