What the Olympics Taught Us About Us

Notes from America with Kai Wright

WNYC Studios

News Commentary, Politics, History, News

4.4 • 1.5K Ratings

🗓️ 9 August 2021

⏱️ 51 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

If sports are a metaphor for life, what are they telling us about our society right now? Dave Zirin, sports editor for The Nation, and author of ten books on the politics of sports, joins Kai to talk about the “Pandemic Games,” the peril of chasing perfection, and just how much has changed since the 2020 summer of activism in big league sports. Plus, the hard conversation so many of us are avoiding: Executive producer Veralyn Williams gets advice from WNYC’s health and science editor Nsikan Akpan on how to talk with loved ones who refuse the Covid vaccine. Companion listening for this episode: Serving Up Social Justice (09/14/2020) Despite empty stands, athletes are making waves across the sports industry speaking out against anti-black violence. Many Americans support, but not everyone is a fan. What Covid Revealed A curation of our episodes on the hard lessons of this pandemic -- and on the opportunities it offers for transforming our lives and our society. “The United States of Anxiety” airs live on Sunday evenings at 6pm ET. The podcast episodes are lightly edited from our live broadcasts. To catch all the action, tune into the show on Sunday nights via the stream on WNYC.org/anxiety or tell your smart speakers to play WNYC. We want to hear from you! Connect with us on Twitter @WNYC using the hashtag #USofAnxiety or email us at [email protected].

Transcript

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0:00.0	This is the United States of Anxiety, a show about the unfinished business of our history and its
0:07.1	grip on our future.
0:08.1	It is a battle here in Tokyo, a battle to keep coronavirus out of the Olympics, but every day we're hearing about new cases.
0:15.9	No spectators allowed inside venues to cheer on athletes.
0:19.5	Even in Japan, there was never 100% support of Olympic Games or of any other event.
0:27.0	We are 18-8.
0:31.0	We are raising a generation of weak people like
0:36.7	Simone Bines. Trenton native, Athing Mo, is taking home an Olympic gold medal.
0:41.5	The Congress argued, hosting the games does very little for the betterment of a city.
0:45.1	That delta variant.
0:46.6	It can infect twice as many people as the original strain of COVID.
0:50.5	An Olympics like no other. In a time like no other.
0:57.0	Welcome to the show. I'm Kay Wright.
1:00.2	Tokyo Olympics held its closing ceremony earlier today.
1:03.2	It'll be on TV later tonight here in the US,
1:06.0	wrapping up an Olympic Games that was by all accounts
1:09.4	every bit as strange and off-kilter as everything else about life right now. The name said
1:16.2	it all. Tokyo 2020, it is of course 2021, but the games remain defiantly branded for last year and there's something about this effort to go back in time and reclaim what we lost while somehow still moving forward that says everything about where we are right now.
1:36.7	Just a dissonance that feels omnipresent.
1:40.4	So if sport is a metaphor for life, as it is often said, what can we learn about ourselves from the world of sports right now?
1:47.0	About a year ago I talked to sports columnist Dave Zyrin about the eruption of political activism in sports.
1:54.2	And this week feels like a good time to check back in with our friend Dave and see what, if anything,
	...

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