To echo CanadaSucks: This ... appalling ??? Smith and Carlos recognized the politics at work in the Games, and they used the opportunity well to make an important political point. As recounted in Dave Zirin's Welcome to the Terrordome, the wonderful thing about the moment is that the white Australian silver medalist, Peter Norman (may he rest in peace), was just as much a supporter of the gesture as Smith and Carlos. He stood up there with them, wearing a badge in support, and got roasted over the coals by the Australian government in retaliation for it. To this day, the two Black Panthers point out that Peter Norman was just as courageous as they were. He would have done the salute, too, but the spectacle of a white guy raising his fist in support of the Panthers would have made the moment look really silly ...