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Al Davis Research Paper

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Al Davis once said, “We all know time never really stops for the great ones. It reaches out and wraps them in a cloak of immortality” (“10 quotes that demonstrate Al Davis’ commitment to excellence”). Although Al Davis is best known for his incredible career in professional football, he played a big role in the civil rights movement leading to the advancement of many human rights in the NFL. Growing up, Al Davis had barely any experience coaching football. Yet, after graduating from Syracuse University, he was given his first coaching job, which led to one of the most successful careers in the NFL of all time. He became the head coach and general manager of the Oakland Raiders in 1963, where he ended up winning 3 super bowl championships. Al …show more content…

He changed the landscape of the NFL since many others began to follow Becker. Amy Trask, Raiders first female chief executive, told the New York Times that, “He wasn’t doing it for style points or political correctness points. He hired the way we hope everybody would hire. He didn’t understand or care about the significance of what he was doing. He did it because it was the right thing to do (Kantowski). Al Davis was unfazed by what others thought of him and his ideas. He had his eyes on one goal, and did whatever was necessary in order to achieve that goal. Art Shell’s hiring back in 1989 resulted in many black coaches being hired throughout the NFL. For instance, as of 2023, two thirds of the Pittsburgh Steelers coaching staff are considered people of color, including black head coach Mike Tomlin (usatoday.com). Al Davis always believed in equal opportunity for everyone, resulting in him having a large impact on human rights. Lastly, Al Davis organized many peaceful protests against segregation throughout his time as general manager of the …show more content…

Davis stood by his players side and forced the game to be moved to Oakland (Becker). Also, in 1965, Davis won the “AFL All-Star Game” and moved from New Orleans to Houston after the team faced flagrant discrimination. Cab drivers outside of the New Orleans airport refused to drive the Black players to their hotel, telling them that they had to find "a colored cab" (Robertson). Following this event, Davis established a policy that the Raiders would not play in cities where black players were segregated to different hotels (Robertson). He recognized a problem and found a solution to it. The Raiders establishing this policy resulted in the league eventually ending segregation as a whole. Al Davis’ determined acts helped create change within the civil rights movement, ultimately advancing human rights. Being the first general manager to draft many black players, hire a female chief executive, a black head coach, and a Latino head coach, and organize many peaceful protests with the ultimate goal of ending segregation, Al Davis was a main contributor in numerous human rights

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