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The boys and girls teams from Mendocino (CA) High School had worn the shirts, which bear a slogan that has become a rallying cry in nationwide protests against police killings of unarmed black men, before previous games. But the principal and athletic director at Fort Bragg High School, the tournament host, decided that the teams could not play in the tournament unless they agreed not to wear the shirts during it.

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Politicians are getting fat off the destruction of the lives of young black men and women, who are the overwhelming victims of American policing and unjust practices of the judicial system. "Broken windows" policing has criminalized entire communities, leading to thousands of frivolous arrests that ruin people’s lives.

“This is a history making moment,” Eric Garner’s mother, Gwen Carr, tells protestors. “It’s just so overwhelming to see all who have come to stand with us. Look at the masses ­ black, white, all races, all religions … we need to stand like this at all times."

The shift of capital from housing, jobs, education, to profitable arenas has meant there are huge numbers of people everywhere in the world who are not able to sustain themselves. They are made surplus, and as a result they are often forced to engage in practices that are deemed criminal. And so prisons pop up all over the world, often with the assistance of private corporations who profit from these surplus populations.

This movement is not only explicitly about the right to live a life with more opportunity, but the right to simply live. As Howard Zinn said, "You can't be neutral on a moving train." The train is leaving the station, even in the world of sports. The marches in the streets are not done. The die-ins disrupting traffic are not done. And, as part of this moment, athletes are speaking out, with African American sports stars in the lead.

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