MELBOURNE, Australia — With more and more N.F.L. players kneeling during the national anthem in protest of police killings of African-Americans, a familiar cry has resurfaced: Politics has no place in sport.



But of course, politics has an unmistakable place in sporting history, and there is perhaps no more obvious example than the 1968 Olympics, when two African-American medalists raised their fists, eliciting outrage not just at the Americans but also at the Australian standing with them at the podium.

Peter Norman, the Australian runner, knew in advance what the two other athletes — Tommie Smith and John Carlos — would be doing, and he was ostracized in Australia for years.

Ray Weinberg, his coach, now says that watching the way Colin Kaepernick has been similarly pushed aside shows the lessons of tolerance and respect for dissent have yet to be learned.