Hey everyone, you're listening to Code Switch.

I'm B.A. Parker.

To be young and to have principals is a scary thing.

You don't know what the outcome will be, what it'll cost. Today I want to share with you the story of a group of

young black men who paid an immeasurable price for choosing to stand up for themselves.

The Black 14 were football players at the University of

Wyoming back in 1969 and they decided to take a stand against the racist

treatment they were experiencing at a football game and that choice changed their lives forever.

The episode you're about to hear is from the BBC's podcast called Amazing Sport Stories

and it's the first in a special four-part series that I got to

host for them called the Black 14. When you're done with this installment you can

find the rest of the series over the next few weeks on the BBC website or wherever you get your

podcasts. The following podcast contains lived experiences which involve the use of

strong racist language.

For listeners outside of the United States or Canada,

this episode contains many references to football. On this

occasion we aren't talking about the spherical version, it's not soccer. It's American

football, helmets, shoulder pads, and so on.

The gridiron is the term for a football field.

Tony McGee and I are the only two

that were actually in the game that was the catalyst for this whole initiative.

So you're the OG.

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