Author: Rachel Kaplan
The Olympic Games, a supposedly apolitical symbol of international peace, cooperation and friendly competition, became decidedly political this year.
Before the recent Winter Olympic Games, wounded U.S. soldiers from Iraq and Afghanistan spoke to the U.S. Olympic hockey players in order to inspire them to work well together as a team. The soldiers each “adopted” a certain player from the Olympic team and in exchange for autographed U.S. Olympic hockey jerseys, the soldiers sent American flags that were flown in Iraq and Afghanistan. The Associated Foreign Press reported that some players even received bullets extracted from the soldiers’ wounds, which are said to symbolize the sacrifice that these soldiers made for their country.
Through this seemingly harmless and friendly partnership, however, the U.S. Olympic ice hockey team has shown its support of imperialistic U.S. military tactics in direct contradiction of the peaceful nature of the Olympic games.
According to the official Olympics Web site, the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) goal is to “build a peaceful and better world through sport.” The Olympics are meant to foster friendly competition, forming unity and understanding among nations. Because of this, it is extremely inappropriate for the Olympic athletes to create a partnership with the armed forces. Regardless of its original intentions, the message that the relationship between the troops and the hockey team perpetuates is that war is acceptable. This connection visibly contradicts the peaceful nature and true intentions of the Olympic Games.
As well as fostering peace between countries, the Olympics also seek to encourage patriotism within a country. No other event inspires Americans to yell “USA! USA!” as loudly and proudly as they do in support of their Olympic athletes. At first glance, supporting our troops may appear to be similar to supporting our Olympic athletes because they both are ways to show our patriotism. In reality, we can be patriotic and promote the message of peace while supporting our athletes, but we cannot do so when they partner with the armed forces.
It is necessary here to outline the difference between patriotism and nationalism. Patriotism is exhibited through our exuberant shouts of “USA! USA!” and through pride in our Olympic athletes. Supporting the troops is patriotic, but only if we prioritize the over-arching need for peace. Nationalism, on the other hand, manifests itself in a blind, unquestioning support of imperialistic U.S. military tactics, no matter the reality of the situation in Iraq and Afghanistan. Being patriotic implies our love for our country but, unlike nationalism, it does not imply our loyalty. We can care about our country and choose to represent it without supporting all decisions that it makes. Forming a public relationship with soldiers perpetuates the idea of war during these supposedly peaceful games, damaging our ability to create a peaceful national image.
Connecting the players on the U.S. hockey team to the U.S. military sends the message that the U.S. military is just as important, if not more important, than the promotion of peace. This is the wrong type of patriotism to be showcasing on the international stage, as it gives the impression that the U.S. cannot separate nationalism and patriotism. Our inability to disconnect war from the idea of patriotism sends a message to the world that we as a country are incapable of being peaceful.
By participating in the Olympics, a country is showing that they support the ideal of peace, even if they happen to be at war. The relationship between the U.S. hockey team and wounded American soldiers blatantly counteracts this message. If athletes want to form a connection with our soldiers, it is their right to do so. But the U.S. Olympic team’s sponsorship of such an alliance sends the wrong message to the world. The athletes can do this on their own time, not through the group that represents our country.
Rachel Kaplan is a sophomore sociology major. She can be reached at kaplan@oxy.edu.
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