Indianapolis Recorder, Indianapolis, Marion County, 26 May 2000 — Page 9
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fWlDAY, MAY 26, 2000
THE INDIANAPOLIS RECORDER
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Racism in the college sports industry
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I intentionally chose the headline for this column to include the words “college sports industry” because clearly college sports, particularly basketball and football in the largest, most sports-competitive universities in the nation, is an industry. It is also an entertainment industry, just like the professional sports are just as much about entertainment as they are about athletics. Many of the young people playing college basketball or football are African American. Unfortunately, all too often the adults who work with them — the coaches, the trainers, the scouts — do not seem to mirror that. It seems that while college sports do provide an avenue for young African Americans to get an education, it may not provide a venue for employment afterwards. Now, one young college coach is brave enough to raise the issue of employment of African Americans by college sports departments. His name is Sean Sheppard and he’s a strength and conditioning coach at Ohio State University and he’s written an open letter calling Ohio State, the National Collegiate Athletic Association, and the broadcasting industry into accountability. Sheppard has 14 plus years of experience as a college athlete himself and as a coach in Division I athletics. He has worked in small private colleges, in state universities and in huge athletic departments. He has coached elite football and basketball players and those who are below average. I’ve never looked Sean Sheppard in the eye, but I have talked with him on the telephone and I have talked with those who have known him since childhood and I would say that I have never talked with a more sincere, more respectful, more caring young man. But he is one who must tell the truth as he sees it; something all too many of us are afraid to do too much of the time. So when he sent me a copy of a statement he recently made, I paid attention. In it, he calls attention to the
fact that of the 342 employees within the Ohio State University athletic department, there are only 19 Aftican Americans (3 percent), despite the fact that most of the football and men’s basketball teams are African Americans. There are only four ’ Black assistant coaches of the 70 assistant coaches. There is only one Black female coach. There are only two head coaches in a department of 30 coaches. Indeed, in the 100 years of history of Ohio State basketball, there has been only one Black head coach and there has never been an African-American head football coach. Sheppard raises the question of whether the message, conscious or unconscious, that is being delivered to the AfricanAmerican community is that while universities have no trouble awarding scholarships to Black athletes because of the money these athletes will generate, they have a problem sharing that money with the AfricanAmerican community by hiring Black coaches. It’s a message, he says, that the African-American community is getting loud and clear and they are talking about it in barbershops. Black-owned restaurants and other places where informal conversation is held. The need for more African Americans in college coaching is not just about sharing the wealth of college athletics either. It is about providing the role models, the counseling and the muchneeded mentoring which Afri-can-American athletes so desperately need. Who better understands a young athlete from the mnef city than an adult who’s been there himself or herself? Who can better recognize the signs of trouble which these young people often show?
Now, it is important to say that Ohio State probably is not the only university with such hiring records. I expect that most of the NCAA Division I athletic departments have comparable numbers. While I don’t have statistics for all NCAA Division I schools, I do have the total numbers of NCAA athletic administrators, where nationally about 8 percent of them are African American. Which means that some of the larger NCAA universities probably have better hiring records than OSU’s while some undoubtedly have worse. Sean Sheppard is quick to point out that advances have been made in the college sports industry over the past generation. There are significantly more African-American quarterbacks and more Black head coaches now than 20 years ago. But, he asks, how far have we really come. And I would add, how far are we willing to go? Sheppard’s solution to this inequity is for the NCAA and its member schools to actively recruit and market themselves at job fairs on college campuses across the country with the sole purpose of recruiting talented people of color. Secondly, he calls upon the television broadcasting industry, which pays billions (with a “b”) of dollars to televise NCAA basketball and football tournaments, to also put aside funds for this purpose. Thirdly, he calls for a new kind of Title IX program (the government program mandating equal sports for women in college) which would work like Title IX, but would ensure coaches of color as well as athletes. Sheppard has started the conversation. OSU Athletic Director Andy Geiger has responded that Sheppard is right and that he appreciates his taking the leadership on this. He calls for a reduction in the rhetoric and an increase in results. Let’s hope he really means that and that l wJJ not only take withe t lenge himself, but invite Ms w colleagues around the country to do the same.
Change your world, you can do it
“We are responsible for the world in which we find ourselves, if only because we are the only sentient force which can change it.” — James Baldwin When you look out upon the world or community in which you find yourself, what do you see? Do you see a world of peace, beauty and refinement with humans manifesting their innate genius and potential? Looking at your surroundings, do you see human progress and productivity or do you see depression, despair, nihilism and self-destruction? Baldwin admonished us we are responsible for the world in which we find ourselves. You may ask, “How am I responsible for the confusion, dysfunction and degradation I see all about me?” An objective survey of America would find some goodness and some decency, but would also see a host of social ills indicative of a cognitive and moral morass; sky-high divorce, suicide and homicide rates, escalating substance abuse and incarceration figures, increasing levels of disrespect, vulgarity, incivility, racial and ethnic animosity. “How,” you may ask, “am I responsible for any of this?” As Baldwin said, you are responsible because we (you, me and us) are the only sentient force which can change it. The Word sentient means: to perceive, capable of perceiving, conscious, die perceptive or conscious mind. We have the power and ability to perceive what is going on, make judgments and decisions what to do about it. To do nothing is a decision! You can choose to be comatose or unconscious if you wish. You can act Hke you don’t know what’s going on, or you can say to
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yourself, “It’s not my responsibility.” But of course that is merely a cop-out — a weak excuse not to change things. You say, “Who am I to think I can make a difference?” My response is, “Who are you not to!” You may say, “I’m not qualified. I’m no expert. I’m not an out-front type person.” Neither was Rosa Parks. Yet she stood up for all of us by remaining seated on a Montgomery bus and became the catalyst for the human/civil rights struggle in the modem South. Because of her, government sanctioned racial oppression was challenged and forced to modify itself. Look at your immediate surrounding and circumstances. Surely there is something you can do to improve the situation if nowhere but within yourself. Our outer world is a reflection of our core values, beliefs, longings and expectations. If we truly desire peace, empowerment and prosperity, we must be willing to work for it and make it real in our minds, lives and environment. We cannot give what we don’t possess. We cannot give love if we despise ourselves. We can’t give hope if we are despondent. We cannot be supportive and encouraging if we have no vision of ourselves developing our potential — if we don’t believe Black people are capable, worthy and deserving. We are responsible for the world in which we find ourselves. If not us, then whom?
Deep trouble for many Black politicians
N AACP leaders turned the tepid issue of the Confederate flag fluttering over the South Carolina statehouse into a life and death battle
against racism.
Now Black politicians in the state have gone them one better and are waging mortal combat against a plan by South Carolina governor Jim Hodges to require elementary school students to say “sir, and ma’am” when addressing teachers and school employees. Black politicians screamed racism and failed that this is nothing but a sneaky way of forcing Blacks to bow apd scrape for white folks again. Hodge’s plan is a sideshow gesture that does nothing to reverse the deplorable drop out rates and miserably low test scores of Black students in South Carolina’s public schools. But the Black lawmakers didn’t attack Hodge’s worthless idea because it doesn’t improve the state’s abominably underfunded and underserved schools. That won’t snatch media and public attention and send the troops scurrying to the barricades. Tbe courtesy title squabble is yet another troubling sign of the
trolled Congress eliminated key committees such as the Post Office and Civil Service and the District of Columbia Committees, CBC members were displaced, and hundreds of committee staff jobs were eliminated many of which were held by Blacks. Their blind subservience to Clinton’s policys have rendered them little more than malleable foot soldiers for the
Democratic party.
Black politicians blame their political slide on voter apathy, alienation, inner city population drops, suburban integration, and displacement by Latinos and increasingly Asians who some claim have far more cohesion and politi-
, _ cal savvy than Blacks. These fac-
pencMht rif Many Black: fleeted) have contribih^ tb the iMV
officiate 1 to gfaU rl at ^sbcrw^ chk T in ^
issues rather than-poUndlng oh thfe influence of Black elected officials
Who will make the effort to improve the ghetto — the government? Not hardly; they created it. It is in the interests of many to keep our communities crime ridden and drug infested, induced with a lethal doses of nihilism, helplessness and hopelessness. It’s a humongous task to attempt to alter that. To do so calls for patience, diligence and boldness. You have to have audacity to believe you can make a difference here and now. You have to have confidence in yourself, in a higher power and a living faith that this power is working on your behalf for the greater good of all. Life is not a spectator sport; you have to get involved to fully live. You are either part of the solution or part of the problem. You have much to offer — ample skills, talents and abilities that you can develop and share. Develop them by making yourself and your immediate environment bener. Responsibility means being present, accounted for and accountable. Responsibility means not turning your back on your people, not opting to be missing in action or selling out for a few dollars more. You can make a difference, you can change the world, even if only a little. Don’t be overwhelmed by the size of the task. You may have to be the prime mover or visionary who points the way. You may be the one who gets the ball rolling and makes the dream, plan or vision real. You may be the indispensable follower, the person who has the back of the leaders. We all have a role to play and contribution to make. Discover yours. , Contact Junious Stanton at [email protected]
crucial problems of poverty, Violence, poor education, the disastrous disparities in the criminal justice system, and the gut of social programs that have taken a massive toll on poor and woriring class blacks. Their political ineffectiveness in attacking these issues has caused them to free fall in state and national politics. In the past two years they have lost mayorships to whites in majority Black cities of Baltimore and Oakland. The number of Black state legislators has plummeted from 12 to 6 in the California legislature since 1994. They have lost seats on dozens of local and municipal offices nationwide.
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The Congressional Black Caucus has been unable to get any substantial legislation through Congress. When the Republican-con-
influence o^fa^k elected otteciiiis.
But the biggest culprit to blame
for their slippage is themselves. Many Black politicians make little or no effort to inform and involve the Black public on vital legislation and political actions that directly impact on Black communities. Their all-consumming obsession is to elect more Black Democrats to office and making sure that
those in office stay there. Many Black politicians are ac-
customed to the unchallenged and unquestioned brandishing of power. They jealously hoard what they view as their sacred right to make all final decisions on proposing laws and supporting public policy they deem important for Blacks. Yet those laws and policies more often than not boost middle-class Blacks and corporate special interests rather than poor
and working-class Blacks. Black politicians are also
Parents can maintain children's academic level over summer vacation
By CHUCK SCHULER When that long awaited summer vacation finally arrives, children all over the world will rejoice. Such joy was immortalized in the old ‘50s songsof Nat King Cole’s “Roll out those lazy, crazy, hazy days of summer....”, and who can forget Connie Francis’ “V-A-C-A-T-I-O-N”? Parents, on the other hand, often face the summer months with mixed emotions. While it’s nice to forget about packing lunches and having school clothes ready to wear, there is now the new problem of what to do with the kids all summer long. Educators know that when children lose academic contact and involvement for those lOto 12 weeks, there is a drop in their performance abilities. That is why most teachers have to spend the first few weeks of every school year reviewing the previous year’s material just to get students ready for their new grade level. What can parents da to help their children maintain their academic level over the suimiMI without losing the joy of vacatron? The first step is to develop a
plan. Don’t just hope that new and interesting learning activities will drop into a child’s life over the summer, although educators know that they will. Sit down now and map out a schedule that includes a special activity or event for every week of the summer that has a
learning objective.
If the family is planning a vacation, then plan special things for that time that fit with your vacation plans. Build on your child’s interests and likes. Activities don’t have to be costly or elaborate. One week, plan to read a book together with your child, discuss the characters, the setting of the story and what it must be like for the hero or heroine. Another week, rent and watch a video about a historic event, but do some further research with your child, draw a picture or build a model that relates to the event. Call a local industry or business and ask if they will take you and your child on a guided
look up information first about how they grow, or try a science project with several plantings using different soils, watering schedules or fertilizers. Visit a farm and ask the fanner to explain how pigs are raised^ or crops are rotated, or .cows are milked. Go to a hobby shop and get a model of a particular Navy ship and read about its history, then build the model. Make a family history by designing an interview questionnaire and then audio or video taping family members and editing it into a final product. The key is to be creative and to plan your summer in advance. It may also be helpful to talk to your child’s teacher and ask for her input about what types of activities might be best for your child.
crippled by their near total dependence on the the Democratic Party for patronage, support, and assorted party favors. Few would dare break ranks with the party and attempt to pressure the Republican party to take Black issues seriously. Many. Latino and Asian leaders and elected officials are not straightjacketed by mind-numbing obedience to the Democrats. They have pushed the Democrats and Republicans to cease immigrant bashing, increase funding for bi-lingual education programs, champion Latino political representation and implement outreach programs to Latino voters. They are leaving Blacks in the political dust. The downward shift in Black politics should be a wake-up call for Black elected officials that guilt tainted appeals for Black solidarity and voter registration caravans and buses into black neighborhoods are not going to make Blacks dash to the polls to vote for politicians they feel have, or will, fail them. The Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies, a Black think tank, found that the frustration and disgust of many Black voters with Blackpolittciarishassoaredlsohich that less than 2Q.ptrtetfrof eligible . Black voters bothbred lO’cMI a ballot in many municipal and statewide elections in 1998. The cruel truth is that with a pivotal presidential election only months away the power and influence of Black politicians has badly eroded. And they only make things worse by waging symbolic fights over issues such as flags and how students address teachers while refusing to craft an agenda that confronts the dire problems of the poor and working class Blacks. This virtually guarantees that the Democrats will continue to take them for granted, the Republicans will continue to ignore them, and more and Black voters will turn away from them. Earl Ofari Hutchinson is the author of the forthcoming The Disappearance of Black Leadership. email:[email protected]
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Chuck Schuler is an educational consultant and manager of Global Education Grants at Learning Pays. Com in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.
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