25 at 250: Althea Gibson's winning racket and Muhammad Ali's Olympic torch

0:00Support for Here and Now Anytime comes from MathWorks, creator of MATLAB and Simulink software for technical computing and model based design. MathWorks accelerating the pace of discovery in engineering engineering and engineering. Learn more at mathworks.com. WBWAR Podcasts, Boston. She's always on the attack, always racing around the court. Beautiful athletic figure. And she covers the court with astonishing speed, smashing like, almost like a man and placing her volleys perfectly. Almost like a man? Well, that tape is from 70 years ago or so. How Althea Gibson changed tennis forever.

0:59It's Friday, February 20th, and this is Here and Now anytime from NPR and WBWAR. I'm Chris Bentley.

1:09Today on the show, we continue our series exploring the history of America through 25 objects. It's Black History Month, and the Olympics are going on. So today, we're taking a look at items that shed light on two Black athletes who dared to be great. In a few minutes, we'll hear the story of the Olympic torch that Muhammad Ali used to kick off the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta. It marks a moment of progress, a moment of reflection, a moment of recommitting ourselves to the Olympic values. But first, before Billie Jean King, Arthur Ashe, and the Williams sisters, there was Althea Gibson. Tennis has had many trailblazers, but Gibson was the first person of color in several international tennis tournaments.

2:00In 1950, she became the first black woman to compete in the U.S. National Championships, now called the U.S. Open. She went on to win 11 Grand Slam titles, including Wimbledon in 1957. And her outfit and racket from that historic victory have been donated to the Smithsonian Institution. As part of our look at 25 objects that tell the story of America in partnership with the Smithsonian, Robin Young spoke with Eric Gensch, a curator of sports and entertainment at the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History. I am looking at pictures of the items. We're going to have the pictures at heronow.org.

2:36And just going back, Althea Gibson, born in South Carolina, raised in Harlem, in a 1984 interview now preserved in the American Archive of Public Broadcasting, she said she first got into sports by playing paddle tennis with a friend on a court in front of her parents' stoop. We were the block paddle tennis court occupiers. We would get up in the morning, soon as they lay the court out, we were the first ones on. We stayed on, and we challenged anybody in the block to play us. Nobody would. Oh, look at that. And can you describe a little more about how she went from that stoop in that block? The kid in Harlem, yeah.

3:14Sure. I think her early Paddlewell victory is just an example of how, even from a young age, she was a very gifted athlete. She sounded like she was pretty good at everything, and she was very proud of her football spiral and described herself as a tomboy. So she was a very gifted athlete. Well, she might have been a tough tomboy, but also she had a beauty to her. And in Smithsonian Magazine, there's a great article that describes her playing as she was older at the storied Forest Hills Courts on Long Island. This is 1950. It was then called the U.S. National Championships. Now it's called the U.S.

3:54Open. And then this was a club that barely let any white people in. Never mind. Blacks were completely barred. But they had to allow her in to compete along with supporters from Harlem. The picture is incredible of her walking in her tennis whites. Just talk more about what she encountered on her way up. Well, I would say that getting to that point was helped by members of the Black community and from white women that were part of the tennis establishment advocating for helping her career and getting her into the door. I would say that that was one of the many steps that Gibson took as a pioneer.

4:36She was definitely one of one in many of the events and things that she did in her life. But one thing that I think resonates in everything she does is she was an individual, first and foremost, who knew her talents and worth. You couldn't use an argument that she wasn't good enough. Well, she, as a female tennis player, had overcome so much more. She was relegated to like backcourts. Reporter Lester Rodney, and again, this is the Smithsonian Magazine terrific article, writes, in many ways, it was even a tougher personal Jim Crow busting assignment than was Jackie Robinson's when he first stepped out of the Brooklyn Dodgers dugout.

5:17That's an amazing comparison, you know, that it was harder for Althea Gibson than Jackie Robinson. Yeah, I wouldn't want to compare their experiences because I'm sure it was very difficult on both ends. I will say that baseball probably had a much stronger internal structure. It was professional. There were a lot of people knocking on the door to follow Robinson. And Gibson was pretty much like a pioneer, a one-of-one. She was the person who not only integrated tennis championships in America, not only won Wimbledon, but she broke the color barrier in international tennis. She was the first person of color in the French Open.

5:59She was the first person of color in the Australian Open. So her whole life was kind of being the representative, the first person into all these formally enclosed spaces. Well, not only that. After retiring from tennis, she picked up golf and broke the color barrier at the LPGA. You have a tennis racket from her. It's kind of sweet to see these old brown wooden rackets. I'm sure, you know, you have people coming in just to see this. What impact does this have on people? I think people are a little, still a little surprised with the story. Gibson, unlike Robinson, perhaps had to wait longer for the American public as a whole to really recognize her achievements.

6:47And I've noticed over the years there's been a lot more interest in her story. Currently, we have objects that were donated by Gibson to us in our Entertainment Nation exhibit. And we know that people really get excited about him and take pictures next to him and understand the importance of her groundbreaking achievements. Yeah. To America, Eric Jentz, curator of sports and entertainment at the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History. Eric, thank you so much. Oh, thank you.

7:22coming up next Peter O'Dowd looks back at a moment in Olympic history imbued with the spirit of one of the country's greatest athletes of all time Muhammad Ali stick around

7:48Thank you.

8:18and your budget, and they work for you for free. Get the right life insurance for you and save more than 50 % at selectquote.com slash anytime. That's 50 % off at selectquote.com slash anytime. Athletes from around the world are in Italy for the Olympic Games, chasing medals, and a place in history. But nearly 30 years ago at the Summer Games in Atlanta, one of the most unforgettable Olympic moments didn't happen in a competition. But look who gets it next. The greatest. That's when boxing great Muhammad Ali appeared at the opening ceremony carrying the Olympic torch. His arm trembled from Parkinson's as he lit the cauldron.

9:02Dick Enberg, along with Bob Costas, were broadcasting for NBC. Once the most dynamic figure in sports, a gregarious man, now trapped inside that mask created by Parkinson's syndrome. So in one sense, a poignant figure, but look at him. Still a great, great presence. Today, a torch from those Olympics, signed by Ali, is on display at the Smithsonian Institution. It's one of 25 objects that we're learning more about to celebrate the country's 250th birthday. Damian Thomas is sports curator at the National Museum of African American History and Culture. Damian, welcome. Thanks for having me. Ali was once one of the loudest voices in sports, but in 1996, at that point, he was struggling with Parkinson's, as we heard on the archival tape there.

9:51He'd largely dropped out of public life. How did this moment, him standing there, lighting the torch, even happen? I think it's important to remember that the 96 games in Atlanta are all about looking back at America's history. 30 years after the civil rights movement, Atlanta was inviting the world to come back to the deep south and to think about the lessons of that time period and to see the progress that the nation had made in race relations. In some ways, there is no better person to choose than Muhammad Ali, who in the mid-1960s was perhaps, probably along with Dr. King, the most hated man in America.

10:39And so by 1996, he becomes one of the most beloved figures in American society, not because he changed, but because we changed and grew as a society. He was hated, I think you're referring to the fact, in 1967, he was banned from boxing for refusing the draft in the Vietnam War. He then returned to the ring in 1970 in Atlanta, coincidentally, reignited his career. And then as you say, in 1996, he's back in Atlanta for the Olympics. How did that reframe his own legacy? Well, in some ways, I'm actually referring to events before 1967. We go back to 1964 when he wins the title and comes out as a member of the Nation of Islam and rejects integration.

11:29that's a seminal moment in our larger discussion about civil rights, access, inequality in the United States. It was a position that was not only unpopular in white America, it was also a position that black America looked at with a bit of trepidation because the civil rights movement was about integration. It was about creating an opportunity. It was about moving forward. And Muhammad Ali, when he became heavyweight champion, rejected those ideals. And so that's the moment where Ali becomes a deeply political and deeply polarizing figure. That intensifies in 1967 when he refuses to be drafted for Vietnam.

12:21Now, decades later, as he's standing there in the Olympic Stadium, I'm just thinking about the amount of personal bravery it must have taken for a man who was known for his physical prowess to emerge like that, to fight with his body, to hold the torch. Do you see that? Certainly there's a lot of bravery to present himself like that, but he was often someone who was willing to kind of be vulnerable, open up his doors to talk to people, to engage, and to reveal who he was. So I'm not surprised by the fact that he decided to take part in this moment. How else do you think the torch adds to the story of the United States 250 years after it was born?

13:07I think it's important to reflect on this particular torch because the Atlanta games are so important in American history. It marks a moment of progress, a moment of reflection, a moment of of recommitting ourselves to the Olympic values. And so for me, it's a moment that signifies that America is both committed to our ideals of freedom, democracy, and liberty, but also to the Olympic ideas of collaboration, of friendliness, and getting along as a collection of nations and human beings. Damian Thomas, sports curator at the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture. Thank you so much.

14:02Thank you. We've got to take one more short break, and we'll be right back.

14:13And while we've been looking back on American history, it continues to be written every day, of course. If that reflection on the 1996 Atlanta Games has you hankering for more Olympics news, you can find lots of it at hereandnow.org. With coverage of curling, skiing, and more, we've got a rare glimpse into what China is paying its Olympic athletes, including American-born Eileen Gu. That's at hereandnow.org. We're also digging into how cuts to Medicaid are hitting rural healthcare. Rural hospitals have struggled economically for years. Many have closed, leaving people with few or no options for healthcare within an hour's drive or more.

14:56But things could get even worse. Last summer, Republicans in Congress approved major cuts to Medicaid, a trillion dollars over the next 10 years. And it's especially acute in rural areas, where the government is cutting$137 billion. But that same law also gave states$50 billion to roll out new technology like telehealth, and what Trump administration official Mehmet Oz described as having robots do ultrasounds on pregnant moms. Dr. Kia Parsi, who runs Texas A &M's Rural and Community Health Institute, talked to Peter O'Dowd about rural health. He evoked Charles Dickens and called this the best of times, the worst of times.

15:40With Medicaid cuts, which go on forever, there's no time limit on the decreased eligibility for marketplace and Medicaid, that the dollars will be lost for an extended period of time. But then you have the$50 billion over the next five years, which is one of the largest investments for rural that I think I've seen in my lifetime. So why don't you talk about that money? Are you seeing any promising signs that that money might actually help make a difference? I think the challenges will be with this set amount of money, what can you do that is sustainable and will help these rural hospitals and clinics stay open with decreased funding?

16:27Plus, the money runs out in five years, right? Is that a concern? Well, that's why you have to create initiatives that at the end of the five years are still sustainable. And, you know, you have the deficit that potentially can occur from the Medicaid and marketplace funding issues. So you have to create something that is innovative but also can help you stay open after the five years. Doctor, I'm thinking about the person in a small town in Texas who needs to see a cardiologist and doesn't know where to go. So it's always been a challenge in a small town. I know that. But with these Medicaid cuts and this new funding system, do you think the situation will be made even worse for that person who desperately needs to see a doctor?

17:11Well, for that person that needs to see a cardiologist, there are no cardiologists in that rural community today or yesterday. Now, one of the things from the Texas set of initiatives, there is a focus on telehealth. So create statewide telehealth capabilities that now that person living in that rural community can potentially see a cardiologist through telehealth. But I've been to a cardiologist. I know you've got to get an echocardiogram. Someone's got to do that for you. You might need a stress test to put you on a treadmill. You can't do that over Zoom. And right now you can't do that in most of these rural communities.

17:48I mean, you just don't have that access. So often individuals in rural communities will have to go to an urban area. I guess decreasing the amount of visits, also thinking about patients with cancers or oncology issues and needing infusion therapy weekly. If you could see the oncologist at the urban site, but then have some of your treatments and lab tests at that rural site, it's much easier for that patient that's currently suffering. There's more to that story, including the big picture for Medicaid cuts and more about the harsh realities of rural health care. You can find that whole conversation and a lot more at hereandnow.org.

18:28That's H-E-R-E and now.org.

18:34But that'll do it for the show today. Here and Now Anytime comes from NPR and WBUR Boston. Today's stories were produced by Will Walkie and Jill Ryan. Our editors were Todd Munt, Michael Scotto, and Kat Welch. Technical direction from Caleb Green and Matt Reed. Our theme music is by Mike Moschetto, Max Liebman, and me, Chris Bentley. Our digital producers are Alison Hagen and Grace Griffin. And here at now's executive producer is Alan Price. Thanks for listening. Have a great weekend, and we'll be back with you on Monday.

19:22Thank you.