Around 55 percent, give or take.
That’s the number of Florida Gators athletes who are minorities, using six popular sports on campus – Football, men’s and women’s basketball, baseball, softball and volleyball.
What those student athletes have at their fingertips is something that most people at our university, including myself, can only wish for.
A platform that reaches a large audience.
I can run around Turlington in a loin cloth covered in peanut butter with a megaphone in my left hand and a big-ass sign in my right spewing out all my problems with the world until UPD took my tear-covered face away.
I still wouldn’t reach the same audience that most Gators athletes reach in one post-game interview, tweet or news conference.
I haven’t seen any student athletes make a stand and talk about the racial problems that have recently dominated campus news. That’s a bit startling.
Racial tensions at Florida have grown steadily. You know it, I know it. We’ve all heard about it at least once in the past couple semesters.
In spring term, it was the Nazi man that called many to arms in Turlington. There was the noose found in Weimer Hall, and then there was the Walker Hall sign vandalization.
It didn’t take too long to get going this term, either, with the potential arrival of white nationalist Richard Spencer. Although he was prevented from speaking on Sept. 12, students received an email from the university stating that there won’t be the same amount of push to prevent him from holding an event on campus next time.
If I could give my perspective on what Florida said to its student body with that email, it’s this: We solely didn’t allow it because of the national tension, but if weren’t for that, we wouldn’t do anything to stop it.
That should aggravate every student here, minority or not. Especially student athletes, who the school utilizes every year to take in a ton of cash.
When the Charlottesville rally took place, Gators quarterback Luke Del Rio took to Twitter, condemning white nationalists.
Less than an hour later, that tweet was gone.
I’m not completely sure that was because of the university or the NCAA, but it’s unsettling that the one time I saw a comment about the issue, it was taken down almost immediately.
These guys go to college, where we’re supposed to become educated and informed adults. Why does it feel like this is the time where they can say the least.
The only big name who’s said anything is football coach Jim McElwain.
"It's just not what we believe in here, and yet I also understand freedom of speech,” McElwain said after Charlottesville. “That's what really our country was founded on, right?"
I walk across campus and see diversity everywhere I go. And I absolutely adore it. No matter if you’re black, white, asian, a short, skinny hispanic dude like me, or anywhere in between. We’re all just trying to graduate.
I’m not saying UF stands with white supremacy, but allowing them to use the school as a platform means allowing discrimination in a school filled with the exact opposite — diversity.
There is no gray area on this issue.
Athletes need to take a stand and say the same. It could make all the difference.
Skyler Lebron is a sports writer. Look out for his next column on Sept. 13. Follow him on Twitter @SkylerLebron and contact him at slebron@alligator.org.
When the Charlottesville rally took place, Luke Del Rio took to Twitter to condemn white nationalists. Less than an hour later, the tweet was taken down.
