Part 1: 1936 Olympics; Courageous Kindness

May 22, 2023

“Have courage and be kind. For where there is kindness there is goodness, and where there is goodness there is magic.” ~ Cinderella

On August 4th, 1936 in Berlin…..Nazi Germany….the course of Olympic history and world history changed.

American Jesse Owens had fouled on his first two attempts at the long jump, while his German competitor, Carl (Luz) Long, had already qualified. In a gesture of kindness, legend has it that Luz went over to Owens and suggested that he mark a line that was a foot back from the foul line and jump from there. Owens went on to qualify with his third jump and from there won the Olympic gold medal, one of four that he captured at the games.

America's Jesse Owens, center, salutes during the presentation of his gold medal for the long jump, alongside silver medalist Luz Long, right, of Germany, and bronze medalist Naoto Tajima, of Japan, during the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, August 11, 1936 (AP Photo/File)

Long was the first to congratulate Owens after his victory. Later they paraded arm in arm around the stadium and posed for pictures in plain view of Adolph Hitler, who was said to be annoyed by the defiant display. Jesse Owens was Black, and his incredible success at the Olympic Games wounded Hitler’s Nazi myth of Aryan superiority.

Carl (Luz) Long and Jesse Owens, arm in arm at the Olympic Stadium in Berlin, 1936

“It took a lot of courage for him to befriend me,” Owens said, years later. “You can melt down all the medals and cups I have and they wouldn’t be a plating on the 24-karat friendship I felt for Luz Long at that moment. Hitler must have gone crazy watching us embrace.”

Sadly, Luz Long didn’t survive long enough to live out his legacy. He was critically injured in 1943 at the battle of St. Pietro on the island of Sardinia and died four days later. He had just turned thirty.

Before his death, Luz wrote a letter to Jesse, which he correctly predicted would be his last, asking Owens to go to Germany after the war and find his son, Carl.

“Tell him, Jesse, what times were like when we were not separated by war,” Long wrote. “I am saying — tell him how things can be between men on this earth.”

Jesse followed the letter and his heart, meeting Carl on several occasions and later serving as best man at his wedding.

Eighty-seven years later, the 1936 Olympics are a distant memory. Many may not remember Jesse Owens and even fewer will know the story of Carl (Luz) Long’s ‘courageous kindness’.

But it got me to thinking about the importance of being both courageous and kind. If being an Olympic champion and parading your kindness in front of 100,000 fans seems a bit out of reach, you’re not alone.

Maybe we could take a step back and just start small. We could start by just being courageous about saying what we think, in a kind way. Science calls it Assertive Kindness. I’m kind of partial to Courageous Kindness.

Join me next week for Part II: Courageous Kindness; Start Small. We’ll explore the scientific reasons why we fail to stand up for ourselves and how we can have the courage to be our authentic selves.

May your week be filled with kindness. 💜