Tommie Smith, John Carlos

In my opinion, a hero is a real or fictional character of history, human mythology or arts, whose stories are passed along in the popular legend. Hero also refers to the main character of a work. A hero is someone who does something for other people, he saves lives, he helps others, he shares his possessions.  So, a hero must be smart, sociable, generous, crafty, brave, selfless. He must not be afraid of risks.

For me, Tommie Smith and John Carlos were heroes during the medal ceremony at the Olympics Games in Mexico in 1968. Because, at the end of the 200 meter final, the two men finished first and third. On the podium, they raised their hands gloved to denounce racism against blacks and segregation which they were victims of in the United States and South Africa. This symbolic act clearly showed support for the political party of the Black Panthers, a group that represented Black power across the world. I consider them heroes because they denounced all racism in the world against Black people in front of all the television cameras even though they knew that they would be banned from the Olympics Games after this gesture. They were then deprived of their title and banned from the Olympic Games to life.