In the realm of sports, Global Blackness emerges as a multidimensional platform for identity formation, resistance, and cultural expression. Rooted in critical theory, this field scrutinizes the intricate dynamics of how Black athletes and communities negotiate the intersecting structures of race, power, and belonging across diverse global landscapes. While global Blackness in sport serves as a vessel for equity and diasporic diversity, it also disrupts dominant narratives by illuminating the multiplicity and heterogeneity of Black experiences in sport. Current studies highlight the encircling challenges Black athletes face throughout historical legacies and contemporary movements, yet there remains an imperative to further comprehend their lived realities worldwide.

This Research Topic aims to extend the working definitions of Blackness within the realm of sports while broadening the analytical borders to cultivate an inclusive space for defining Blackness on a global scale. With varied historical interpretations and oversight of Blackness, researchers have a unique opportunity to foster transnational and amicable progressions in understanding this concept. By prioritizing unity, this Research Topic seeks to bridge the global gaps of Blackness and inspire transnational collaboration where Black individuals from diverse nations can identify commonalities and divergences in their experiences.

Focusing on a global analytical framework, this Research Topic encompasses transnational Blackness in sport through an interdisciplinary lens. We welcome articles addressing, but not limited to, the following themes:
• Black athlete activism in global sport
• Diasporic Blackness in sport
• Colonial legacies and postcolonial analyses in sport
• Critical race theory analyses on Black existence in sport
• Black feminist critique of global Blackness
• Gendered Blackness
• Transnational migration and mobility
• Afrofuturism and sport
• Youth, education, and development of Black athletes, administrators, and communities

Authors should aim to explore themes across historical, contemporary, and speculative futures regarding Blackness in sport, emphasizing equity, resistance, and identity. The collection seeks to engage scholars in a dialogue that is both expansive and deeply rooted in the lived experiences of Blackness, transcending borders and fostering understanding globally.

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Global Black identity and cultural expression through the lens of sport

Topic Coordinator