New course brings Harry Edwards’ sociology of sport to the next generation

January 13, 2026

by Alexander Rony

UC Berkeley is launching a new course this spring to engage students in the work of famed sociologist and civil rights icon Harry Edwards. For 30 years, Edwards captivated students at UC Berkeley, where he developed the sociology of sport as a field. After retiring from campus, he consulted for professional teams and crafted diversity programs.

Edwards, now 83, is famous for some of the most iconic protests in sports history. In 1968, he inspired U.S. sprinters John Carlos and Tommie Smith to defiantly raise gloved fists in a Black Power salute on the Olympic medal stand. Decades later, Edwards counseled 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick, who stirred the nation by taking a knee during the national anthem. Edwards’ message of social justice isn’t limited to athletes, either — coaches, team owners, and league commissioners regularly turn to him for advice.

Two photos of the same man in sunglasses giving a lecture; on the left, he stands at a lectern; at the right, he sits at a table

LEFT: Harry Edwards spoke to a packed room during a 2022 lecture series at UC Berkeley (Photo: Kelly Sullivan via Cal Athletics). RIGHT: Harry Edwards gives a guest lecture for the new class on January 20, 2026 (Photo: Alexander Rony / UC Berkeley).

“Dr. Edwards wasn't just a professor — he is a public intellectual and an activist figure who had this whole second career,” said David Harding, chair of the Department of Sociology. “He’s a dynamic lecturer, an amazing storyteller, and a model of how to combine intellectual scholarship with what we now call public sociology.”

Expanding the field

Edwards remains focused on what more he can bring to the table. He worked with a production company to film The Last Lectures, a 12-part series of Edwards speaking at San José State University. UC Berkeley’s Department of Sociology has incorporated those lectures in a new undergraduate course, “The Evolution and Impact of Sport in American Society: Lessons from the Last Lectures of Dr. Harry Edwards,” which will premiere in January.

“The Last Lectures are a contribution to a better understanding of where we have been, the point at which we are at, and the trajectory of where we’re headed, as a people and as a nation,” said Edwards.

The four-credit course will meet twice a week to watch Edwards’ recorded lectures and discuss the lessons as a group. Dr. Brian Bedford — a former student of Edwards’ who played for Cal football and led corporate and collegiate diversity initiatives — will serve as the course’s inaugural lecturer.

“Dr. Bedford was a great find,” said Harding. “He’s perfect in that he has this relationship with Dr. Edwards, he understands the intellectual and social importance of the project, and he's an experienced professor with ties to Cal Athletics.”

Edwards covers a lot of ground in The Last Lectures. Stretching from the Civil War to the modern era, Edwards weaves a narrative that touches on segregation, boycotts, violence, religion, business, and mass media.

Edwards said he is donating some personal items to enhance the course. He also convinced the National Football League Foundation to provide substantial funding so students at UC Berkeley and historically Black colleges and universities can access The Last Lectures.

The Department of Sociology is coordinating with the Athletic Study Center on logistics such as timing and graduation requirements so more student-athletes can take advantage of the course. If the undergraduate course is successful and the department hits its fundraising goals, it will adapt the course into a summer program for high school students.

“This course provides a framework for younger people to understand what’s happening in the world right now,” said Harding. “It’s not just about sports or history. It’s a way of thinking about the way society, power, and social change work. It’s a resource for learners at all life stages to make sense of American society and their place in it. It’s beyond a normal class. It’s about helping people see the connection between the past, the present, and themselves, and what they can do in the world.”

In 2024, the Division of Social Sciences gave its inaugural Social Science for the Public Good Award to Edwards. It later named the award after him. Now, the division hopes to maintain that recognition in perpetuity to honor members of its community who make an impact on society. Additionally, Berkeley sociologists want to establish a doctoral fellowship and an endowment in Edwards’ name.

People in graduation regalia listen to a man at a lectern

Two men sit in the front of a room facing an audience

TOP: Harry Edwards speaks at the Department of Sociology's 2024 graduation. BOTTOM: Cal Associate Athletics Director Ty-Ron Douglas interviews Harry Edwards at a 2022 event.

Running new routes

To realize this vision, Harding partnered with Marsha Roberts, the Cal Alumni Association’s board president.

As an undergraduate, Roberts wanted to take “The Sociology of Sport” but could never get into the class. It was too popular. Now, through the Cal Alumni Association, Roberts is helping to ensure Edwards’ lectures remain available for generations to come. The Cal Alumni Association has reached out to alumni asking them to donate to the Harry Edwards Last Lectures Fund in Sociology. Roberts has also joined Harding in meeting with foundations.

“To hear the impact that Dr. Edwards had on their lives is truly remarkable,” said Roberts. “Even though he is a towering figure who created the sociology of sport, he is a humble individual who truly cares about people and society as a whole. He is an integral part of the progress that has been made in the civil rights movement through his analysis of social behavior and his ability to clearly articulate human struggle through the lens of sports.”

Three side-by-side professional photos of a woman and two men

LEFT: Cal Alumni Association President Marsha Roberts. CENTER: Department of Sociology Chair David Harding. RIGHT: Course lecturer Dr. Brian Bedford (Photo: Alexander Rony / UC Berkeley).

Harding agreed. “We’ve heard so many stories of the impact that Dr. Edwards' courses, his mentorship, and his leadership in the public domain have had on people.”

Finding his own lane

Edwards estimates he has delivered more than 1,300 lectures around the world. He did not give abstract lectures that remained confined to the classroom, nor did he advise sports figures to hide from events happening outside the stadium walls. Instead, he wanted his students and mentees to go forth and influence the world around them.

For years, Edwards emphasized how little money from college sports returned to student-athletes. That lesson stuck with one student, future state senator Nancy Skinner, who would go on to create the precursor to “name, image, and likeness” rules that have delivered millions of dollars to student-athletes and reshaped college sports.

Over time, Edwards convinced his fellow sociologists that sports could change the world as academics codified his discipline through textbooks, associations, and conferences.

Sports can bring people together in a way no other aspect of society can. Edwards argues that Sunday at 1 p.m. — when most professional football games start — is one of America’s most united hours. People of all ages, genders, and races join together wearing their team’s gear.

“And when they leave, they say, ‘We won!’ Where else do you see that kind of unity? You don't see that in an election,” said Edwards. “Today, with the divisions that we have in American society, it is more important than ever that we recognize that sport is part of the glue that's holding this culture together.”

Leading one final drive

Edwards decided to name his effort The Last Lectures to reflect that it would be his last time teaching in a classroom. Though he officially retired from UC Berkeley in 2000, he continued to speak to students on occasion. The Last Lectures were to be a heartfelt goodbye to higher education.

Then, Edwards received diagnoses of myeloma and advanced prostate cancer, and The Last Lectures took on a new meaning.

“It was meant initially as an academic statement, not an end-of-life statement, but as it turned out, it's both,” Edwards said with equanimity. “This is part of the human condition, and now it just happens to be my turn. I've never been more at peace. I've never been happier. I never have had a greater sense of contribution and productiveness.”

Edwards isn’t a fan of legacies, which he believes can be choreographed, stripped of deeper meaning, and manipulated to serve other interests. Though he references many legends — like Jackie Robinson, Joe Louis, and Hank Aaron — in his lectures, he chafed at the way civil rights advancements in sports are often presented as the work of outstanding individuals who overcame barriers through sheer talent and determination. Edwards felt this presentation lacked a clear narrative and overlooked the underlying conditions that generate athlete activism.

Instead, Edwards places enormous value on the specific ways people have endeavored to improve society — substance over story. He described The Last Lectures and its associated initiatives as “the final seeds thrown for development.”

“I hope that people will look at The Last Lectures long after I’m gone and say that was a contribution not only worth noting, but worth perpetuating,” said Edwards. “If that is an outcome of what we have done, then I'm satisfied.”

In one photo, a man speaks with kids in a school. In another, three men sit near a statue of Olympic athletes raising their fist in protest.

LEFT: Harry Edwards teaches a second grade class in 2020. RIGHT: Harry Edwards sits with Tommie Smith and John Carlos by the San José State statue commemorating their 1968 Olympic Games protest. (Photos courtesy of the Edwards Family)