Chris Graythen/Getty Images North America/Getty Images “I’m really excited about the direction the sport’s headed in, and I haven’t been able to say that for a couple years now,” Wiley said.īubba Wallace, the only full-time African American driver in NASCAR's Cup Series, wears a T-shirt that says "I Can't Breathe" and "Black Lives Matter" during the National Anthem before the NASCAR Cup Series Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway on June 7, 2020. For them, being a black fan has meant years of feeling overlooked, of ignoring hurtful remarks by their favorite drivers, and steering clear of fans and campsites who they feared would be unwelcoming.īut now, they’re hoping to see more people who look like them at the racetrack. That changed this week when NASCAR announced it would ban the Confederate flag from races, just days after the only full-time African American driver in NASCAR’s Cup Series, Bubba Wallace, donned a shirt emblazoned “I can’t breathe” and unveiled a Black Lives Matter paint scheme in the wake of protests sparked by the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis.įor African American NASCAR fans who spoke to CNN, the Confederate flag ban and Wallace’s decision to be more outspoken about race are welcome but overdue changes in a sport they felt had failed to be inclusive in the past.
“It didn’t feel like I belonged there anymore,” Wiley said, “or at least that my voice wasn’t heard there anymore.” In recent years, however, he pulled away from NASCAR because he felt it had inadequately addressed social issues like police brutality and racial injustice. NASCAR bans Confederate flags at all races, events (AP Photo/Alex Menendez) Alex Menendez/AP Sprint Cup Series driver Greg Biffle (16) speeds through turn 4 where a confederate flag is posted during the 57th Annual NASCAR Coke Zero 400 practice session at Daytona International Speedway on Friday, Jin Daytona Beach, Florida.
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