There's a way to cast attention to the plight of Black athletes in the U.S. while also marking that Black Olympians have been winning medals for their country for over 100 years. Long before they broke the color barrier in collegiate and professional sports. You can tell a story with good and and make it compelling. In fact, it's the basis for almost human literature, cinema, and art.
Owens had a hard enough time in his home country, gets the call for Berlin. Thinks "I hear Europeans are some enlightened folks...let's do this!" Then he gets to Berlin in 1936, sees the early warning signs of ethnic cleansing/master race propaganda and probably though, "Are you fucking kidding me?"
There was an unbelievably well done traveling exhibit on the Berlin Games about 10-12 years ago. It was actually housed in the Stark Center in the NEZ for a few months. It was co-curated by several German historians. It showcases all aspects of the games from the buildup to the competitions to the geopolitical implications. They don't awkwardly try to insert Hitler's dogma into a panel about the Discus or Archery. But there are sections that get deep into what sport meant to society, and vice-versa. They did not shy away from the plight of Jewish athletes, Black athletes, Asian athletes, and others. Every four years, every German grammar school student learns about the shame of the 1936 games, and then the horrors of the 1972 games. They don't teach it to make the kids feel bad about their heritage. They embrace the lessons that demonstrate when a Dictator starts talking about the physical superiority of his athletes versus the world, what he really means is the overall genetic superiority of his people. They think better, build better, learn better, wage war better, worship better. /rant
Nobody wants a 2.5 week lecture in the ugly parts of sports history. But you can weave some of it into the overall games with ease and thought-provocation. I think there'll be a big celebrity element, not just for ratings. But many foreign guests, despite claiming they're attending for the Canoe and Handball, they'll be quietly expecting lots of famous people. There's geographic beauty and a few cool buildings in SoCal, but it's not worth trying to go toe-to-toe with Paris or Athens. I think they'll gloss over it. Former U.S. Olympic star power should get a lot buzz considering how many grew up/trained in California. Another cool thing could be having exhibition games (or for medals) at the two pro baseball stadiums, and/or pre-season football game for shits 'n giggles (towards the end of the games when pre-season starts anyway). And the concert lineup at night should be filthy good given all the venues and summer tours that roll thru SoCal anyway.
I guess I should start my protest/boycotts now just to be safe.