NAACP urges Florida athletes to Get Out in response to politicized backlash against DEI

The leaders of the NAACP released a powerful call to action recently and took a bold stance in the face of politicized backlash against Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) work.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and his cronies passed a bill last year — known as the Stop WOKE Act — that prohibits DEI programs from using state funds. As a result, the public colleges and universities in the state have been forced to shutter their DEI departments. The University of Florida, as one example, cut 13 full-time DEI positions along with 15 related administrative staff.

The NAACP’s response?

Get out!

“To all current and prospective college student-athletes — the NAACP urges you to reconsider any potential decision to attend, and compete at a predominantly white institution in the state of Florida. This is not about politics. It’s about the protection of our community, the progression of our culture, and most of all, it’s about your education, and your future.”

The thing to remember here is that this is bigger, as it always is, than any one issue. And the same letter from the NAACP articulated that beautifully.

"…it's up to each individual — and to the broader community — to hold these institutions accountable. We all have a choice, and it starts with where we choose to stand, where we play, what we support, and where we refuse to compromise in the pursuit of equity and respect for all student-athletes.”

There’s an important question that goes unspoken in those last few words. Where have I been compromising in the pursuit of equity and respect for all people?

This, of course, is the question at the heart of DEI work. It’s about looking at ourselves in a true mirror, finding out how we (as individuals and as groups) have been hurting or marginalizing people without intending to. And then it’s about committing to clearing out that shadowed corner and letting it continue no longer.

For me, this is a vivid reminder that every choice we make either supports the world we want to create, or it supports the status quo. Everything we do, everything we consume, every place we go — every aspect of our lives and our work either supports our values, or it is a compromise.

It’s also a reminder that when we’re doing work that might upset the imbalance of power, you’ll ruffle some feathers. That just means we’re on the right track.

And it means that as always, it’s up to us to hold ourselves — and the organizations and structures we support — accountable as we continue to work toward worlds and workplaces that allow all people to be their full, uncompromised selves.