Japan Did Not Recently Ban BLM Attire At The Olympics

Rebecca Bowen

Artsandculture

1st July 2021

Japan Did Not Recently Ban BLM Attire At The Olympics

The IOC's longstanding rules prohibit political protests (Getty Images).

The Claim

Japan banned Black Lives Matter attire and other political demonstrations from the Olympics.

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A rumor has been circulating on social media that Japan has banned all Black Lives Matter attire from the Olympics. Users are also adding that demonstrations of any kind, such as a raised fist, or kneeling during anthems, have also been prohibited.

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Misbar’s Analysis

Political attire is banned from the Olympics, but Japan did not make the decision. It is merely a continuation of a long-standing Olympic rule. In the International Olympic Committee or IOC’s rulebook, rule 50, bye-law 1 states “No form of publicity or propaganda, commercial or otherwise, may appear on persons, on sportswear, accessories or, more generally, on any article of clothing or equipment whatsoever worn or used by all competitors, team officials, other team personnel and all other participants in the Olympic Games.

The United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee has begun waiving the rule and implored the IOC to do so as well. The IOC refused, noting that a majority of polled athletes worldwide prefer the rule to stand.

In light of this choice, the rule and its ramifications recently came to wider public knowledge. U.S. Olympian Gwen Berry made the news by protesting at a hammer-throwing competition during Olympic trials. The U.S. committee has not disqualified Berry, though the IOC rules denote that withdrawal of Olympic accreditation is among the possible outcomes.