Long Island University Blackbirds’ Boycott of 1936 Berlin Olympics Resonates Today
Top-ranked basketball stars refused to compete in Nazi Germany, sacrificing their Olympic dreams to uphold their principles

Brooklyn, N.Y.-- When the U.S. Olympic Committee decided to participate in the 1936 Berlin Olympics, they didn’t speak for a certain university team in the heart of Brooklyn. Long Island University’s top-ranked basketball team refused to compete in the Olympics because the games were being held in Nazi Germany.

Basketball had just become an Olympic sport, and the top college hoops programs in the country were invited to vie for the honor of representing the United States at the Berlin Olympics. The Blackbirds had won 33 straight games over a two-year period under legendary basketball coach and innovator Clair Bee. A Division I powerhouse, they were considered to be a sure bet to represent the United States and odds-on favorites to win medals.

The team (comprised of Jews, Protestants and Catholics) met in Coach Clair Bee’s office to vote on whether or not to participate. Olympic glory was tantalizingly within reach, but they decided that if, given the world situation, one man’s conscience told him he couldn’t see fit to attend, the whole team would not go. More than one player voted to boycott, and the team united in support of that decision. They sacrificed their Olympic dreams to uphold their principles.

Coach Clair Bee stood beside his men, and Dean Tristram Walker Metcalfe not only stood beside them but pointedly and proudly spoke for them. He announced that the Blackbirds “had decided not to compete because the university would not under any circumstances be represented in Olympic Games held in Germany.” Other universities also declined to participate, but Long Island University was the only one to actually cite the political situation in Germany as the reason for the decision.

The players who made this bold statement were Ben Kramer, Marius Russo, Jules Bender, Ken Norton, Leo Merson, Arthur Hillhouse, Bill Schwarz and Harry Grant. After graduating from Long Island University, six of them went on to build careers in athletics.

Russo became a pitching ace for the New York Yankees. His daughter, Marian Markovich of Fort Myers, Fla., carries on his spirit of social consciousness—she has been active in the recent protest against China’s cancellation of a visa for a former Olympic athlete who criticized China’s role in Darfur.

Bender, Hillhouse, Kramer and Merson played basketball professionally in the American Basketball League, the top pro league in the East at the time. Hillhouse also played professionally as part of the Basketball Association of America, the forerunner of the NBA, while Ken Norton became a prominent college basketball coach (Manhattan College).

In an era where the potential for securing big-bucks sponsorship deals seems to dictate many athletes’ career decisions, this Olympic season offers a great opportunity to reflect on a time when giants on the court used their conscience as their guide.

Posted: August 21, 2008

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