Sports
Why Emmitt Smith’s voice is so powerful after the DEI ban
One moment, football legend Emmitt Smith is there drinking beer with fellow Hall of Famer Peyton Manning. The next moment he is an advocate for diversity, equality and inclusion.
When University of Florida closed down its DEI officelargely as a consequence of A a bill signed into law in 2023 by Governor Ron DeSantis that prohibits state universities from spending money on diversity, equity and inclusion programsSmith responded with harsh criticism.
“I am completely disgusted by UF’s decision and the precedent it sets,” Smith wrote Sunday afternoon in a press release on X, formerly often called Twitter. “We cannot proceed to imagine and trust that a leadership team of the same ethnicity will make the right decision in terms of equality and variety. History has already shown that this is not the case.”
One might have a look at Smith’s Hall of Fame football profession and his penchant for being a pitcher and think he would don’t have anything to say about pressing civil rights issues. This narrative couldn’t be farther from the truth. Facing the stark challenges facing DEI programs at his alma mater, and with a deep sense of stability from history, Smith made a persuasive rebuke of policies inspired by politicians like DeSantis.
Smith’s position could appear unfathomable at the present time when athletes, current and former, care so much about public opinion and marketing dollars. But such comments should not just words from a bygone era, with baseball pioneers Jackie Robinson and Curt Flood, whose lawsuit against the MLB led to free agency. Similar statements were common just over three years ago when The murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis police galvanized a generation’s demands for civil rights.
But why Smith? Why is he the NFL’s all-time leading rusher? Smith’s reasons are baked into his being.
Smith was born in 1969 in Pensacola, Florida – the same 12 months that city’s all-white Escambia High School was desegregated on federal orders. Escambia High School had a Confederate soldier as its mascot, flew the Rebel flag and the school song was “Dixie.” Protests by black students at football games and anxious residents led to a federal ruling in 1973 that banned the use of Confederate symbols and altered the mascot to the Raiders. The school board appealed the ruling in 1974, and in 1975 a federal appeals court overturned the order and remitted the case to the school board.
After students voted to maintain the mascot name Raiders, on February 5, 1976, a violent riot broke out at the school, resulting in described in March 1976:
“Years of racial hostility on this Florida city have erupted into violence in recent weeks over whether the local highschool sports teams can be called the Rebels or Raiders. Controversy over the name, which has been ongoing out and in of court for several years, sparked a riot at Escambia County High School on February 5. This afternoon, 120 Ku Klux Klan members in full regalia, but with their faces legally uncovered, paraded through the facility through the streets of Milton, a small town about 20 miles east of here. They arrived on the town in an 80-person caravan from outside Pensacola and called the march an “organizational effort.” Three Klan leaders from Alabama, Georgia and Florida attended the rally, which drew 450 people. “Four students were hit by gunfire during the school riot, 26 others were injured and $5,000 in damage was caused to the school during four hours of fighting, rock throwing and smashing of windows, trophy cases and other school property.”
Smith graduated from Escambia just over a decade later, in 1987.
Michael Wade/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
American history, regardless of how joyful or wretched, is never too removed from the present. That’s why Smith’s criticism of his alma mater, the University of Florida, carries so much weight. It also helps, after all, that he’s the NFL’s all-time leading rusher.
“Rather than demonstrating courage and leadership, we continue to fail due to systemic issues, and with this decision, UF has adapted to contemporary political pressures,” Smith noted in his statement.
Birmingham, Alabama Mayor Randall Woodfin recalled the University of Alabama’s sordid history of segregation in his criticism of the state’s proposed anti-DEI law. He further said that if such laws is passed, he would encourage Black athletes and oldsters “attend other out-of-state institutions that prioritize diversity and inclusion“
“While I am Bama’s biggest fan, I have no problem with organizing activities for Black parents and athletes at other out-of-state institutions that prioritize diversity and inclusion,” Woodfin posted last month in X. “If supporting inclusion becomes a it’s an illegal state on this country, rattling it, you would possibly as well stand at the school door like Governor Wallace. Mannnn is Black History Month. You could have not less than waited until March 1st.
Let some say it, the most significant goalie in Alabama history was then-Gov. George Wallace’s segregationist stance at the school door, where he symbolically stood to dam two black students. And yet, like most of Wallace’s profession, it was a political stance and the students got here through.
All this uncertainty and anxiety doesn’t make life easier for school athletes, who find themselves at the center of a rapidly changing landscape as a consequence of the NCAA and name, image and likeness. On the one hand, it is interesting that after this era, NIL is on the verge of rapid development the order effectively limited the NCAA’s authority to punish athletes (and universities). At the same time, it is troubling to think that athletes are depending on institutions that don’t prioritize DEI.
It’s also price mentioning that we needs to be clear about terms like DEI and NIL, especially since people want them cut and dried. People hear “NIL” and think all college athletes earn cash. If this were the case, student-athletes wouldn’t compete the first $600 that comes their way. Thank you, EA Sports. People hear “DEI” and dismiss the intentions of diversity and equity initiatives, even when there is evidence to support it DEI is not so pro-black as you would possibly think.
Adam Gray/Getty Images
The solution for school athletes could also be much like GameStop’s motto – “power to gamers.” Just this week, March 5, Dartmouth basketball players voted to hitch the local unionwhich meant that athletes took public motion for the first time as employees.
We should work to support college athletes on all fronts, whether financially or socially. It is clear that they’re often pawns at the expense of billions of dollars in campus interests, whether on or off the field. We mustn’t only unlock their profession potential, but in addition their understanding of history and its connection to the present.
Or, as Smith put it at the end of his fascinating commentary: “And for those who think it’s not your problem and stand by and say nothing, you are complicit in supporting systemic problems.”
Sports
During the recruitment of legislators, they weigh whether to grant colleges athletes with zero earnings
The representative of the Illinois Travis Weaver state remembers how surreal it was, that the winner of the Heismman Mark Ingram trophy was sitting behind him several rows in the political class class. He will always remember pure joy in Alabama each time Crimson Tide got here to the national championship.
Weaver was there for 2 title runs as a student in 2010–2015. The way he sees him, coach Nick Saban and his players weren’t the only winners.
“The city of Tuscaloosa, Stan Alabama, employers who recruited the University of Alabama, because there are students of senior caliber-all people benefited greatly because of the success of the football team,” said Weaver. “Coach Saban made it a different school than when he got there. Of course, the football team was better. But what I saw as a student, the whole community became much stronger because of this success.”
His experience in College makes him perform now.
Weaver wants to help Illinois Schools and encourage more recruits to stay at home, releasing to $ 100,000 profits, image and similarity from state income tax. IN Georgia AND AlabamaLegislators want to completely eliminate income tax on zero earnings. There is comparable pressure in Louisiana.
Legislators perceive the provisions that they propose as a way to compensate for a hyperconal field of recruitment if they don’t gain advantage. Their universities are fighting against schools in Florida, Tennessee and Texas, states that the income isn’t taxed.
Funds can face the rejection of other students who earn money on their name, image and similarity, equivalent to people influencing social media, actors and musicians. They may wonder why the quarterback and points of points receive the release, but not.
There is a precedent. In 2016, President Barack Obama signed an account eliminated the so -called federal “victory tax” on Olympic medalistsstopping IRS from collecting medals and money prizes up to $ 1 million. On the other hand, legislators must resolve whether the proposed funds are value potential challenges, even when they are on solid legal grounds.
“This optics are probably not great for people who are YouTubers, and some children from college pay tax in the state and some do not,” said Daniel Ryan, former IRS lawyer now at Sullivan and Worcester in Boston. “But I don’t know if there is a constitutional problem that would prevent this.”
Lawyer Michael Rueda from Withers Worldwide collaborated with athletes and schools in zero matters. He said that states would “have to argue that there is a reasonable justification for the distinction between taxpayers.”
Income tax landscape
There are nine without income tax: Alaska, Florida, Nevada, New Hampshire, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington and Wyoming. Although the idea of saving money could be attractive, accountants and lawyers who work with athletes and universities say that tax rates are generally not at the top of their clients’ priority lists. They look more at their role, team competitiveness and marketing capabilities.
In this sense they are like professionals.
“What seems to be a number one choice for them after passing through money?” said Richard Koenigsberg, accountant of Eisner Advisory Group in New York, who worked with College and skilled athletes. “Because we saw athletes, reject the best priced contract.”
As for the potential release from zero income?
“Carson Beck – Did he go to (Miami) to avoid income tax in Georgia?” said Michael Guariglia, a lawyer from McCarter & English in New Jersey, who collaborated with universities from Nil. “I think that it was more important to ensure that he would be their initial quarterback. Could it be a factor? Yes, maybe. It’s a game of many different things.”
For example, recruits from New Jersey who go to school in Florida still have to pay income tax of their condition, unless they change their place of residence. And the income for somebody from Florida who goes to school in Jersey can still be released.
Proposals regarding the tax relief
Athletes in Georgia, Alabama, Louisiana I, to a lesser extent, Illinois who resolve to stay at home, could be for a break if the regulations were prescribed.
In Georgia, where the Zryczba rate is 5.39%, a recruit that continues to be in a state would save around USD 5,400 per $ 100,000 zero money. In Alabama – where it ranges from 2% to 5% for one earning over 3000 USD – savings at $ 100,000 could be around $ 5,000. In Louisiana – which has just implemented a flat rate of 3% – which translates into USD 3000.
Savings for athletes earning seven data in zero money would of course be far more significant; In Illinois, not a lot, because the Weaver plan would only release the first $ 100,000.
In this scenario, basketball or players with NBA or NFL eyes can still pay state tax on at the least a component of zero earnings. Athletes with less lucrative contracts could be completely covered and barely more likely to stay in condition.
For Weaver, it’s more about assist in MID Major schools, equivalent to Bradley, Illinois State, Western Illinois and Loyola Chicago than the Great Ten Illinois and Northwestern.
“If these schools are slightly more successful and you will receive an additional 10% of applications more periodically, Peoria, Ill., Bloomington, Ill., Macomb, Ill.” – said Weaver, a Republican of Peoria.
Although Weaver said that the state would lose about USD 750,000 income from income tax, it considers it a priceless investment. It provides for a rise in the number of entries, participation in games, selling goods, hotel reservations and others which can be successful on the pitch and field.
Proof A: Loyola.
Jesuit school on the north side of Chicago Large jumps in applications and sale of goods After staying to the final 4 in 2018 and Sweet 16 in 2021, sister Jean Bobbleheads and burgundy scarves became popular items.
“If we can help-you reach the average foreman-to create the NCAA tournament once every three years instead of every five years, and this means twice as often that they receive a 10% increase in application, it can be something that is really a difference in maintaining one of these smaller schools in the long run,” said Weaver.
(Tagstranslate) zer
The legend of NBA, Tim Duncan, recently got here out to the sport of San Antonio Spurs, not looking like a fan -remembered fan player.
The five -time NBA champion, once known for his close hair, is now swaying on the shoulders, frameting his face next to the total beard. These well -maintained dreadlocks completely transformed Hall of Famer into someone who is nearly not recognizable for individuals who watched them dominate within the league for 19 seasons.
The dramatic change of haircut didn’t happen overnight, and although his dreadlocks on the time were widely reported when he gave an acceptance speech through the Hall of Fame induction ceremony in Naismith basketball in 2021, Duncan’s word caused an avalanche of headers with a “great fundamental evolution of favor.
Today we now have Tim Duncan in practice. pic.twitter.com/eeobfvqqal
– Matthew Tynan (@matthew_tynan) November 13, 2024
When Duncan appeared in San Antonio Frost Bank Center to observe his Spurs faced Golden State Warriors on March 30-when his old team lost 148-106-Svobodny fans were shocked with his recent appearance within the photo with their girlfriend, the star of reality Vanessa Macias, 44.
15 times All-Star Sat Courtside with Macias, who wore a full glam with loose curls and had proudly San Antonio equipment. Duncan selected a free outfit with a raglan -style shirt with camouflage sleeves, not team goods, perhaps symbolizing his evolution except that he’s a basketball icon.
What happens to Tim Duncan? pic.twitter.com/qhpg5jghtg
– Hoops (@hoopmixonly) March 31, 2025
Many jumped on X with the comments of shock to a brand new appearance when the fan asked: “What is happening to Tim Duncan?”
One person joked: “He is comfortable and relaxed … WTF.”
“Bro was not exactly the GQ model in the first years. Honestly looks more cold at 48 than 35 years.” one other person wrote.
However, not everyone appreciated the brand new hairstyle and a relaxed look.
Someone else Tweet“What’s up with this guy … He on a hippie journey? Will he start wandering in the desert?”
Other he said, “Bro looks like he was disappearing at sea.”
One fan compared him to Lord Corlys “The Sea Snake” Velaryon from “Dom Dragon”.
Leroy Tekken
– Infina (@infinitesunami) March 31, 2025
After collecting $ 245 million of profession earnings and strengthening his heritage as one in all the biggest basketball strikers, Duncan clearly decided that retirement is a really perfect time to simply accept a totally recent aesthetics.
This is just not the one change that the 48-year-old basketball icon has adopted of their life after the NBA. Now he practices mixed martial arts.
“When he entered the door, I saw that he was very hungry for learning martial arts, and his movement, his absorption of martial arts was simply phenomenal” revealed Jason Echols to the Bleacher report.
Echols is a coach of MMA Duncana, who has been training the basketball legend in Echols Fitness in San Antonio for over a decade.
Duncan’s physical transformation coincides with significant changes in his personal life over the past decade.
His personal life has also evolved. After his divorce with his beloved from College, Amy Sherrill, with whom he shares two children, Duncan found love for Amazing Race Alum Macias. Together for over a decade, the couple divides his daughter, Quill – named after Peter Quilla Marvel (Guardians of the Galaxy), Sporting News Reports.
Macias announced the birth of his daughter in March 2017, calling her a “small soul changer”.
Thank you for love and thoughts welcoming our little change of soul, Quill.
– Vanessa Macias (@vanessalmacias) March 27, 2017
It seems that Macias has an amicable relationship with other children from his marriage, since the whole family was present in 2016, when the NBA star shirt was retired by his team.
Despite leaving the sport, Duncan stays connected to Spurs. His short time as an assistant to the trainer in 2019-2020 was one in all the few times when he returned to the focus.
While his appearance has modified, his loyalty to Spurs didn’t. He still supports his former team, proving that he continues to be an impulse to live – only many more hair.
(Tagstransate) Tim Duncan
Atlanta – when he began to climb the ladder on his turn to cut the network, Auburn Center Dylan Cardwell suddenly stopped.
By examining the Orange Sea at State Farm Arena, Cardwell raised his right hand in the air and led the spontaneous crowd to the school’s battle school:
Cardwell ended the singing with a shout before the resumption of climbing, demanding a fraction of nylon on the occasion of the second journey of Auburn to the Final Four in the history of the program with a Sunday victory 70-64 in Michigan in the state of Michigan in the southern regional final, which, despite playing in Atlanta, felt like a game at Auburn’s house.
“Super game, this is Auburn-Atlanta,” said Cardwell later with a crowd of Pro-Auburn, which had a small problem to make two hours to Atlanta. “I can’t imagine how difficult it is to play in this environment. It was great.”
MVP Auburna Regional was Johni Broome, who shook nasty autumn in the middle of the second half, scoring 25 points and win 14 rebounds to win the Top Player award.
The rising regional star was Tahaad PettiFord, the first yr guard who was the only other Auburn player in double forms (10). Despite the descent from the bench in all matches this season, PettiFord represents the way forward for the team (if he decides to stay in college, which might be difficult to scout NBA will definitely drool due to his athleticism and confidence).
But when the tigers are preparing to travel to San Antonio next weekend for the last 4 with 4 seeds No. 1 for the second time in history, Cardwell – the best player in Auburn basketball history – can simply represent the heart and soul of the team.
“Dylan Cardwell blows everyone who is there,” said coach Auburn Bruce Pearl about August, Georgia, from plus/minus the team for 3 easy matches before the Sunday regional final. “You can’t look at the statistics sheet and think that he will lead in Plus-Minus and does it all the time.”
Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images
A fast take a look at Cardwell’s statistics from Sunday is not going to blow you up: he had five points, six rebounds and made only considered one of 4 attempts at free kicks (after the only brand, Cardwell pushed each fingers into the air and shouted “thank you”). But Cardwell played a key role in maintaining Auburn’s defense when Broome had to leave the game with 10:37 after a tough landing on the right elbow.
“When Johni left, I immediately thought about Chaney (Johnson) and Dylan and none of them got into bad trouble,” said Pearl. “Chaney and Dylan can of course do what should be done in a defensive end and reflection. When Johnni left, we hung there and hindered the capture of Michigan.”
Auburn led 50-40 when Broome left the game. When Cardwell and Chaney hold the interior, there have been 10 points when Broome returned from the cloakroom and immediately checked in in the game.
“CHaney and Dylan can of course do what should be done on defensive and reflection,” said Pearl. “When Johni left, we hung there. We made it difficult to Michigan.”
Cardwell played his role as considered one of the principal defensive elements for tigers, which is barely suitable for a man who got here to Auburn in 2020, a yr after the team’s last journey to the final 4. While Cardwell was a rotation guy from the 1st day, he began only two matches before this season – his fifth in Auburn.
Modest medium Cardwell careers (4.2 points and three.8 rebounds per match inside five seasons) Do not likely tell the stories of considered one of the most influential players in the team that remained near the summit of national rankings throughout the season.
“The boards dominate, he is the best defender on the floor and does not overturn basketball,” said Pearl about Cardwell. “So he can’t shoot at a jump, but intends to hand over the ball to some guys who can shoot.”
And Cardwell plays with the level of intensity and swagger, who denies the indisputable fact that he’s a person who’s wealthy who’s on the dean’s list and 3 times made Academic Honor Scena.
Grant Halverson/NCAA photos via ghetto images
Pearl Cardwell Cardwell for sticking to the program, saying that the introduction of Walker Kessler transfers (from North Carolina in 2021) and Broome (from the state of Morehead in 2022) were movements that refused Kardwell to start.
“We brought him at the end of the season and said:” Look, if Johni returns, two things must occur, “said Pearl. “Or you have got to leave because he just isn’t fair to play after him again, you deserve more. Or I’ll start two in each game should you stay.” “
Cardwell award for stay: Journey to the final 4.
It was only right that when the team left the State Farm Arena Court after cutting out the network, Cardwell took the regional championship trophy to the cloakroom.
“In Auburn, 2019 is a year that everyone is talking about,” said Cardwell in the victorious cloakroom, squeezing this trophy. “They are the basis of this program. I am glad that now my name can now be included in the history of Auburn.”
Trevante Rhodes: A versatile actor and star “Moonlight” and more
Former star of “housewives” Candiace Dillard Bassett defends Kenya Moore after the drama in the latest episode of “Real Housewives of Atlanta”
Automacers jump on the misfortunes of the Tesla brand with EV discounts offers
Why the developing Clary Lionel Rihanna Foundation is perceived as a model of celebrity philanthropy
Meet Asher! Tasha Cobbs Leonard welcomes the first child by adoption
-
Press Release12 months agoU.S.-Africa Chamber of Commerce Appoints Robert Alexander of 360WiseMedia as Board Director
-
Press Release1 year agoCEO of 360WiSE Launches Mentorship Program in Overtown Miami FL
-
Business and Finance10 months agoThe Importance of Owning Your Distribution Media Platform
-
Business and Finance1 year ago360Wise Media and McDonald’s NY Tri-State Owner Operators Celebrate Success of “Faces of Black History” Campaign with Over 2 Million Event Visits
-
Ben Crump12 months agoAnother lawsuit accuses Google of bias against Black minority employees
-
Theater1 year agoTelling the story of the Apollo Theater
-
Ben Crump1 year agoHenrietta Lacks’ family members reach an agreement after her cells undergo advanced medical tests
-
Ben Crump1 year agoThe families of George Floyd and Daunte Wright hold an emotional press conference in Minneapolis
-
Theater1 year agoApplications open for the 2020-2021 Soul Producing National Black Theater residency – Black Theater Matters
-
Theater10 months agoCultural icon Apollo Theater sets new goals on the occasion of its 85th anniversary