Who here remembers when Texas Westerns all black team beat Kentucky's

[Quixote1818]

all white team for the National Championship in 1966? I want to see Glory Road last night and it was a fascinating movie. I grew up in Las Cruces, New Mexico which is 35 miles from El Paso. We use to play UTEP (previously known as Texas Western) I always admired and respected Don Haskins, he just seemed like such a class act and an amazing coach. He was never pretentious at all. He has a cameo in the movie as a gas station attendant.

I am curious about what a big deal that championship game was? Was their still as much prejudice against blacks as the movie portrays? Was the Nation tuned in to that game because of the racial components or did the movie exaggerate things?

It's a good movie, not as good as some other sports movies but worth seeing or renting.

[rg302200]

1. I was not yet born..

But ESPN had a really good story about the events of that game. Their magazine also talked about the ramifications it had on the sport today.I wish I could tell you more, but you might want to check out the archives on ESPN.com to see if you can come up with anything. Good luck!

[agingdem]

2. I remember because I live in El Paso.

It was a big deal and yes there was prejudice (example...blacks not allowed in movie theaters). People were tuned in because of the school TWC played. As far as admiring Haskins...well...he did a good thing then...but he's something of a sot now.

[fishwax]

6. why's haskins a sot?

I don't live anywhere near, but it's rare that I've heard anyone say anything bad about Haskins, so I'm curious.

[Quixote1818]

8. Me too

He always struck me as a genuine person. UTEP was one of NMSU's biggest rivals but even people in Las Cruces respected Haskins as a class act.

[Father Gapon]

3. I don't

[papau]

4. Andy Hankins - an Ill basketball star and now a retired Judge in Wis went

to Ohio State in 62 and caused national headlines when a frat pledged him and the national office of the frat suspended the local frat for choosing the wrong skin colored pledge. But as sport prejudice as such I was lousy at sports and could not give real evidence either way. But yes, there was a great deal of prejudice against blacks back then.

Ron McNair, a close friend, came through MIT in the 70's on the way to his fate - his death - on the shuttle. When we ate outside on my picnic bench with his friends my neighbors were no where to be found - they all had indoor activities to attend to. So we blasted Kool and the gang into the neighborhood :-)

Folks do not realize/remember how mean and evil things were if your skin was the wrong color (and that included the existence of racists black folks as in fathers that wanted no white person in their family).

This is a very much improved society in that regard.

[Horse with no Name]

5. You have to remember the racial climate in the 60's

In 1964, The murders of James Chaney, Andrew Goodman, and Michael Schwerner were murdered in Nashoba County, Mississippi.(Mississippi Burning)
The Civil Rights Act was signed into law. Malcolm X was shot to death.
Blacks marched in Montgomery for voting rights, yet it turned into Bloody Sunday. In 1965. The Watts Riots and Affirmative Action.
In 1966 the Black Panthers were founded. Stokely Carmichael a leader of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), coins the phrase "black power" in a speech in Seattle. He defines it as an assertion of black pride and "the coming together of black people to fight for their liberation by any means necessary." The term's radicalism alarms many who believe the civil rights movement's effectiveness and moral authority crucially depend on nonviolent civil disobedience.

That era was volatile for civil rights and there were plenty of people who preferred things the way they were. Even though I was only 3 at the time, I can imagine that going down to Kentucky with an entire black team raised some serious racial tensions.

[iamthebandfanman]

10. please point out that

it may have raised eyebrows in kentucky during the time
but not now

contrary to popular belief kentucky isnt entirely full of half bred racist rednecks
:)

[tularetom]

7. How could I forget it?

About 10 minutes after the game was over my wife went into labor with our 2nd child. We got to the hospital with about 15 minutes to spare. I did not even realize it was 5 whites vs. 5 blacks until the game started. BTW, it was literally black vs. white on our old TV. And yes at least here in CA although the schools were integrated there was an awful lot of prejudice when it came to housing etc.

[Quixote1818]

9. Here is a nice article about this

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10788059/