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    • Clark and Mahomes look back on the Michael Jordan era of athlete activism
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    Clark and Mahomes look back on the Michael Jordan era of athlete activism

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    Not every athlete can be LeBron James or Megan Rapinoe.

    Remember Michael Jordan’s comment about Republicans buying shoes? There’s a long history of athletes putting as much distance between themselves and controversy as possible, and what Caitlin Clark and Patrick Mahomes did this week was no different.

    When asked about Wednesday’s upcoming presidential election and who they might support, Clark and Mahomes dodged the question and instead found safe harbor in encouraging people to register and vote.

    “It’s more than nothing, but it doesn’t put them on the front lines of the discussion,” said David Niven, an associate professor of political science at the University of Cincinnati who teaches a course on sports and politics.

    “If you look at all of this by the standards of LeBron James, someone who couldn’t have been more outspoken … this seems a little bit like a retreat,” Niven said. “If you look at it by the standards of Derek Jeter and Michael Jordan, you’d say there’s still a lot of political activism.”

    Today, athletes’ involvement in politics is taken for granted. James appeared alongside Hillary Clinton in 2016 and helped found a group four years ago that works to protect black voting rights. Rapinoe was an early supporter of Joe Biden, even jokingly offering to be his running mate.

    As a collective, the WNBA captured the U.S. Senate in 2020. This year, the league used the Commissioner’s Cup to raise money for voting and reproductive rights.

    But this widespread political interference, especially by individual athletes, is a relatively new phenomenon.

    As notable as their activism was, Muhammad Ali, James Brown and Billie Jean King were outliers. Star athletes were far more likely to follow the lead of Jordan, Jeter and Tiger Woods, who specifically avoided doing or saying anything that might alienate their fans or, perhaps more importantly, their sponsors.

    “There is absolutely a risk in getting involved,” said Niven, who studied the subsequent contracts of NFL players who knelt in protest of police brutality against black people and people of color and found they were worth less than those of comparable players who did not protest.

    “There are very real costs associated with expressing your opinions or acting on your beliefs.”

    Clark’s Instagram account is now filled with nasty comments from so-called fans angry that she liked Taylor Swift’s post supporting Kamala Harris. Mahomes is facing backlash from people who want him to distance himself from his wife’s (supposed) political beliefs and people who are angry that he didn’t defend them.

    However, this is not just a matter of pissing off a few of your fans. There are a significant number of people in this country who have lost their minds, and it is understandable if athletes are afraid that the price of speaking out now could be their safety.

    Does that sound alarming to you? Springfield, Ohio, City Hall had to be evacuated on Thursday after a bomb threat was sparked by racist lies being spread by Donald Trump and his running mate, J.D. Vance.

    At the same time, top athletes know that they cannot… not just say something.

    Clark, in particular, is playing in a league where politics and taking a stand on issues are as fundamental as defending the lockdown. When the choice for president is between a former prosecutor and a woman of color who is a fierce advocate for reproductive freedom versus a serial con artist who boasts about overturning Roe v. Wade and has a history of racist behavior, it was only a matter of time before the game’s biggest star was asked to weigh in.

    By encouraging people to register and vote, Clark and Mahomes were able to say something without putting themselves in danger.

    “It’s kind of a split-the-difference thing,” Niven said. “There’s something whole and a little bit of safety to it.”

    Elite athletes are born with unique physical gifts and a unique dedication. Moral courage is something they have to find for themselves, and this week was a reminder that not many do.

    Follow USA TODAY Sports columnist Nancy Armour on social media @nrarmour.

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