Synopses & Reviews
Throughout the period of legally supported segregation in the United States, practices of racial discrimination, touching every sector of American life, prevented African Americans from participating formally in professional sports. Jim Crow policies remained in place in baseball, football, and basketball until a few years before the Supreme Court struck down the separate but equal doctrine in 1954. By the late 1950s, the African American presence was felt in major sports. But this was not the case in professional golf, which continued to maintain segregation policies perpetuating the stereotype that African Americans were suited only to caddie roles in support of white players. The Professional Golfers Association, unaffected by the 1954 Brown decision since it was a private organization, maintained a Caucasian only membership clause until 1961. All-white private clubs maintained racial exclusion until the PGA Championship Shoal Creek Country Club Affair in 1990.
Using black newspapers, archives, interviews with living professional golfers and other informants, and black club records, Dawkins and Kinloch reconstruct the world of segregated African American golf from the 1890s onward. In the process they show the pivotal role of Joe Louis, who claimed his hardest fight was the one against segregated golf. While others have documented the rise of an African American presence in other sports, no comparable efforts have traced their roles in golf. This is a pioneering work that will be a resource for other writers and researchers and all who are interested in Black life in American society and sports.
Review
This is a fascinating book - crammed with facts and written in a no-nonsense style.MultiCultural Review
Synopsis
Examines the golfing experiences of African Americans during the Jim Crow era.
Synopsis
Examines the golfing experiences of African Americans during the Jim Crow era.
Synopsis
African American professional golfers began to appear by the turn of the century, having learned the game as caddies in the early 1890s. However, despite early successes, in the era of Jim Crow legally supported segregation, African Americans were soon seen as suited only to a caddie role in support of white professional players. The Professional Golfers Association, unaffected by the 1954 Brown decision since it was a private organization, maintained a "Caucasian only" membership clause until 1961. All-white private clubs maintained racial exclusion until the PGA Championship Shoal Creek Country Club Affair in 1990.
About the Author
MARVIN P. DAWKINS is Associate Professor of Sociology, Research Faculty in the Center for Research on Sport in Society and Director of the Caribbean, African and Afro-American Studies Program at the University of Miami.GRAHAM C. KINLOCH has been engaged in teaching and carrying out research in the areas of sociological theory, race and minority relations, and comparative analysis for the past thirty-one years.
Table of Contents
Preface
Introduction
Sports and Discrimination
The Development of Black Golf
From Caddie to Professional: The Making of a Black Golf Pro
Golf and the Black Elite
The Organization of Black Golf: The United Golfers Association (UGA)
Joe Louis: Black Golf Ambassador
The Nature of Black Golf
Jim Crow Era Golfers in the Black Press
Jim Crow Era Golfers Speak in Their Own Words
Desegregation Battles
The Push to Desegregate Public Golf Courses
Barrier Breakers and White Resistance
Conclusions
Black Golf and White Racism
Bibliography
Index