NAACP asks black athletes to abandon dreams of attending and playing for Florida colleges

The NAACP wants black student athletes to give up their dreams of attending Florida colleges and universities because the Sunshine State dared to take a stand against racist propaganda and discriminatory practices.

While Derrick Johnson, president of the identitarian outfit, and NAACP Chairman Leon Russell claim this "is not about politics," their aim is clear: to financially punish organizations that fail to conform with their race-centered political project.

Florida colleges and universities have been dismantling their respective DEI regimes in part to align with a law ratified by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis in May 2023, which cut off state funding to such discriminatory programs.

Ten days after the University of Florida announced it was shuttering its office of chief diversity officer and eliminating DEI positions on campus in line with the 2023 law, Johnson and Russell penned a letter to current and prospective members of the National Collegiate Athletic Association, urging them to "reconsider any potential decision to attend, and compete at a predominantly white institution in the state of Florida."

The NAACP clarified in a corresponding statement that this letter "comes following recent news that the University of Florida had dismantled its DEI department at the direction of the DeSantis administration's Stop WOKE Act."

The NAACP leaders suggested in their Monday letter that DeSantis' execution of the will of Florida voters — not only in combating critical race theory and discriminatory practices on campus but also taking a stand against abortion, which disproportionately victimizes black babies — amounted to a "devaluation of Black America."

"Now, as a result of his administration's anti-Black ideals, all state-funded universities in Florida will be forced to dismantle their diversity, equity, and inclusion programs," said the letter.

Johnson and Russell made clear they want to hurt Florida colleges and universities financially.

The identitarians suggested that college sports, football especially, is a profitable enterprise "with most revenue earned off the backs of Black student-athletes. At UF and similar institutions, if football stadiums emptied, if merchandise stopped selling, if TV deals fell through, the monetary loss would extend beyond athletics to other university programs."

Johnson and Russell added, "If any institution is to reap the benefits of Black talent, it is only right that they completely invest in Black futures."

Despite attempting to undo a law passed by democratically elected lawmakers and ratified by a democratically elected governor, Johnson suggested in a corresponding statement that the NAACP was attempting to protect democracy.

"The NAACP will remain unwavering in our efforts to hold Governor Ron DeSantis, and all oppressive elected officials accountable for their attempts to unravel our democracy," said Johnson.

Bryan Griffin, communications director for DeSantis, called the identitarians' plea "yet another Florida-aimed political stunt from the NAACP with no basis. FL's education system is ranked #1 in the nation on many metrics (#1 in ed freedom, #1 in higher ed 7 yrs in a row), and this world-class education is open to any American, regardless of race."

Griffin further highlighted the specifics of the law the NAACP is upset about, asking, "How could any reasonable person disagree with any of these prohibitions?"

The "Stop the Wrongs to Our Kids and Employees (WOKE) Act" deems discriminatory any training or instruction that "espouses, promotes, advances, inculcates, or compels such student or employee to believe any of the following concepts":

• "Members of one race, color, national origin, or sex are morally superior to members of another race, color, national origin, or sex";
• "A person, by virtue of his or her race, color, national origin, or sex is inherently racist, sexist or oppressive, whether consciously or unconsciously";
• "A person's moral character or status as either privileged or oppressed is necessarily determined by his or her race, color, national origin, or sex";
• "A person, by virtue of his or her race, color, national origin, or sex bears responsibility for, or should be discriminated against or receive adverse treatment because of, actions committed in the past by other members of the same race, color, national origin, or sex";
• "A person, by virtue of his or her race, color, national origin, or sex should be discriminated against or receive adverse treatment to achieve diversity, equity, or inclusion";
• "A person, by virtue of his or her race, color, sex, or national origin, bears personal responsibility for and must feel guilty, anguish, or other forms of psychological distress because of actions, in which the person played no part, committed in the past by other members of the same race, color, national origin, or sex"; and
• "Such virtues as merit, excellence, hard work, fairness, neutrality, objectivity, and racial colorblindness are racist or sexist, or were created by members of a particular race, color, national origin, or sex to oppress members of another race, color, national origin, or sex."

DeSantis tweeted on March 1, "DEI is toxic and has no place in our public universities. I'm glad that Florida was the first state to eliminate DEI and I hope more states follow suit."

NBC News reported earlier this month that Republicans in more than 30 states have introduced or passed more than 100 bills in the current legislative session aimed at curbing or regulating discriminatory DEI initiatives.

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