This article is reprinted with permission from the August 2002 issue of American Renaissance, P.O. Box 527, Oakton, VA 22124; $28 for one year of monthly issues. Website: www.AmRen.com.
Matt Bruno Wins the Dashes
Whites find they care about race after all
by Roger McGrath
Black fans were noticeably worried about the white sprinter from Orange County. He had won his heats the day before, and had recorded the day's fastest time in the 100 at 10.40 and the second fastest in the 200 at 21.02. He was assigned lane five, the premier position, for the 100 meter final. As the runners took their lanes and began positioning their starting blocks, the tension in the stands mounted. A runner took a practice start. Then another sped out of the blocks. Several more did the same. Then Mr. Bruno exploded from the blocks with such quickness that the crowd began buzzing. A black spectator, referring to Mr. Bruno's well defined, muscular legs, exclaimed, "That boy's ripped!"Â Everyone, black or white, seemed to be thinking, "Can the white kid do it?"Â
The black runners appeared relaxed and confident after completing their practice starts. They chatted amiably with each other, punctuating their conversations with a hand or arm gesture. Mr. Bruno, his jaw clenched, paced back and forth by his blocks. A fan commented, "He looks like a caged tiger."Â When the starter called the runners to their marks, Mr. Bruno clearly stood out. To his left were four black sprinters. To his right were four more. His brown hair, blue eyes, and very fair skin only made the contrast sharper.
When the gun went off, Mr. Bruno burst out of the blocks into an immediate lead. At the 50-meter mark he was two meters ahead of the pack, his knees high, accelerating into a headwind. A huge roar rose from the spectators and continued as Bruno raced down the track and hit the tape well ahead of his nearest competitor. People were now standing on the bench seats, yelling, stamping their feet, and applauding. When the new state champion made his way back past the grandstands to collect his sweats, a group of friends began chanting, "Bruuu "¦no "¦Bruuu "¦no "¦Bruuu "¦no." The crowd joined in and the stadium rocked. At least most of it rocked. Black spectators were conspicuously subdued. Some appeared sullen. If white spectators had behaved in a similar manner in the face of a black victory, the scene probably would have been featured on the nightly news with the headline, "Racist Reaction."Â
Although Mr. Bruno was well off his best time, his 10.55 into the wind was two tenths of a second better than second place, a stunning margin of victory in California state finals. Speculation now focused on how he would do, with his short, powerful legs, in the longer 200 meters, which favors a long, flowing stride. By the time the runners were taking their marks, fifty minutes later, black spectators had recovered somewhat from the shock of the white sprinter not just winning but demolishing the field in the 100. Many black fans were now loudly voicing support for their favorites in the 200, one or another of the black sprinters.
The start of the 200 looked like a replay of the 100. Mr. Bruno blew out of the blocks and made up the stagger on two of the runners on the curve to his outside before the race was more than 20 meters old. Another 20 meters and he caught the remaining two runners who had a stagger advantage. Those runners on his inside, meanwhile, had gained little ground. Coming off the turn, Mr. Bruno had a solid lead. The crowd was again roaring. Could he hold the lead all the way to the tape? One black sprinter in the middle of the straight closed to within a couple of meters but then could gain no more. Mr. Bruno won in a 20.82, the fourth fastest prep time in the nation this year. Second place was more than a tenth behind and third place more than three tenths.
Again the white fans roared their approval and again the black fans were uncharacteristically quiet. Blacks are not afraid to express their support for black athletes and even proclaim racial solidarity with their black brothers. Whites, on the other hand, have been conditioned over the last several decades to suppress, at least in public, the same natural feeling-an affinity for people who look, sound, and act like themselves. The eruption of cheers and thunderous applause for Mr. Bruno suggests that the warped attempt at conditioning whites to behave in an unnatural, and ultimately self-destructive, manner has not entirely succeeded. White fans saw a kid who looked like their son, or brother, or how they remembered themselves in high school-and they roared.
With his victories Matt Bruno became the first white sprinter to win both dashes at the state track championships since the legendary Forrest Beaty did so as a 16-year-old junior in 1961. Mr. Bruno, a fine student as well as an outstanding athlete, has accepted a track scholarship to attend UCLA.
Mr. McGrath was a spectator at the championships.
pictured: The finish of the 100 meters
Matt Bruno Wins the Dashes
Whites find they care about race after all
by Roger McGrath
Black fans were noticeably worried about the white sprinter from Orange County. He had won his heats the day before, and had recorded the day's fastest time in the 100 at 10.40 and the second fastest in the 200 at 21.02. He was assigned lane five, the premier position, for the 100 meter final. As the runners took their lanes and began positioning their starting blocks, the tension in the stands mounted. A runner took a practice start. Then another sped out of the blocks. Several more did the same. Then Mr. Bruno exploded from the blocks with such quickness that the crowd began buzzing. A black spectator, referring to Mr. Bruno's well defined, muscular legs, exclaimed, "That boy's ripped!"Â Everyone, black or white, seemed to be thinking, "Can the white kid do it?"Â
The black runners appeared relaxed and confident after completing their practice starts. They chatted amiably with each other, punctuating their conversations with a hand or arm gesture. Mr. Bruno, his jaw clenched, paced back and forth by his blocks. A fan commented, "He looks like a caged tiger."Â When the starter called the runners to their marks, Mr. Bruno clearly stood out. To his left were four black sprinters. To his right were four more. His brown hair, blue eyes, and very fair skin only made the contrast sharper.
When the gun went off, Mr. Bruno burst out of the blocks into an immediate lead. At the 50-meter mark he was two meters ahead of the pack, his knees high, accelerating into a headwind. A huge roar rose from the spectators and continued as Bruno raced down the track and hit the tape well ahead of his nearest competitor. People were now standing on the bench seats, yelling, stamping their feet, and applauding. When the new state champion made his way back past the grandstands to collect his sweats, a group of friends began chanting, "Bruuu "¦no "¦Bruuu "¦no "¦Bruuu "¦no." The crowd joined in and the stadium rocked. At least most of it rocked. Black spectators were conspicuously subdued. Some appeared sullen. If white spectators had behaved in a similar manner in the face of a black victory, the scene probably would have been featured on the nightly news with the headline, "Racist Reaction."Â
Although Mr. Bruno was well off his best time, his 10.55 into the wind was two tenths of a second better than second place, a stunning margin of victory in California state finals. Speculation now focused on how he would do, with his short, powerful legs, in the longer 200 meters, which favors a long, flowing stride. By the time the runners were taking their marks, fifty minutes later, black spectators had recovered somewhat from the shock of the white sprinter not just winning but demolishing the field in the 100. Many black fans were now loudly voicing support for their favorites in the 200, one or another of the black sprinters.
The start of the 200 looked like a replay of the 100. Mr. Bruno blew out of the blocks and made up the stagger on two of the runners on the curve to his outside before the race was more than 20 meters old. Another 20 meters and he caught the remaining two runners who had a stagger advantage. Those runners on his inside, meanwhile, had gained little ground. Coming off the turn, Mr. Bruno had a solid lead. The crowd was again roaring. Could he hold the lead all the way to the tape? One black sprinter in the middle of the straight closed to within a couple of meters but then could gain no more. Mr. Bruno won in a 20.82, the fourth fastest prep time in the nation this year. Second place was more than a tenth behind and third place more than three tenths.
Again the white fans roared their approval and again the black fans were uncharacteristically quiet. Blacks are not afraid to express their support for black athletes and even proclaim racial solidarity with their black brothers. Whites, on the other hand, have been conditioned over the last several decades to suppress, at least in public, the same natural feeling-an affinity for people who look, sound, and act like themselves. The eruption of cheers and thunderous applause for Mr. Bruno suggests that the warped attempt at conditioning whites to behave in an unnatural, and ultimately self-destructive, manner has not entirely succeeded. White fans saw a kid who looked like their son, or brother, or how they remembered themselves in high school-and they roared.
With his victories Matt Bruno became the first white sprinter to win both dashes at the state track championships since the legendary Forrest Beaty did so as a 16-year-old junior in 1961. Mr. Bruno, a fine student as well as an outstanding athlete, has accepted a track scholarship to attend UCLA.
Mr. McGrath was a spectator at the championships.
pictured: The finish of the 100 meters
