Former Florida and Dallas Cowboys legend Emmitt Smith blasted his alma mater in an announcement Sunday in response to the college’s controversial firing of its whole Variety, Fairness and Inclusion division Friday.
“I’m totally disgusted by UF’s determination and the precedent that it units,” Smith wrote on social media. “With out the DEI division, the job falls to the Workplace of the Provost, who already has their fingers full, to lift cash for the college and proceed to advance the tutorial research and athletic packages. We can not proceed to imagine and belief {that a} group of leaders all made up of the identical background will make the precise determination in terms of equality and variety. Historical past has already confirmed that isn’t the case.
“As a substitute of displaying braveness and management, we proceed to fail based mostly on systemic points and with this determination, UF has conformed to the political pressures of at present’s time,” he continued.
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— Emmitt Smith (@EmmittSmith22) March 3, 2024
Florida made its determination to eradicate the entire DEI positions to “adjust to the Florida Board of Governor’s regulation 9.016 on prohibited expenditures.” The board defines DEI as “any program, campus exercise, or coverage that classifies people on the premise of race, coloration, intercourse, nationwide origin, gender identification, or sexual orientation and promotes differential or preferential remedy of people on the premise of such classification,” per the Gainesville Solar.
Moreover, the regulation states {that a} state college “could not expend any state or federal funds to advertise, help, or keep any packages or campus actions” that violate part 1000.05 of Florida Statutes, advocate for what it defines as variety, fairness, and inclusion, or promote or have interaction in what it defines as political or social activism.
Smith, the NFL’s all-time speeding chief, completed his assertion with a message to the minority athletes presently attending Florida.
“To the MANY, minority athletes at UF, please remember and vocal concerning the determination by the College who’s now closing the doorways on different minorities with none oversight,” Smith wrote. “And to those that suppose it’s not your downside and keep on the aspect strains and say nothing, you might be complicit in supporting systemic points.”
