Black Excellence

“We we’re trying to wake up the country and wake the world up too.” - Olympic Medalists Tommie Smith & John Carlos.

Black Excellence – when these two words are combined, they can inspire to endless degrees. Black men and women have not only made incredible strides for the history of America, but also for the world, which is why I wanted to start off Black History Month with a design tribute to Tommie Smith and John Carlos. These two men are best known for their 1968 Olympics Black Power salutes after winning both 1st and 3rd place. Although this was a peaceful form of protest, it was heavily misunderstood and criticized by the public, very similar to the 2017 #takeaknee NFL protests lead by Colin Kaepernick. This was undoubtedly an iconic moment for the pages of history, not only because of the message, but also because a great deal of strength, focus and determination was required to make it to such a televised platform. Sometimes one must go above and beyond just to capture the attention of those below.