11 a.m. - 12 noon

Tropic of Football: The Long and Perilous Journey of Samoans to the NFL

with Rob Ruck

Discover how a tiny Pacific archipelago is producing more players—from Troy Polamalu to Marcus Mariota—for the NFL than anywhere else in the world. Football has become the means by which Samoans shout their story to the world. It exemplifies a sporting culture defined by work, competitiveness, and physicality, by allegiance to family and team, and most of all, by commitment to faʻa Samoa, the way of Samoa. But their extraordinary internalization of discipline and warrior self-image makes them especially vulnerable to its pitfalls, including concussions and brain injuries.

Rob Ruck is an historian at the University of Pittsburgh, where he teaches and writes about sport.  He focuses on how people use sport to tell a collective story about who they are to themselves and the world.  His books include Sandlot Seasons: Sport in Black Pittsburgh (1987), The Tropic of Baseball: Baseball in the Dominican Republic (1991), and Raceball: How the Major Leagues Colonized the Black and Latin Game (2011). His documentaries, Kings on the Hill: Baseball’s Forgotten Men (1993) and The Republic of Baseball: Dominican Giants of the American Game (2006), appeared on PBS.  His most recent book is Tropic of Football: The Long and Perilous Journey of Samoans to the NFL.  

Noon to 1 p.m. Bring your lunch, eat with your OLLI friends! We will provide hot and cold drinks.

 1-2:30 pm.

"Body, Sports, and Politics"
Speaker: Andrew Lotz

This lecture will discuss a specific cluster political issues within sports and athletics: gendered divisions within sports (e.g. gender-divided teams vs co-ed), the debate surrounding trans- participation in sport at all levels, and the particular ramifications of transgender athletes in Olympic competition. The discussion will elevate the debate to a critical discussion of the nature of sport itself, and what political outcomes can be possible with changed perspectives on sports, bodies, gender, and political life. 

Andrew Lotz, Ph.D. has a B.A. in Political Science and English Writing from Hope College (Holland, MI) and a Masters and Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Pittsburgh. He currently serves as an Assistant Dean in Arts and Sciences, as well as a Lecturer and Advisor in the Department of Political Science. His work and teaching has focused on the intersection of pop culture and politics, with special attention to Manga comics and the Song of Ice and Fire series (Game of Thrones). His current interest focuses on propaganda and myth and their role in regime support.