A new book explores the nuanced history of a city in which Black athletes have been revered and discriminated against in equal measure
When cricket gained popularity in Boston in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Black immigrants from the West Indies became some of the top players. Based in Boston and neighboring Cambridge, their teams competed against all-white squads in the Massachusetts Cricket League. By the early 20th century, Black teams were dominating the league. The 1931 final was played between two such teams – Windsor and Standard.
Not exactly the narrative you may be accustomed to hearing in the land of Dunkin’, Big Papi and Brady, eh? And perhaps not a narrative that fits easily into the story of race and Boston sport, with its recognizable highs (the Boston Celtics drafting the NBA’s first Black player in Chuck Cooper in 1950, and making their longtime star Bill Russell the league’s first Black coach in 1966) and lows (the Boston Red Sox being the last Major League Baseball team to integrate, with Pumpsie Green in 1959).
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