Holiday Book Event - Turf Wars: The Fight for the Soul of America's Game

This holiday season, Malik Books invites you to a major literary event you don’t want to miss!

On Friday, December 19th at 7 PM, at the Miracle Theater, come experience the Holiday Book Event for Turf Wars: The Fight for the Soul of America's Game, written by DeMaurice Smith — Former Executive Director of the NFL Players Association, former federal prosecutor, and acclaimed author.

DeMaurice Smith will take the stage for an insightful conversation moderated by none other than Cheryl Miller —WNBA Basketball Hall of Famer and 1984 Olympic gold medalist!

Turf Wars is a book about race, power, and money in America—how billion-dollar institutions are built, who benefits, who is left out, and what that says about our democracy, labor, and culture. The stories of players, owners, and fans become an entry point into larger questions about justice, leverage, and whose voices matter.

I believe these themes would resonate strongly with your readers and community, particularly those interested in:

• Race and power in American institutions
• Labor, unions, and economic justice
• The intersection of sports, politics, and culture

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  Join us for a powerful evening exploring the politics, passion, and high-stakes battles behind America’s biggest sport. Get your Signed copy of Turf Wars, meet the author, and be a part of this unforgettable experience — brought to you by Malik Books, your home for culture, community, and voices that move the game forward.

Friday, December 19th, 7 PM at the Miracle Theater.

Doors open at 6PM

Book availble for sale at the event or purchase with ticket. Tickets purchase with book will have VIP seating.

An NFL insider’s explosive account of the ruthless power struggles between owners and players over the future of football.
During his fourteen years as the head of the NFL Players Association, DeMaurice Smith was a front line advocate for football players through some of the most tumultuous crises in NFL history: Colin Kaepernick’s protests, Deflategate, a lockout, two collective bargaining agreements, and more. But after witnessing the league’s troubling response to discrimination and racial unrest, both within the league and beyond, Smith realized it was time to pull back the curtain and speak truth to power.
Drawing from his years of unprecedented access and unparalleled knowledge of America’s favorite sport, Smith documents his years leading the NFLPA and explains how the NFL distorts the truth, telling partial stories to insulate itself and grow its $20-billion-a-year brand—and the players’ battles to protect themselves.
From contract negotiations to battles over suspensions, Smith shows us how the union fought to protect players from the greed, racism, and dishonesty the league is built on. He also takes readers inside closed-door meetings and unreported conversations and confrontations with the industry’s most powerful figures such as Robert Kraft, Jerry Jones, Tom Brady, and Roger Goodell.
Turf Wars puts every NFL crisis—both familiar and lesser known—within a broader cultural and historical context, framing the league’s extraordinary rise as a mirror to America’s own history. Revelatory and profound, Turf Wars is a book about the soul of football: its degradation, and how to save it.

DeMaurice Smith is the former executive director of the National Football League Players Association. Prior to the NFLPA, Smith was an Assistant United States Attorney where he was a Homicide, Violent Crime and Terrorism prosecutor, Counsel to the US Deputy Attorney General, and a partner in major law firms. Smith is currently a law and business professor in residence.

Cheryl Miller is a Olympic gold medalist, former WNBA head coach and general manager, sportscaster, and one of the top five women’s collegiate basketball players in NCAA history, Cheryl Miller is a basketball legend who helped elevate the women’s game.

Before there was a WNBA… there was Cheryl Miller—a powerhouse who lit the path so others could follow. A name spoken in awe, a legacy built on dominance, vision, and undeniable greatness. From shattering records in high school to transforming the women’s game at USC, Cheryl didn’t wait for the spotlight—she became it.

If the WNBA had existed in the ‘80s, she would’ve been its first global Star.

This site stands as a tribute to one of the game’s greatest trailblazers—the woman who made it possible for so many to dream bigger, play bolder, and rise higher.

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