Sports and Inequality

Labor 120 – Sports and Inequality

Fall 2024

Drawing from our readings and films, answer all of the following questions (in about 2 paragraphs per answer). Do not draw from sources outside the class. The exam should be submitted by 3 pm on Tuesday (11/26) via Blackboard.

1) What happened in the 1987 NFL players’ strike? What impact did it have on the future of labor relations in the NFL? How (according to the article we read – Nov 5th) did it create the “modern NFL?” What are some of the difficulties the players faced in organizing? (25 points)

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2) League of Denial (the documentary we watched in class) outlines how the NFL tried to discredit Dr. Omalu and his work. Describe Dr. Omalu’s work. What did it show/prove? Why was the NFL trying to discredit Omalu? (25 points)

Sports and Inequality

3) Why do team owners and city leaders often want to use public/tax money to help privately owned teams build stadiums? What are the arguments for using tax money in this way? What are the arguments against it? In answering these questions, draw from both the reading and the documentary (“Throw a Billion Dollars from a Helicopter”). (25 points)

4) Towards what ends has the NCAA used “amateurism” and the notion of the “student-athlete?” What has been the NCAA’s motivation for insisting that college athletes are amateurs who are students first? What is at stake? (25 points)

1. What happened during the 1987 NFL players’ strike, and how did it shape the modern NFL?,

2. What did Dr. Omalu’s work reveal, and why did the NFL try to discredit him?,

3. Why do city leaders and team owners use public money for stadiums, and what are the pros and cons?,

4. How has the NCAA used the concept of amateurism, and why does it insist athletes are students first?

Comprehensive Response (General)

1. The 1987 NFL Players’ Strike and Its Legacy

The 1987 NFL players’ strike was a pivotal moment in sports labor history. Players walked out demanding free agency and better pay, but the league responded aggressively by continuing the season with replacement players. The use of these so-called “scabs” undermined the players’ leverage and revealed a deep vulnerability in their organizing strength. Many stars crossed the picket line, dividing the union and weakening solidarity. Ultimately, the strike ended after just 24 days without securing the players’ demands, but its consequences would ripple through NFL labor relations for decades.

Sports and Inequality