Jesse Owens' friends, coaches, trainers, and even some family members did not want him to go to Berlin and compete in the 1936 Olympics.
Every major Nazi party member said that under no circumstances should Jews or blacks be able to participate in the games. Facing an Olympic boycott from viturally every major western nation, the Nazi party backed down, and said they'd accept black and Jewish men and women for the games. Naturally, those close to Jesse were afraid for him and his life.
Day one in the newly created 100,000 seat Nazi track and field stadium; The Nazis had created such a state of the art complex it was making the 1932 games in Los Angeles look, well .... crappy.
Hitler marches in, shakes hands with the medal winning athletes of the Third Reich, ignores all the other athletes, and marches out.
The IOC promptly sends a telegram to Hitler, "shake hands with every medal winning athlete or none at all". Hitler goes with the latter.
Jesse Owens meanwhile goes on to win four gold medals. One of those medals was from the 4 x 100 relay, Jesse was a late addition after Team USA decided to remove one of the Jewish sprinters from the team. Team USA was worried about Hitler's reaction if his team was beaten by a team with a Jew.
When asked about all these experiences later, Jesse Owens gave some interesting comments.
When asked how he felt about being snubbed by Hitler and getting no hand shake, he said that Hitler never snubbed him. He even said Hitler waved to him.
Then he said he waved back.
Then, he said that in fact, the one who snubbed him worse than any other person was FDR.
Why would a Black American track and field superstar take a question that was designed to allow him to insult Hitler and turn it around, not only refusing to insult Hitler but using the same question to insult the President?
It turns out, after his fourth gold medal, Hitler sent Jesse Owens a photograph of himself as a gift. It probably did not go immediately to the center of Jesse's mantle, but it was recognition. In fact, while he was in Germany, Owens was allowed to stay in the same hotels as the white members of Team USA, something he couldn't do in most American hotels the team traveled to.
When NYC had the post Olympic ticker tape parade, Jesse had to use the freight elevator at the Waldorf, while the white athletes took the guest elevator.
A photograph and wave from Hitler, nothing from FDR.
No picture, no letter, no telegram, no White House invite.
When Jesse was in Berlin he was asked to become the first black athlete with a shoe sponsorship; by a german man who represented a company named Adidas.
In the USA, Jesse would find no sponsorships.
In Berlin, Luz Long, a Nazi long jumper, gave Jesse several tips and pointers that Jesse said helped him win that event. The two even posed for a photo together. (above)
In the US, athletic officials removed Jesse's amateur status when he tried to take advantage of several commercial offers. The removal of his amateur status effectively ended his career.
Jesse Owens went to his grave telling anyone who would care to listen that Adolf Hitler gave him more respect than Franklin D. Roosevelt ever did.
The truth is, when we're looking for acceptance, for comfort, for recognition, and we can't find those things anywhere, we'll take them from whoever gives them, even from the devil.
People turn to gangs, cults, or live action role playing groups because these places offer the exact feelings those people feel like they're missing.
One place they're likely to not turn is a church.
Non church-goers don't view church as a place to find the feelings they're missing, they see it as a place that will likely be most interested with telling them how, why, and when to change.
The formula should be, meet the person, discern the need, figure out how to meet the need.
Churches however, ususally run with a different idea, meet the person, discern what changes they need to make, convince them to change, call that a victory.
It's no surprise then, that those people will shy away from any church, or religion all together.
Why would I go to a church that treats me as if I need to use the freight elevator?
The tragedy is that churches are intented to meet needs, that's what they're supposed to do. So when they don't, it's painful.
A "snub" from FDR hurts a lot more than a snub from Hitler.
PS: Live action role playing groups are probably not all that bad, though this writer cannot be sure, having never been a part of one.
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