Rosa Parks: In Her Own Words at the Library of Congress

Rosa Parks: In Her Own Words, the newest Library of Congress multimedia exhibition, opened on December 5, in the Library’s South Gallery of the Jefferson Building in Washington, D.C., to much fanfare and critical praise. By humanizing Rosa Parks, visitors are able to see her greatness in a new light.


“I want to be remembered as a person who stood up to injustice, and most of all, I want to be remembered as a person who wanted to be free and wanted others to be free.”

– Rosa Parks

If you are of a certain age, chances are good you remember the famous photograph of Rosa Parks seated on a Montgomery, Alabama, bus, taken Dec. 21, 1956.

A year earlier, on Dec. 1, 1955, Parks became nationally known for her refusal to give up her seat to a white man on a crowded bus in the same city.

Parks’ arrest was the catalyst that led to the Montgomery Bus Boycott, a pivotal event in the American Civil Rights movement which ultimately brought about the dismantling of Jim Crow segregation in the southern United States.

While Rosa Parks’ refusal to give up her seat on the bus, the Montgomery Bus Boycott and the subsequent fallout from it all happened before I was born, as a student of American history I’ve always been interested in learning more about her life of defiance and how she became a symbol of human dignity and freedom, not only in America but internationally, too.

During a recent visit to Rosa Parks: In Her Own Words at the Library of Congress, I learned that while Rosa Parks (1913-2005) became an icon of the Civil Rights Movement – “celebrated for this single courageous act of civil disobedience” – she has often been characterized by misconceptions. It’s an old and convenient story that is finally being debunked. “Contrary to popular belief, Parks was not a demure seamstress who chose not to stand because she was physically tired.” Instead, as I learned, “her calm demeanor hid a militant spirit forged over decades.”

Among many first-week visitors to the exhibit was E.R. Shipp, a Pulitzer Prize winner for commentary, who is journalist in residence at Morgan State University’s School of Global Journalism and Communication in Baltimore, Maryland. She wrote Parks’ obituary while she was a reporter for The New York Times and gained a keen insight about the civil rights icon – especially after interviewing Mrs. Parks in a New York City church in 1988, in the midst of a voter registration drive. She and I shared a brief conversation in person following a curator’s tour and later continued it via email as we discussed our shared experiences after seeing Rosa Parks: In Her Own Words.

“I was very impressed with the exhibit and think that, for most people, it will be a revelation,” Shipp told me. “Even now, many people only know that Mrs. Parks refused to give up her seat on a bus in Montgomery and that she became known as ‘the Mother of the Civil Rights Movement.’ Those who know that, don’t now much more than that.”

Shipp conveyed to me she was impressed by the quality of Mrs. Parks’ personal writings as much as with the behind-the-scenes insights that her writings offer us. She hopes to make use of the papers as a scholar and journalist in the future. “I did not really know her family lineage and did not realize that many of her forebears could easily have called themselves white. They were what the writer Jill Nelson has called ‘the voluntary Negro,’ she said.”

Shipp, who writes a column every other Wednesday for the Baltimore Sun, shared her insights about Parks with her readers today, noting: “Perhaps it is inevitable that each generation puts a stamp on the past. The power dynamics of who disseminates a history becomes key.”

Rosa Parks: In Her Own Words is presented in a multimedia format in four main areas – Early Life and Activism, The Bus Boycott, Detroit 1957 and Beyond, and A Life of Global Impact – and together, we learn of the complete story about the remarkable life and contributions of the mother of the Civil Rights Movement.

So, just who was Rosa Parks? For one, she was a seasoned activist – an organizer – who organized to free the Scottsboro Boys in the 1930s. Also, she helped operate the NAACP and Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters offices in Montgomery during the 1940s and 1950s. Despite her punishment from the bus incident, which included unemployment and dire poverty – not to mention being the subject of death threats – Parks strove for social justice and human rights. She served as an inspiration not only in the U.S. but also around the world, fighting for women’s rights and speaking out against the Vietnam War. She was a prisoner advocate and supported the growing Black Power movement of the 1960s. By the 1980s, she supported the presidential campaigns of Jesse Jackson and also participated in the anti-apartheid protests against South Africa. She was an advocate of nonviolence and peace. What a remarkable life Mrs. Parks lived!

After her death in 2005, Rosa Parks’ body lay in honor at the U.S. Capitol Rotunda, the first woman given that distinction. In 2006, a statue of Mrs. Parks was placed in the National Statuary Hall. Throughout the U.S., there are many schools, parks and streets which are named in her honor.

Thanks to the vast archives of the Library of Congress, which includes the Rosa Parks Collection (a gift to the Library of Congress from the Howard G. Buffett Foundation), visitors to Rosa Parks: In Her Own Words will see a variety of rarely seen materials that offer not only an intimate view of Rosa Parks, but also document her life and activism – “creating a rich opportunity for viewers to discover new dimensions to their understanding of this seminal figure.”

Credits: Cover photo by Michael Dickens. Original photo of Rosa Parks seated on bus from Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division. Rosa Parks statue photo courtesy of AOC.gov. Video courtesy of YouTube, LOC.gov.

Women's March: Inspiration, motivation, galvanization

Unity in numbers / Hundreds of thousands of women (and men), both
white and of color, marched for political activism in Washington, D.C. and
throughout America, and around the world. 

The American writer and poet Alice Walker, who wrote the critically acclaimed novel The Color Purple, once said "Activism is our rent for living on the planet." I think she was on to something because last Saturday women (and men), both white and of color, spanning a variety of economic and religious backgrounds, united for a just cause.

They marched for political activism. Health care, the economy, climate change, immigration, paid family leave, net neutrality, education, freedom of the press.

Millions united worldwide and took to the streets to protest the inauguration of Donald Trump and also to celebrate women's rights. On Saturday, they marched for democracy.

My heart and support goes out to my friends, family and loved ones – and to all – who marched not only in the Women's March in Washington, D.C., but also hundreds of sister marches throughout America and around the world. Through the power of their spoken and written words, as well as through their images and pictures that were shared via social media platforms – and, importantly, in their strength in numbers – we saw that there is such great hope for our country. I'm proud to see so many devote their time and energy towards walking for civil liberties and basic, fundamental human rights for all.

A view of the National Mall as seen from the U.S. Capitol,
during the Women's March in Washington, D.C. The
number of participants far exceeded expectations,
event organizers said, and it eclipsed the crowd attending
President Trump's inauguration a day earlier.

A day after President Trump's inauguration last Friday, in which he shared his uniquely dark and dystopian vision of the U.S., there was much support, love and light shown during the Women's March in Washington, D.C. According to the organizers of the event, the goal was to send a powerful message to the new administration and to the new President. Initial estimates numbered 500,000 participants in the nation's capital alone – considerably more than the 200,000 expected, and far exceeding the number who attended Friday's inauguration of the 45th President. Demonstrations remained peaceful throughout.

Linda Sarsour, a Palestinian-American activist and national co-chair of the Women's March on Washington, said during an interview Monday evening on MSNBC's All In With Chris Hayes that she was extremely overwhelmed by the turnout. "Women showed up (all over the world) and showed their power," she said. Asked why the march exceeded expectations, Sarsour said: "We were able to speak to the values of people. We came together in solidarity to stand with the most marginalized people. We were also intersectional. It wasn't just about reproductive rights. It was climate justice and racial justice and immigrant rights. Everyone found a place to be there. We spoke to every one's inner frustrations. We went from Friday's devastation to Saturday's inspiration, motivation and galvanization."

In a New York Times editorial published on its website Monday, it wrote: "Whether President Trump, newly ensconced in the White House, was surprised or even noticed is unclear. Given his reputation, he may not even care. But the Republican Party should."

We are America /
Marching near the National Museum of
the American Indian in Washington, D.C.
(Photo by Carla Morris.)

Actress America Ferrera, who was one of the first speakers at the Washington, D.C. rally, said: "We march today for the moral core of this nation, against which our new president is waging a war. Our dignity, our character, our rights have all been under attack and a platform of hate and division assumed power yesterday. But the president is not America. ... We are America and we are here to stay."

The feminist icon Gloria Steinem, 82, also speaking in the nation's capital, exulted: "This is the upside of the downside. This is an outpouring of democracy like I've never seen in my very long life."

Senator Elizabeth Warren, Democrat of Massachusetts, marching in Boston, said, "We can whimper. We can whine. Or we can fight back!"

Back in Washington, D.C., singer Madonna said matter-of-factly: "Let's march together through this darkness and with each step know that we are not afraid, that we are not alone that we will not back down. There is power in our unity and no opposing force stands a chance in the face of true solidarity." She added: "Today marks the beginning of our story. The revolution starts here. The fight for the right to be free, to be who we are, to be equal."

Energizing in the name of goodwill /
A sign proclaiming "My Body My Choice" was one of
many causes represented during the Women's March.
(Photo by Carla Morris.)

Among my many Macalester College friends who marched in Washington, D.C., and elsewhere, Carla Morris, an independent consultant who is married and the mother of two young boys, described her march experience like this: "It was like we had all individually and collectively found the real America again! I did not see a single act of unkindness or disrespect all day long." On her Facebook page, Morris called the mood in Washington, D.C. "so jubilant. Everyone on the trains going down to the march beamed at each other, smiled, chanted together, clapped, traded stories, helped each other. ... It was so wonderful. A fabulous, energizing day of goodwill."

Among many speakers whom I saw while watching TV coverage via MSNBC and C-SPAN, I was particularly interested in learning viewpoints from people of color and of different religions, groups which are being marginalized by the Trump administration. I heard the passionate voices of Zahra Billoo, the San Francisco Bay Area Director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), and of Van Jones, founder and president of Rebuild the Dream, an American center-left political organization, and a former Obama Administration advisor.

Billoo, a Muslim-American, said: "Our America ... includes all of us in our beautiful diversity. Our America requires that we march to protect each other. Our America needs us to build a better future. We have our work cut out for us but we are ready."

Marching towards a better future /
The Women's March showed peaceful yet powerful activism.
(Photo by Carla Morris.) 

Meanwhile, Jones, a black male, reached out to both conservatives and liberals during his speech. He said: "This movement has the opportunity to stand up for the underdogs in the red states and the blue states, to stand up for the Muslims and the Dreamers ... but also to stand up for the coal miners who are going to be thrown under the bus by Donald Trump. We're going to stand up for them. All those Rust Belt workers who he doesn't want to mess with but wants to mess over, we've got to stand up for them. We have to have a position that's clear. When it gets harder to love, let's love harder."


Looking back upon this special and unique day, in Washington, D.C., throughout American cities from Seattle and San Francisco to Ann Arbor and Chicago, to Raleigh, Boston and New York, and around the world – a record turnout for protests the likes of which we have not seen since the Vietnam War  – there was great strength found in this peaceful yet powerful activism, and unity in its numbers.

On this memorable day, love truly trumped hate.

Photos: Courtesy of Google images and Carla Morris.

Opinions that matter: When these coaches speak ...

Gregg Popovich /
"Values are more important to me than
anyone's skill in business ... It tells us who
we are, how we want to live and what kind
of people we are."

It's been a week and counting since Election Day 2016. Dazed and confused, we've been trying to make sense of the new world around us. Many of us have felt sucker punched by Donald Trump's victory over Hillary Clinton. Yet, some who are prominent in our sports culture are taking a stand while demonstrating their political activism. When these coaches speak ... I listen. So should you.

San Antonio Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich and Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr, a couple of the best and brightest minds in sports, are among the many professional coaches and athletes who have shared blistering critiques following Donald Trump's election as President of the United States last Tuesday. As coaches in the NBA, where 75 percent of the athletes are black, their opinions matter.

In a recently published ESPN interview, Popovich spoke out in frustration of Trump, who will become the 45th President of the United States when he is inaugurated in January.


"I'm a rich, white guy. And I'm sick to my stomach thinking about it," said Popovich, a graduate of the Air Force Academy. "I couldn't imagine being a Muslim right now or a woman or an African-American, a Hispanic, a handicapped person, and how disenfranchised they might feel." He went on to say that for any one in those groups that voted for Trump, "it's just beyond my comprehension how they ignored all that."

On the day after the election, in an interview with The New York Times, Kerr said: "All of a sudden you're faced with the reality that the man who's going to lead you has routinely used racist, misogynist, insulting words. I didn't think this was The Jerry Springer Show." 

Over the past four years, I've had the pleasure of informally meeting Kerr on several occasions. He is a parent of University of California women's volleyball player Maddy Kerr, and my wife and I have season tickets to Cal volleyball. Kerr is warm, friendly and outgoing – and never one to shy away from societal discourse. As the son of an American academic who specialized in the Middle East, Kerr spent much of his childhood in Lebanon and other Middle East countries before returning to the U.S. to study history and sociology and star as a basketball player at the University of Arizona, then embark on a fruitful professional career in the National Basketball Association.

Steve Kerr (right) with Draymond Green /
The Golden State Warriors head coach is not one to shy
away from societal discourse.
"I didn't think this was 'The Jerry Springer Show.'"

"People are getting paid millions of dollars to go on TV and scream at each other, whether it's in sports or politics or entertainment" said Kerr, a five-time NBA champion as a player who coached the Golden State Warriors to a championship in 2015 in his rookie season as a head coach. "I guess it was only a matter of time before it spilled into politics."

Before a recent home game against the Detroit Pistons, whose own head coach Stan Van Gundy also spoke critically about Trump, Popovich admitted he's sick to his stomach, "and not basically because the Republicans won or anything, but the disgusting tenor, tone and all the comments that have been xenophobic, homophobic, racist, misogynistic. And I live in that country where half the people ignored all that to elect someone. That's the scariest part of (the) whole thing to me.

"It's got nothing to do with the environment, Obamacare and all the other stuff. We live in a country that ignored all those values that we would hold our kids accountable for."

Popovich believes that Trump's words and actions cannot be overlooked or forgotten. He went on to say this: "Everybody wants him to be successful. It's our country; we don't want it to go down the drain. Any reasonable person would come to that conclusion, but it does not take away the fact that he used that fear-mongering and all the comments from day one. The race-baiting with trying to make Barack Obama, our first black president, illegitimate. It leaves me to wonder where I've been living and with whom I'm living."

The Spurs head coach also showed empathy for minority groups which might be adversely affected by the President-elect's remarks made during his campaign.

"What gets lost in the process are African-Americans, Hispanics, women and the gay population, not to mention the eight-grade developmental stage exhibited by him when made fun of the handicapped person," Popovich said. "I mean, come on. That's what an eighth-grade bully does, and he was elected president of the United States. We would have scolded our kids. We would have had discussions and talked until we were blue in the face trying to get them to understand these things. And he is in charge of our country. That's disgusting."

Popovich's frustration with the President-elect goes beyond partisan politics.

Gregg Popovich /
A Trump presidency, he said, is on the same path as the
Roman Empire. "My final conclusion is, my big fear is,
we are Rome."

"Values to me are more important than anybody's skill in business or anything else because it tells who we are, how we want to live and what kind of people we are," he said. "That's why I have great respect for people like Lindsey Graham, John McCain, John Kasich, who I disagree with on a lot of political things. But they had enough fiber and respect for humanity and tolerance for all groups to say what they said about (Trump)."

Popovich continued, by saying "One could go on and on. We didn't make this stuff up. He's angry at the media because they reported what he said and how he acted. It's ironic to me. It just makes no sense. So that's my real fear. And that's what gives me so much pause and makes me feel so badly, that the country is willing to be that intolerant and not understand the empathy that's necessary to understand other groups' situations.

Popovich was finished – or was he? As he ended his remarks, he had one final thought. He said he was concerned that the United States under a Trump presidency is on the same path as the Roman Empire. "My final conclusion is, my big fear is, we are Rome."

Photos: Courtesy of Google Images.

Taking a stand: On one knee with Colin Kaepernick

Colin Kaepernick (center) kneeled during the playing of the national
anthem before the San Francisco 49ers' preseason game at San Diego.

San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick broke no NFL rules for refusing to stand during the playing of the national anthem before each of his team's recent pre-season games. While pro football players are encouraged to stand, they are not required. 

In a recent interview with the San Francisco Chronicle, Kaepernick said: "When there's significant change and I feel like that flag represents what it's supposed to represent, this country is representing people the way that it's supposed to, I'll stand."

During the 49ers' final pre-season game last Thursday at San Diego, Kaepernick and teammate Eric Reed were observed side by side on one knee during the national anthem. The quarterback said he chose to kneel rather than sit "to show more respect for the men and women for fight for the country."

Kaepernick's actions have been criticized by many as being disrespectful to the United States. "Once again, I'm not anti-American," Kaepernick said last Thursday. "I love America. I love people. That's why I am doing this. I want to help make America better. I think having these conversations helps everybody have a better understanding of where everybody is coming from."

Recently, Kaepernick sat down for a lengthy, 18-minute interview with reporters that allowed the embattled athlete a chance to explain his thinking on the matter, which has been the subject of much discussion in both the news and sports sections of major newspapers across the country, on cable news channels, as well as countless hours devoted to the topic on sports talk radio.

http://www.sfgate.com/49ers/article/49ers-Colin-Kaepernick-transcript-I-ll-9189548.php

Kaepernick will start the 2016 season as his team's second-string quarterback, which he would have been regardless of his recent political activism. He is recovering from an extensive injury which sidelined him for much of last season. If he loses his job and is cut by the 49ers, it will be because of his playing merits not his personal decision to not stand during the national anthem. He has publicly said that the reason for sitting (or in the case of last week taking a knee) through the anthem is a show of protest against racial inequality. 

According to Kaepernick, who is biracial and was adopted by white parents, he said he would not honor a song "nor show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color."

Last week, former NBA great Kareem Abdul-Jabbar wrote an insightful opinion piece that was published in the Washington Post in which he suggested that insulting Kaepernick says more about our patriotism than his. He suggests we should let athletes love their country in their own ways.

"The discussion of the nuances of patriotism is especially important right now, with Trump and Clinton supporters each righteously claiming ownership of the 'most patriotic' label," wrote Abdul-Jabbar. "Patriotism isn't just getting teary-eyed on the Fourth of July or choked up at war memorials. It's supporting what the Fourth of July celebrates and what those war memorials commemorate: the U.S. Constitution's insistence that all people should have the same rights and opportunities and that it is the obligation of the government to make that happen. When the government fails in those obligations, it is the responsibility of patriots to speak up and remind them of their duty."

On Sunday, U.S. international soccer star and Seattle Reign midfielder Megan Rapinoe knelt during the national anthem before her team's match against the Chicago Red Stars in a show of solidarity for Kaepernick. Afterwards, she said her action "was very intentional," and said she plans to continue kneeling before the anthem for the rest of the season.

Rapinoe told American Soccer Now that her gesture was a "little nod to Kaepernick and everything he's standing for now.

"I think it's actually pretty disgusting the way he was treated and the way that a lot of the media has covered it and made it about something that it absolutely isn't. We need to have a more thoughtful, two-sided conversation about racial issues in this county."

Further, Rapinoe said: "Being a gay American, I know what it means to look at the flag and not have it protect all of your liberties. (The gesture) was something small that I could do and something that I plan to keep doing in the future and hopefully spark some meaningful conversation about it.

"It's important to have white people stand in support of people of color on this. We don't need to be the leading voice, of course, but standing in support of them is something that's really powerful."

Having the President's back is something that's really powerful, too. 

On Monday, speaking at a news conference in Hangzhou, China, where he's attending a meeting of Group of 20 countries, President Obama said the 49ers quarterback was "exercising his constitutional right" by refusing to stand during the national anthem. He cited a long history of sports figures who have made political statements. 

"I think he cares about some real, legitimate issues that have to be talked about," said President Obama. "And if nothing else, what he's done is he's generated more conversation around some topics that need to be talked about.

"There are a lot of ways you can do it. As a general matter, when it comes to the flag and the national anthem and the meaning that that holds for our men and women in uniform and those who fought for us – that is a tough thing for them to get past to then hear what his deeper concerns are."

I support Colin Kaepernick's right to protest. I respect a person's ability to act according to their conscience. Looking back, Rosa Parks sat down on a public bus to protest discrimination, and Gandhi walked across India in protest of discrimination. So, why not Kaepernick sitting down during the national anthem in protest of discrimination? After all, when did a non-violent, non-disruptive, non-coercive personal protest against injustice in the United States suddenly become un-American?

Photo: Courtesy of Google Images.

We A.R.E. Pride: Leveling the playing field

We A.R.E. Pride / If you can play, you can play.

It started with a dialogue between rivals on the basketball court, but off it they are athletes reaching equality.

Now, seniors Mikayla Lyles of the University of California, Berkeley and Toni Kokenis of Stanford University are standing front and center, together, creating a shared space for inclusion and a conversation about acceptance.

After all, there is no rivalry in equality.

Lyles, a co-captain of her Cal team, who's been writing an insightful blog for espnW.com this season about her life as a student-athlete, isn't afraid to speak out about social change. She and Kokenis, who was forced to give up basketball after suffering a pair of concussions during her three seasons at Stanford, have worked together for the past five months on a series of programs which were held last week on their respective campuses to connect their schools in support of LGBTQ inclusion in sports called We A.R.E. Pride, Athletes Reaching Equality. 

The Cal & Stanford Edition events also included video documentaries and photo galleries featuring candid shots of recent and current Cal and Stanford student-athletes.

A rivalry of equals / This candid shot featuring
Layshia Clarendon, Mikayla Lyles, Toni Kokenis and Avigiel Cohen
was included in a photo gallery of Cal and Stanford athletes.

"In particular, we wanted to focus on bringing awareness to the inequality of LGBTQ inclusion in sports, with the hopes that if we could prove that two student-athletes could spearhead an initiative such as this, then we could inspire communities, cultures, and generations to take the progression of any inequality into their own hands," Lyles and Kokenis wrote in a welcoming letter that was handed out to forum attendees at both the Field Club in Memorial Stadium at UC Berkeley and Burnham Pavilion at Stanford last week.

"As we have taken the necessary steps to put our vision into fruition," their letter continued, "we have been humbled enough to realize that in order to progress any inequality, one must understand that the fight is bigger than the self. ... No war was ever won by battles fought alone."

In the spring of 2012, Kokenis helped found Stanford Athletes and Allies Together (StAAT), a student group dedicated to supporting LGBTQ and allied athletes. Through her association with StAAT, Kokenis initiated a dialogue with her university's athletic department, which led to "You Can Play," a video which featured 28 Stanford athletes, coaches and administrators. Last summer, after she saw Lyles' participation in a Br{ache The Silence public service announcement that featured former Cal star Layshia Clarendon, she contacted Lyles. Soon after, the two decided to work together on We A.R.E. Pride.

Mikayla Lyles has been
outspoken about inclusion
and acceptance in athletics:
"No war was ever won by
battles fought alone."

While both have been vocal activists on their own campuses, Lyles was instrumental in the idea of bringing two rivals together. "Every school has a rival, but that doesn't mean you can't unite on the ground level, wanting to fight for something together," Lyles told espnW.com's Michelle Smith. "We want to start the conversation because in the athletic culture, there's been a lot of silence to this point. It's been extremely silent."

According to Kokenis, silence isn't equal to acceptance. "The only way to make sports more accepting is to talk about it. I feel like we have perfect opportunities as student-athletes at some of the top schools in the country. Athletics still has to catch up with the rest of the world," she said in an espnW.com interview.

Together, Lyles, an interdisciplinary studies major who is straight and calls herself "naturally an ally, naturally inclusive," and Kokenis, a human biology and sociology major who came out to her teammates before her basketball career was cut short, said they wanted to show that the "essence of tradition and rivalry can be more than just a symbol of competition; it can serve as a platform for unity and progress."

"This isn't about making athletes come out, it's about fostering an environment where it doesn't matter," said Kokenis. "We need to deal with it, instead of pretending it doesn't exist."

Lyles and Kokenis enlisted the support of an impressive group of educators and activists for last week's panel and audience Q & A discussions. The panelists at the UC Berkeley event, which I attended with my wife and friends, included: moderator Pat Griffin, a national LGBTQ and athletics educator and activist; Wade Davis, a nationally recognized speaker, educator and former NFL player; Helen Carroll, director of the National Center for Lesbian Right's Sports Project, which aims to ensure that lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender players, coaches and administrators receive fair and equal treatment free of discrimination; and Nevin Caple, co-founder of Br{ache the Silence, which advances LGBTQ inclusion in sports through professional and college campus integration initiatives and public awareness campaigns.

Griffin asked the panelists questions about LGBTQ inclusion in sports and other issues touched on racism, religion, sexism and homophobia.

A courage of their convictions / Mikayla Lyles (L) and Toni Kokenis
have worked together to connect their respective schools,
Cal and Stanford, in support of LGBTQ inclusion in sports.

Both Lyles and Kokenis were asked about their reasons for their project, and both were frank and eloquent in speaking out about inclusion. According to Lyles, college athletes have a unique voice that needs and should be spoken louder. "Acceptance can be achieved only through understanding, and understanding can be achieved only when athletes speak up to share their opinions on this important social issue," she said. Adds Kokenis: "Acceptance is acceptance. We can leave a legacy of inclusion."

I'm very proud of the leadership that Mikayla and Toni have shown in speaking out about social change -- inclusion and reaching equality -- in athletics. It was a pleasure to be in the UC Berkeley audience of about 200, which included Lyles' basketball teammates and coaches; many male and female Cal student-athletes, alums, and several UC professors and administrators. Hearing Mikayla and Toni speak out and contribute to a lively discussion of these important issues meant a lot and it showed me not only their leadership qualities, but also a courage of their convictions.

In an e-mail sent to event participants last week, Lyles wrote that the panel members were impressed with the Cal and Stanford communities, "and we have all been inspired to continue using student-athletes and rivals as a platform to really bring people together all over the country. ... It is one of my greatest college and life memories that I will never forget.

"The aura you get in a room when you allow people to be completely themselves makes for an experience of human connections; that is incomparable."

Photographs of Mikayla Lyles and Toni Kokenis by Michael Dickens, 2014. Creative images courtesy of We A.R.E. Portrait Gallery (originals by Mollie McClure of McClure Images).