I thought I would weigh in and give my 2 cents on the current state of affairs in college football. Specifically, I am referring to the fact that less than 1% of college head coaches are black, but yet 60-70% of the players who participate in college football are African American. Nobody within the leadership of the college game seems to be able to adequately explain the reasons for this disparity. I know there are many black assistant coaches on college staffs across America, but it is bothersome that many of these qualified individuals are overlooked when head coaching positions open up. I believe that many pro coaches such as Tony Dungy, Lovie Smith, and Herm Edwards have done a great job of breaking down barriers. These men have helped pave the way for the next generation of black coaches who are coming up through the ranks. For the first time in history, the NFL appears to be heading in a positive direction when it comes to selecting coaches. The opportunity to coach in this league no longer appears to be tied in to a person's race, but rather a reflection of their experience level and perceived capabilities. The college game appears to be evolving at a much slower pace. My hope is that more attention is brought to this matter in the near future and we would begin to see more equality and fairness at the intercollegiate level. I believe in the social consciousness of our country and its citizens. It would be naive to say that racism does not exist in our nation. However, America has come a long way. If you don't believe me, then just ask President Barack Obama.
Lights out.
3 comments:
Hey Coach Slivo. This topic is definitely a sensitive one. I will first agree that racism is still present in this world and it will continue to be present till Christ returns. Then I would like to ask what hard proof there is of injustice toward black men in college football and the NFL(and also the general industrialized work force). I'm just considering the fact that the population of America in 2006 was 66% white non-hispanics and only 13.4% blacks. How can we really complain about industrialized racism? Okay, so you pointed out that most football athletes (60-70%) are black while only 1% of them are coaches. Racism is present with some idiots in this country but can we really call the lack of black coaches a full fledged racist issue? I am all for stopping racism of course, but don't you think there are some factors about these black athletes' lives and choices that have played a part in this? The 60-70% of black athletes you mention may not become coaches for myriad reasons other than racism.
(I deleted the first comment cuz I had a typo and wanted to fix it.)
Coach, I was thinking again on this. The civil rights movement was about equal opportunity. People were to be hired on the basis of merit and ability alone--”the best person for the job”. No other factor (black or white) was to play a role.
But since the beggining of the movement there has been a redefining of "discrimination from a purposeful action against an individual to the absence of proportional representation regardless of discriminatory intent.
Why do we not consider the fact that the sport of football is overwhelmingly black to be a racist issue against white athletes? Why is this such a huge feat for blacks? Why is it not a feat for the white race that white coaches are dominating the NFL and NCAA? Why is it such a black against white issue simply because the proportions are not EVEN? This will only lead to where black men are getting the jobs because they are black and the company or organization or industry does not want the label of "racist" because there is not enough diversity. That does not make much sense.
The white male is a racist and a bigot (and never speak out against anything like this article without catching alot of heat) in this liberal society. Women and non whites are persecuted victims. This is the civil rights movement at it's best... :(
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