The NAACP’s calling on athletes and fans to boycott college teams in states that have moved to limit black representation. Last month, the Supreme Court limited the Voting Rights Act, effectively preventing states from considering race when drawing congressional maps. Since then, Louisiana, Alabama, South Carolina, and Tennessee all moved to redraw their maps. Some experts tell ABC News redistricting could wipe out up to a third of black lawmakers’ seats in Congress. And now, the NAACP is hoping to leverage the South’s love of college sports to stop what it calls a sprint to erase black political power.
NAACP CP President and CEO Derrick Johnson is here for more. Derrick, thank you for coming on. Now, you say the NAACP will not watch the same institutions that depend on black athletic prowess to fill their stadiums and their bank accounts remain silent while their states strip black communities of their voice. What will it take for this boycott to make an impact? Well, it is very important for parent and student athletes to understand their value, their power, and their voice.
Uh these states are now moving very quickly to implement policies uh to eliminate the ability of African Americans to fully engage in the electoral process. Uh they are trying to fit everyone into a 1950s uh reality, particularly in the former Confederate states. And so, athletes from uh communities impacted, but athletes in general, should not uh pad the bank accounts generating billions of dollars in revenue uh for state institutions of states that will deny their right to vote and uh prevent their full voice uh to be heard. Now, Derrick, Republicans behind these new maps argue they’re just complying with the Supreme Court’s order or remedying unfairly drawn districts. They say the districts that could be changed may still elect black representatives to Congress.
What’s your response to that? Well, that is that is beyond untrue. Are you take the state of Tennessee, the Memphis community for many years, they were able to elect a candidate of their choice. That candidate happened to be a white gentleman. So, this is not just about electing black people, it’s about black voters having a true opportunity to be represented in Congress to ensure their needs, interests, and values are also at the table.
For decades, in fact, for over a century southern states drew lines or created processes to prevent black folks from participating through vote suppression methods, through drawing political boundaries to limit access for communities to elect candidates of their choice. And for the first time, we would begin to really see the impact and opportunity of fairly drawn districts. And now these states are trying to reverse uh uh decades of progress. Okay, Derek, I want to talk about your methodology here. The college football transfer window is closed until January, and the next round of high school recruits, they actually won’t officially commit until after the midterms.
So, is it too late to make a difference? Well, this is not about an electoral transaction in November. This is about the ability of African Americans to be fully represented and participate as citizens. This is about equal protection under the law. For us, this is about African Americans to be engaged and not repeat what we seen after the reconstruction movement.
After reconstruction, there were efforts like this, although districting wasn’t on the table, to suppress the black vote, to minimize the voices of the black community, and remove from policy decision-making input of the black community. That this should not be acceptable, not only for the African American community, but for anyone in this society. But Derek, we are in a new era right now. This is the NIL era. How realistic is it for 17- and 18-year-old recruits to turn down millions of dollars if these teams offer it to them?
Well, on fortunately for this country, we have universities all across the country that that’s competing for some of the top athletes that is coming out of high school. So, what we are saying is you have a choice. If the school in Alabama’s pursuing you, there are options in Oregon, in California, in Michigan that you should consider. If it’s a close race between going to University A and University B, I think the choice is equal. Go to a place where you are respected as a human being, as a citizen, and as a potential voter.
All right, NAACP President and CEO Derrick Johnson, thank you for your time. Thank you.
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