Do I take risks? The very question suggests it could be optional, as though I could take risks or not, go out on a limb or play it safe, be loud/seen/heard or quiet/invisible/silent.

From the outset of the Games’ opening ceremony, where Naomi Osaka lit the Olympic cauldron, it quickly became evident that Black women would be of central importance to the games and stories that followed.

The Varsity got an opportunity to speak with Janelle Joseph, an assistant professor in the Faculty of Kinesiology & Physical Education who performs research in critical studies of race and Indigeneity in sport. Joseph spoke about many barriers that racialized people face in their local communities, as well as what organizers can do better to address these concerns.