Throughout February, Sporting Kansas City will amplify black voices within the club, community and front office in order to emphasize the awareness, education and celebration of black culture. Part two of this series is a written interview with Sporting KC Academy Coach Rumba Munthali.
Munthali is the coach of Sporting KC's U17 and U19 Academy teams and a member of the inaugural MLS Diversity Committee as well as a founding member of the MLS NEXT Equity Action Committee. After a 10-year professional career with stops in MLS, Canada and China he has begun to inspire the next generation of soccer players. He wants to people to be more intentional with their decisions in order to create more natural diversity.
What does Black History Month mean to you?
There’s an extremely important value in the platform that Black History Month gives. It’s a concentrated time to highlight leaders within the black community and an opportunity for education and awareness. It paints a picture of where we are as a society and culture. People realize that there needs to be an emphasis on the different cultures that make up this country.
It shows that we’re still deficient in the way that we educate and operate. It’s not just Black History Month but it’s the diversity of the people that make up our society that we should be celebrating year-round. I’m happy we have this month to celebrate but it’s a good opportunity to educate people on other historical events that led us to this point. We still don’t celebrate black history -which is American history- year-round. Diversity, equity and inclusion are things I hope we as a society are truly invested in. It needs to be a forethought and not an afterthought.
How Can People inform and educate themselves about black history?
Learn about how black people have contributed to the city and state you live in. People still need to seek out information they don’t know despite the faults of the educational systems.
Expand your mental capacity and who you are as a person. Be intentional about the choices you make every day. The media you’re consuming should expand your mind. Ask yourself if the only things you consume make you comfortable, and what your children are consuming? Are you making them more broad and dynamic? It’s easy to concentrate on the things we know and it’s hard to give time for something that makes us feel uncomfortable. Everybody wants to be an ally and is somewhat empathetic, but people need to expand their minds beyond what they see on TV and create their own ideas. People need to be more intentional with their free time in order to become more diverse and dynamic.
How did your upbringing shape you?
My father is a research analyst who worked for the city of Toronto and the University of Toronto, and my mother is a computer programmer. I learned to be hardworking, academic, informed, aware, open-minded, accepting, socially conscious and proud of my African roots.
I was born in Africa and my family immigrated to Toronto when I was little. I later went to university in Alabama. Growing up in one of the most multicultural cities in the world after moving from Africa, and then moving to Alabama shaped who I am today.
In order to succeed, I had to work harder than a lot of people, because of the color of my skin, but I was also taught to be proud of my skin color. I never allowed my skin color to be used as an excuse to not have success. It was ingrained in me from a young age to be proud of who I am and where I came from.
In Toronto, all my friends were from different countries. We had different holidays with all our families growing up. People who are immigrants come from all over the world and have a similar struggle despite looking different. In Alabama, I had to figure out how to navigate one of the more segregated states in the country. I was aware of how some people would perceive me because of my skin, and how to act every day as a result of those perceptions. My schooling in Alabama was still great. I got a degree in history and a minor in sociology. People fascinate me, and it was great to go to a place the exact opposite of Toronto. I lived by the 16th street Baptist Church, one of the biggest historical monuments in the Civil Rights movement. Being there and getting to see the aftermath of the Civil Rights movement shaped how I think about the racial climate of this country and the urgency to get better.
My upbringing was shaped by where I came from and what I look like but also by my parents teaching me to be proud of who I am and the assimilation of other cultures around me. Being the best version of myself means loving myself and who I am and making sure people see the best version of me. It’s difficult being a minority within a homogenous community but you need to be proud of your individuality.
What do you do now that you hope other people will emulate in their lives?
I have two sons who are under five years old. My wife and I are very intentional with the friends we have and where we lived. We want to be around people who don’t just look like us. Our street has many different families. LGBTQ families, older couples, younger couples, couples with kids, or without kids and all sorts of different races and religions. We were intentional about this so our kids would go to a school where they see kids who have diverse backgrounds. They’ll learn different norms and values from other kids.
People need to be intentional about the toys they give their kids, the movies they watch together and the media that they themselves consume so they can be the most understanding and empathetic people possible.
What was it like being an athlete whose skin color is black?
In terms of soccer, people look at you as big, strong, fast and athletic but they don’t think of you as cerebral or intelligent. Being black shaped my thought process within the sport.
Toronto was very multi-cultural and communal. You had Italians from one section of the city, Caribbeans and Africans from another part and people who are Greek, British or Eastern European all playing with each other. You’d learn about your own culture, but you’d also see the segregation and others' perception of you.
I played for Malvern Soccer Club, located just outside of downtown. Some guys went on to play for the Canadian National Team and a few others played in the MLS. It was a predominately black club and people would throw bananas, make noises and say discriminatory remarks. You learn how to cope with that as a collective of young impressionable men and realize people don’t understand or respect you just because of the color of your skin despite loving and playing the same game.
I went to Alabama Birmingham. Not many black people in the south play soccer or think that black people play soccer. Because of that, you’re an anomaly to both black and white people. In China, most of the players are not black. In that population, you’re always isolated and very aware of how people look at you. Wherever you go you are constantly the first black person that someone has ever encountered.
I was aware of being a black player and how few of us there were and as I got older and older, I realized the numbers dwindled in college soccer and professional soccer.
What is it like being a head coach whose skin color is black and what does that mean to you?
Within the developmental academy, MLS NEXT Pro and the MLS there aren’t even 20 black head coaches. At Sporting some of our past homegrown players are young black men I can identify with. They see me as somebody they can emulate. They see coaching as a viable option for them when it was very rare for me to see black coaches as I progressed.
I’m also, for a lot of other kids in the academy, the first black authority figure that they've had. I have to be aware of the stereotypes people have about black men because of that. People may think that we’re too aggressive, so I have to be very conscious as a black person in the space that I’m in.
Being the first authority figure for these kids and parents and being a form of representation for black kids and parents is very important. I want to build relationships with everybody so they correlate their relationships with me to other black people. I am a strict coach with high standards, but I’m intentionally very personable and connected to the kids I coach.
It’s important I influence them in a positive way and that we reach a point of mutual respect. They’re impressionable young men who may not have many encounters with men like me so I want to set a good example and a leave good impression as these are people that will shape our community.
What can Sporting KC do better to promote diversity?
We are doing a really good job of trying to holistically develop our academy players and show the world that we don’t live in a soccer bubble. We do a lot of community service, partner with the Samuel Rogers Center, give toys away at Christmas, do clinics and try to get in touch with underserved and refugee communities. As a staff, we have tried to do that, involve the kids and expand their minds. They get to see all sorts of diversity, in our community and get to see the lives they will hopefully enrich one day. We can still improve.
First, we need to reflect as an organization and think about what we’ve done in the past for all groups outside of the majority. Second, we need involvement in all communities within Kansas City. We need to be intentional about our interactions and sustained involvement.
We shouldn’t build courts and hold events in underserved communities without sustainable programs that will benefit the community. We should be involved with women’s groups, the LGBTQ community and with all different groups of people. That needs to be instilled and maintained throughout the whole organization. This would create a more diverse and dynamic organization as well as more fans, more associates and more buy-in from the community.
We need more diversity in our thought process, and that happens when we have representation from people with diverse experiences. We should highlight the people in our community while also creating sustainable programming. It's about promoting and highlighting our associates naturally because they make us who we are and take Sporting to the next level.
Sporting always wants to be a trendsetter within the MLS ecosystem and this is the opportunity to do that. We can set ourselves apart and make sure that we’re supporting the community and our associates through diversity, equity and inclusion. We are giving everybody the chance to learn and grow. Any organization that engages and receives praise and accolades for broaching the subject of diversity must truly be about it and not just talk about it. The authenticity and genuineness are abundantly clear to minorities in the communities we are trying to positively affect.
What advice do you have for the next generation of black athletes and coaches?
First, cut out the excess noise and distractions. People will tell you that black people, women or people who don't fit the mold can’t do things. That could be playing soccer, being an executive, director, manager, owner, or anything. Focus on what makes you happy.
Second, unapologetically be the best version of yourself and be willing to show who you are and why you’re different. A lot of people still try to fit in or fit the mold, so they’re accepted.
Thirdly, Be patient, positive and persistent. Be patient, because change has been happening, not at the rate that it should be or that people think, but it is happening, and we must remember that. Be positive because we are embarking on a world where people are starting to see the injustices, disparities, barriers and obstacles created for minorities and there are people of all walks of life trying to make real change. Be persistent, don’t get comfortable with the status quo, and don’t accept mediocrity. Keep pushing for yourself and drive change, strive for your goals and push people to their limits.
As we grow and evolve minority people are having more of an influence in the direction that organizations go in. You’ll make everything in your business and life better with your input if you are true to who you are. Nothing is off-limits. Minorities are everywhere.
If you want to be an athlete, an astronaut, business owner or President of the United States you can. Don’t get me wrong, there are still obstacles and barriers for people of color but we have seen a black female Olympic speed skater, a black river dancer, black race car drivers and a black female College hockey coach. Now more than ever is a time for opportunity.
It’s a long journey and it’s not always easy, but if you are committed to controlling the things you can control and being the best version of yourself you can be you’ll reach your goals.
