2025 Summit

Examine a range of global and domestic issues at the intersection of sport and human rights.

Sport is anchored in human rights values. It promotes fairness, non-discrimination, respect, and equal opportunities for all. As it reaches billions, including young people, it is a conduit for advancing human rights standards around the world. Wherever people are at play, they are always, without exception, rights holders. But sport, often referred to as “the forgotten right,” also faces many challenges. Too often, those who claim to love sport fail to uphold its standards. Available research and data across the globe highlight repeated and serious violations of human rights in sport, including racial and sexual discrimination, financial exploitation, and neglect and curtailment of participatory rights and freedom of expression.

Believing in the transformative power of sport to promote and protect human rights, the University of Connecticut is pleased to host the second bi-annual Dodd Human Rights Summit October 22-24, 2025 at the Dodd Center for Human Rights.

The Summit, titled Sport and Human Rights, brings together prominent professional and collegiate athletes, thought leaders, policymakers, activists, scholars, students, artists, and business leaders from around the world to examine the promise, too often unfulfilled, of sport as a safe, inclusive, and equitable environment for everyone, no matter one’s color, race, religion, ethnicity, tribal affiliation, socioeconomic status, gender or sexual orientation.

The Summit will serve as a critical venue for sharing insights, building relationships, and inspiring action to align the world of sport with the principles of human rights. Through a mix of high-profile keynote addresses, fireside chats, and panel discussions, the Summit will engage a range of global and domestic issues at the intersection of sport and human rights, including: Gender, Sport, and Human Rights; Race, Sport, and Human Rights; Disability, Sport, and Human Rights; Business, Sport, and Human Rights; Children, Sport, and Human Rights; and History, Sport, and Human Rights.

Keynote Bios

Tommie Smith made history at the 1968 Mexico City Olympics, winning gold in the 200-meter race with a record-breaking 19.83 seconds. His iconic raised-fist salute on the podium became a powerful symbol of Black power, liberation, and solidarity. This courageous, unexpected worldwide event propelled Tommie Smith into the spotlight as a human rights spokesman, activist, and symbol of African American pride at home and abroad. His autobiography, Silent Gesture, was nominated for an NAACP Image Award. Honored with numerous accolades, including the ESPY Arthur Ashe Courage Award and induction into multiple Halls of Fame, Smith’s legacy as an athlete, activist, and educator continues to inspire. His impact is immortalized in museums, documentaries, and global recognition.

John Carlos earned the bronze medal in the 200-meter run at the1968 Olympic Games in Mexico City, breaking the 200-meter world record. During the awards ceremony, alongside his teammate Tommie Smith, Carlos raised a black-gloved fist on the podium in a powerful stand for racial equality. Carlos later excelled in track, played pro football, and became an educator. In 2008, he accepted the Arthur Ashe Award for Courage for his salute, at the ESPY Awards and was recognized at the White House by President Obama in 2016. Carlos continues to work for human rights and is a founding member of the Olympic Project for Human Rights.

Bill Rhoden is an award-winning sports columnist and editor-at-large at Andscape, a Black media platform. Before joining Andscape in 2016, he spent 34 years at The New York Times, including 26 years as a Sports of The Times columnist. A respected voice on sports and race, Rhoden's journalism career spans nearly five decades of which he contributed to ESPN’s The Sports Reporters for nearly 30 years. An author of two acclaimed books, he has won a Peabody and an Emmy and is a member of both the National Association of Black Journalists Hall of Fame as well as the National Sports Media Association's Hall of Fame.

Pablo Torre is the host and executive editor of Meadowlark Media’s Pablo Torre Finds Out, which won the Edward R. Murrow Award for Sports Reporting in 2024, and was a finalist for the Peabody Award in 2025. PTFO was also named “Best Sports Documentary Podcast” at the 2025 Sports Podcast Awards, recognizing The Sporting Class as the “Best Sports Business Podcast.” Since 2012, Torre has worked as a TV host and commentator for ESPN, regularly appearing on Pardon The Interruption, and Around The Horn. Torre is a contributor and co-host of NBC’s and MSNBC’s Morning Joe, The 11th Hour, and Deadline: White House.

Danelle Umstead is a Paralympian ski racing champion and motivational speaker. At thirteen, Umstead was diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa, a genetic eye condition that results in total blindness. At twenty-nine, nearly blind, Umstead’s father offered to take her skiing for the first time. In the 3 minutes it took to ski down the mountain, she had found her passion. A few years later, Umstead met her husband, Rob Umstead, and together they formed Team Vision4Gold, becoming the first husband and wife visually impaired ski race team to compete and medal for Team USA. They competed in multiple Paralympic Winter Games, earning bronze medals in both the downhill and super combined events at the 2010 Vancouver Winter Paralympic Games, and another bronze in the super combined at the 2014 Sochi Winter Paralympic Games. In 2010, shortly after winning medals at the Paralympics, Umstead was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. The nerve disease paralyzed half of her body. She first had to relearn how to walk, and then how to ski again. Umstead was named the Athlete of the Year in 2010 by the National Sports Center for the Disabled and Adaptive Athlete of the Year in 2011 by the United States Ski and Snowboard Association. She ended the season with the overall and super G World Cup titles, further establishing her prowess in the sport.

Gender, Sport, and Human Rights
Konover Auditorium, The Dodd Center for Human Rights

This panel explores the complex and evolving intersection of gender, sport, and human rights in the 21st century. Bringing together athletes, advocates, and scholars, the discussion will examine how gender norms, discrimination, systemic societal inequalities, and policy debates shape access to and participation in sport across all levels—from grassroots to elite competition. Panelists will share insights into steps that can be taken to ensure sport is a space for dignity, fairness, and inclusion for all individuals regardless of gender.

Speakers:
Anna Baeth, Vice President of Programs and Research, Athlete Ally
Alisse Ali-Joseph, Assistant Professor and Faculty Athletics Representative, Applied Indigenous Studies, Northern Arizona University
Schuyler Bailar, Pinkmantaray, LLC
Amira Rose Davis, Assistant Professor Of Black Studies and History, University of Texas-Austin

Moderator:

Risa Isard, Director of Research and Insights, Parity

Resistance, Sport, and Human Rights
Konover Auditorium, The Dodd Center for Human Rights

This panel examines the powerful role of sport as a site of resistance and a platform for advancing human rights. From athlete activism and protest movements to community-led initiatives that challenge systemic injustice, sport has long been a battleground where struggles for dignity, equity, and freedom are fought. By centering resistance, panelists will invite a critical reflection on sport not only as entertainment or competition, but as a powerful cultural space where human rights are negotiated, defended, and reimagined.

Speakers:
Kevin Simpson, Distinguished Professor of Psychology, John Brown University
Yetsa A. Tuakli-Wosornu, Associate Professor and Founding Director of the Stanford Center for Sports Equity, Stanford University
San Charles Haddad, Author
Mike Freeman, USA Today Sports Deputy Editor--NFL

Moderator:

Fiona Vernal, Associate Professor of History and Africana Studies, University of Connecticut

Politics of Sport: Sportswashing and Human Rights
Konover Auditorium, The Dodd Center for Human Rights

This panel delves into the political dimensions of sport, focusing on how states, corporations, and governing bodies use major sporting events to project power, shape narratives, and obscure human rights abuses—a practice often referred to as sportswashing. From the Olympics and FIFA World Cup to Formula 1 and regional tournaments, sport has become a high-stakes arena where geopolitical interests, public image, and economic power converge. Through global case studies and on-the-ground perspectives, panelists will critically examine how can sport be reclaimed as a space for accountability, transparency, justice, and the promotion of human rights.

Speakers:
Minky Worden, Director of Global Initiatives, Human Rights Watch
Jules Boykoff, Professor of Political Science, Pacific University
Dave Zirin, Sports Editor, The Nation Magazine
Colm Kearns, Assistant Professor, Dublin City University, School of Communications
David Francis, Vice President, Global Growth Strategy and Government Affairs, Jetr Global Sports

Moderator:

Kathryn Libal, Director, Gladstein Family Human Rights Institute; Professor of Social Work and Human Rights, University of Connecticut

Disability, Sport, & Human Rights: A Keynote with Danelle Umstead
Konover Auditorium, The Dodd Center for Human Rights

Danelle Umstead, U.S. Paralympic Ski Racing Champion

This keynote is in commemoration of Elias “Eli” Abarbanel-Wolff. As a faculty member of the Gladstein Committee of the Gladstein Family Human Rights Institute, and an instructor in UConn’s Neag School of Education’s Sport Management Program, Eli was a fierce and powerful disability sport advocate. A member of the US Paralympic Soccer team in 1996 and 2004, Eli co-founded Disability Sport International, Athletes for Human Rights, and the Olympism Project. Eli passed away on April 4, 2023.

Business, Sport, and Human Rights
Konover Auditorium, The Dodd Center for Human Rights

This panel explores the complex intersections between global sport, corporate power, and human rights. As the sports industry grows into a multi-billion-dollar enterprise—from mega-events and sponsorship deals to apparel production and media rights—the role of business in shaping ethical standards and labor conditions across the sector is increasingly under scrutiny. With growing pressure on companies and sports organizations to respect human rights and avoid complicity in abuse, panelists will examine emerging frameworks, real-world case studies, and strategies for ensuring ethical practice in a deeply commercialized global sports environment.

Speakers:
Suzanne McKenzie, Founder and CEO, Able Made
Daniela Heerdt, Researcher, T.M.C. Asser Institute and Head of Education and Research, Centre for Sport and Human Rights
Ginous "Gigi" Alford, Independent scholar and consultant
Kyle Muncy, Director of Brand Partnerships and Trademark Management, University of Connecticut

Moderator:

Rachel Chambers, Assistant Professor, Business Law; Director, Business and Human Rights Initiative, University of Connecticut

Sport and Human Rights Close to Home: UConn's Legacy
Konover Auditorium, The Dodd Center for Human Rights

Bringing together current and former University of Connecticut athletes, this panel explores the intersection of sport and human rights through personal experience, leadership, and advocacy. Drawing from their time in collegiate athletics and beyond, panelists will reflect on how sport can both challenge and reinforce systems of inequality—and how athletes and coaches can be agents of change. Rooted in the UConn legacy and grounded in lived experience, this panel highlights how sport is not just about competition—it’s also about values, power, and the fight for dignity, inclusion, and justice.

Speakers:
Doron Sheffer, UConn ‘93-’96, Author, and Wellness Workshop Facilitator
Trisha Hawthorne-Noble, UConn ‘11,‘18, Senior Director, Department of Student Activities, University of Connecticut
Harrison Brooks Fitch Jr., UConn ‘64; son of Harrison “Honey” Fitch (‘34), the first Black basketball player in UConn’s history
Bryant Shirreffs, UConn ‘17, Financial Advisor - Wealth Management; Athlete Rights Advocate
Bethany Hart Gerry, UConn ‘00, Owner at Destined2Evolve Wellness

Moderator:

Kyle Muncy, Director of Brand Partnerships and Trademark Management, University of Connecticut

Human Rights Summit

Sport & Human Rights

Keynote Presentations

A Keynote Conversation with Tommie Smith & John Carlos, Moderated by Bill Rhoden

Sport & Human Rights: A Keynote Conversation with Pablo Torre

Disability, Sport & Human Rights: A Keynote with Danelle Umstead

Summit Schedule

Wednesday, October 22

Thursday, October 23

Friday, October 24