WOMEN AND BASKETBALL

During the first half of the 20th century, gender discrimination prevented most women from participating in areas traditionally dominated by men, and basketball was no exception. Among the earliest all-black, all-female basketball clubs were the Philadelphia Tribune Girls, founded in 1931 and led by Ora Washington, and the Chicago Romas.

The Romas, who played against both male and female teams, never lost a game after World War II (1939-1945). Corinne Robinson, Mignon Burns, Lillian Ross, Virginia Willis, Lola Porter, and Isadore Channels were among the Roma standouts. Although black women continued to play basketball throughout the 1930s and 1940s, they were unable to enjoy many of the opportunities that the game afforded black men, including national recognition and significant salaries.

By contrast, African American men could learn basketball as adolescents and play in organized leagues through high school and college, and, more importantly, a few could look forward to a professional career.

Although they could not play on teams with white men, they did compete against them. Interconference leagues fostered intense competition between all-black and all-white squads, and the stakes often went beyond numbers in the win-loss column. For instance, in 1951 the city of Indianapolis, Indiana, was riveted by a semifinal high school game between the all-white Anderson Indians and the all-black Crispus Attucks Tigers.

Anderson was the city favorite, and the school hoped to win its fourth state title. But the Tigers forced the game down to the wire, and a last minute shot by Bailey "Flap" Robertson brought the Anderson Indians to their knees and the black community in Indianapolis to their feet. The victory said much more about basketball than the final score of 81-80. The game was a symbolic dialogue between blacks and whites, constituting a small part of the larger Civil Rights Movement that was happening throughout the United States in the 1950s. Integrated competition displayed the beauty and the creativity of African American athleticism and inspired the NBA to admit black players.