Page 544 - Sociology and You

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Unit 4 Social Institutions
Offense
Quarterback Running Back Wide Receiver Tight End Offensive Tackle Offensive Guard Offensive Center
Defense
Cornerback Safety Linebacker Defensive End Defensive Tackle
0 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
White Players
Offense
Quarterback Running Back Wide Receiver Tight End Offensive Tackle Offensive Guard Offensive Center
Defense
Cornerback Safety Linebacker Defensive End Defensive Tackle
0 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
African American Players
White Players
African American Players
0 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% (Note: Scale of this graph is 60%, not 100%)
0 20% 40% 60% 80% 100% 1983
1998 1997 1993
Figure 15.4 National Football League Positions, by Race. Do you think that these data support the presence of stacking in the NFL?
Source: Northeastern University, Center for the Study of Sport in Society, 2001.
Sport and Racism
One sign of systematic discrimination shows up in what is called stacking. In stacking, players are assigned to less central positions on the basis of race or ethnicity. “Central” positions are those that involve leadership and decision- making responsibilities and thus offer a greater likelihood of influencing the outcome of the game. Historically, minorities have more often been assigned to positions requiring relatively little interaction and coordination with other players. In football, for example, African American quarterbacks are rare, while the proportions of African Americans in many defensive and other less central positions are high. (See Figure 15.4.)
stacking
assignment of players to less central positions on the basis of race or ethnicity