Colts Discuss Activism and Racial Equity in Sports

On the afternoon of Wednesday, October 28, 2020, every student athlete, coach, and staff member in the Athletics Department, joined together in a zoom call to discuss the impact of anti-Blackness, oppression, poverty, and racism within their communities. The conversation was led by Dr. Kenny Donaldson, UCLA's Associate Athletic Director of Sports and Administration  and founder of the Black Student Athlete Alliance, which serves to create a safe space for Black athletes to grow and elicit change on campus and beyond.  

As conversations regarding the re-imagining of student athlete culture within Athletics took place, Cañada's Director of Policy, Training, and Compliance Mwainaisha Sims, Dean of Counseling / Title IX Coordinator Max Hartman, and Interim Dean of Kinesiology, Athletics, and Dance Matt Lee, decided it is critical to continue the conversations regarding activism and racial equity within sports. 

The discussion, especially in the wake of the George Floyd murder and at the heals of over 400 years of injustices inflicted on the Black Community, further emphasize the College's Anti-Racist Framework.  The students and panelists discussed how they can improve racial literacy and how their status as "athletes" can help foster a more equitable, supportive, inclusive and liberated community.