Black athletes deserve dignity! Let's show Tyler that we have his back
by demanding accountability from the NCAA

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Sign now to make sure something like this never happens to a kid again

[ [link removed] ]Take Action

Dear John. 

The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is no longer only
exploiting Black student-athletes.^1 It is now humiliating them for having
Black hair too. Tyler Williams was dismissed from the University of
Arkansas-Fort Smith basketball team by their new head coach for having
dreadlocks.^2 The coach didn’t care that Tyler was the second leading
scorer in the previous season. He cared only about forcing Tyler to
conform to outdated and blatantly racist standards to appease him, a white
coach. This is an abuse of power. Degrading a kid just because he is Black
is unacceptable, even for NCAA standards. Color Of Change is demanding the
NCAA do the right thing by creating an anti-hair-discrimination policy.

[ [link removed] ]Demand the NCAA be on the right side of justice and protect Black
athletes from discrimination!

The NCAA makes billions of dollars off the likenesses of its players, TV
deals, video games, and other money streams, but the association’s players
— the majority of whom are Black — receive no compensation. The gross
injustice of selling the image of Black kids while condemning their hair
whenever it suits a coach or school’s fancy is appalling. Black
student-athletes in the NCAA are vulnerable to systemic abuse, but we can
put an end to it today.

[ [link removed] ]Tell the NCAA that Black student-athletes deserve an
anti-hair-discrimination policy now!

Right now, Tyler and his family are locked in a legal battle for justice,
and they can’t do it alone. We have the power to make the NCAA create an
anti-hair-discrimination policy, not only because what Tyler endured is
wrong, but because this kind of prejudice is an epidemic in America. The
effort to control Black hair is nothing new; it is part of a long-standing
tradition of coded racism intended to keep Black people out of jobs,
educational opportunities, and now, athletics. These obstacles are meant
to make spaces unreachable for Black people and control how they access
them by imposing ridiculous regulations on our expression. Black hair
remains one of the completely legal ways you can discriminate against our
folks in all but two states in America.

[ [link removed] ]Tell the NCAA to put a stop to this perverse practice of policing Black
hair!

Black children across America are being humiliated because of racist
policies that discriminate against our hair. Last year, 6-year-old Clinton
Stanley Jr. was sent home from A Book’s Christian Academy for having
locks,^3 and 11-year-old Faith Finnedy was sent home from Christ the King
for wearing box braids to school.^4 These policies shape the way Black
kids see themselves and give permission to institutions to discriminate
against them without repercussions.

[ [link removed] ]Sign the petition now and let the NCAA know you want justice!

Until justice is real, 

-- Future, Brandi, Rashad, Arisha, Jade, Evan, Johnny, Corina, Chad,
Eesha, Marcus, Folasade and the rest of the Color Of Change team

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 References:

 1. “NCAA’s Amateurism Rule Exploits Black Athletes as Slave Labor,” The
Undefeated, March 27, 2019,
[ [link removed] ][link removed]
 2. College Basketball Player in Arkansas Says Coach Dismissed Him because
of His Dreadlocks,” Washington Post, September 6, 2019,
[ [link removed] ][link removed]
 3. “6-Year-Old Boy with Dreadlocks Banned from Private School in Orange
County,” Orlando Sentinel, August 14, 2018,
[ [link removed] ][link removed]
 4. “Louisiana Girl Sent Home from School over Braided Hair Extensions”
NBC News, August 22, 2018,
[ [link removed] ][link removed]


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[ [link removed] ]Color Of Change is building a movement to elevate the voices of Black
folks and our allies, and win real social and political change. [ [link removed] ]Help
keep our movement strong.

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