NAACP to Black Athletes: Boycott Schools in These 7 States

The NAACP is calling on Black athletes and fans to boycott the athletic programs of public universities in states taking steps that the nation's oldest civil rights group says are restricting Black voting rights. Launched on Tuesday, the "Out of Bounds" campaign urges prospective Black athletes, their families, alumni, and fans to "withhold athletic and financial support" from major public universities in states that "have moved to limit, weaken, or erase Black voting representation," per the AP. If Black athletes participate in the boycott, it could deplete rosters for powerhouse football and basketball programs across the Southeastern Conference and Atlantic Coast Conference.

The NAACP is among groups responding to a wave of gerrymandering in the aftermath of a Supreme Court ruling that winnowed a key provision of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. The boycott comes as civil rights activists have mobilized across the South to protest redistricting plans by Republican state legislatures that eliminate majority-Black congressional districts after the high court's ruling. Activists have looked for pressure points to dissuade GOP-led states from redistricting maps, including calls for mass protests and economic boycotts. "Across the South, Black athletes have helped build some of the most profitable college athletic programs in America," said NAACP President Derrick Johnson.

Johnson noted that the programs "generate hundreds of millions of dollars in annual revenue, national television value, alumni donations, merchandising sales, ticket sales, and brand equity—much of it powered by Black football and basketball talent." The NAACP's campaign calls out Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Texas, and South Carolina as states to boycott, arguing that the athletic programs of those states' flagship universities are especially reliant on Black athletic talent and should protect Black political interests. "Black athletes should not be asked to generate wealth, prestige, and power for state institutions while those same states strip political power from Black communities," said Johnson.

Black lawmakers themselves are also putting pressure on athletic leagues to take action against Republican-led states that may redistrict longtime Black members of Congress. The Congressional Black Caucus on Monday sent a letter to the commissioners of the SEC and ACC athletic conferences, as well as to NCAA President Charlie Baker, that its members will oppose the SCORE Act, a bill to standardize athletes' contracting rights across the country, unless conference leaders oppose GOP-led redistricting efforts in states that include major conference members.