NAACP warns student athletes from playing in Florida

Student athletes who may be looking at Florida Gulf Coast University, the University of Florida, or other public schools in the state are being warned. That warning: don’t bring your talents to the Sunshine State.

In a letter addressed to the NCAA president Charlie Baker, the NAACP warned student athletes from playing for any of the public universities or colleges in the state of Florida.

The letter read in part, “If any institution is to reap the benefits of black talent, it is only right they completely invest in black futures.”

Lee County NAACP president James Muwakkil said his chapter agrees.

“Black athletes don’t come to Florida,” Muwakkil said. “Black athletes in Florida go somewhere else where you’re appreciated at.”

This all stems from Governor Ron DeSantis’ decision to sign into a law a ban on using state funds for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Programs on college campuses last year.

“DEI is better viewed as standing as discrimination exclusion and indoctrination. And that has no place in our public institutions,” DeSantis said when the bill was signed in May.

Earlier this month, the University of Florida closed their Diversity and Inclusion office, which eliminated 13 jobs.

“Blacks should not be allowing the University of Florida to make money off their talents when they clearly have shown that they don’t care about the positions of blacks,” Muwakkil said.

WINK News reached out to FGCU for their response to the NAACP’s letter. We were sent a statement from the State University System of Florida. That statement called the letter “another political attack.”

The statement went on say, “the NAACP mischaracterizes Florida statutes and ignores that the DEI prohibited expenditures statute does not apply to student-led organizations nor student speech.”