The University of Missouri is in crisis, or is it? If I was wishfully thinking, I'd say the horrendous news coming from their campus involving racism and hate implied a crisis, but a crisis - by definition - has a temporal component to it that denotes non-permanence. A crisis can not be a status quo. So is there a crisis at the University of Missouri, or is the racial unrest happening there just the status quo at that university (and the country in general)?
What we do know, is that the University of Missouri allowed students of color, specifically black students, to attend beginning in 1950. Yet today, in 2015, a student of color can still not walk through campus without fear of being called the N-word, or seeing a swastika smeared in feces on a wall. Students that have been on campus for years speak of systemic and institutional racism that has gone unchallenged and unchecked by the university administration. Again, is this a crisis if this is simply a consistent microcosm of general Missourian or American society? But I digress.
The fact is that what is happening more broadly withing the protests at the University of Missouri mirrors larger movements happening throughout the country. Over the last two years - specifically since the shooting death of Michael Brown - ironically - in Missouri, and on the heals of the Occupy movement that swept the country, people (especially younger generations and millennials) have been standing up and fighting for a voice in the political arena beyond a vote (which many don't believe carries any power). This has cascaded to the college campus in Columbia, in which students stood up and fought for their rights in the face of racial prejudice.
But what is truly profound at this point, is the involvement of the football team. An often revered, but wholly powerless group of student athletes has finally come to life. What can a team worth millions of dollars - and an industry worth billions of dollars do when a small group of men decide they've had enough? This is not a day laborer or McDonalds workers that can easily be replaced saying no I won't work. This is the second most profitable and popular spectator sports in the country saying no, I won't work. The University of Missouri would have had to write a check for 1 million dollars to BYU if they didn't play this weekend, nevermind lose money from concessions, tickets, etc. Millions of dollars would be lost. No, this isn't fast food workers that can be replaced by the next 7.25 and hour worker, this is 3, 4, 5 star recruits playing for a team that won the best conference in college football's eastern division two years in a row. They are not easily replaceable, especially not from one week to the next.
This situation tells us an awful lot about society, where power lies, and who and what we need to mobilize if we are to bring about any change in our society. Black students on the Missouri campus had little power in their protest. Yes, they made national headlines, and yes they made a powerful point, but as soon as the money got involved, and the passion of an entire state got involved, everything changed. It both showed us literally how politically impotent everyday people and "black live" are in this country, but how powerful money and certain passions are. I played Division I football. I was treated differently on campus - revered. Imagine if that kind of power - usually decried for its corruption of the university's mission - could be turned towards change. Towards obliterating these racist status quos. What if we could create a crisis in the pockets and hearts of Americans that forced them to engage this issue? Sadly, without a functioning political system that affords power to actual people, this may be one of the only tools we as a nation have to bring about change. A strike of college and/or professional football player? Hundreds of millions of Americans would take notice. And if the University of Missouri is any indication, we might be able to bring about change in just a day or two...
What we do know, is that the University of Missouri allowed students of color, specifically black students, to attend beginning in 1950. Yet today, in 2015, a student of color can still not walk through campus without fear of being called the N-word, or seeing a swastika smeared in feces on a wall. Students that have been on campus for years speak of systemic and institutional racism that has gone unchallenged and unchecked by the university administration. Again, is this a crisis if this is simply a consistent microcosm of general Missourian or American society? But I digress.
The fact is that what is happening more broadly withing the protests at the University of Missouri mirrors larger movements happening throughout the country. Over the last two years - specifically since the shooting death of Michael Brown - ironically - in Missouri, and on the heals of the Occupy movement that swept the country, people (especially younger generations and millennials) have been standing up and fighting for a voice in the political arena beyond a vote (which many don't believe carries any power). This has cascaded to the college campus in Columbia, in which students stood up and fought for their rights in the face of racial prejudice.
But what is truly profound at this point, is the involvement of the football team. An often revered, but wholly powerless group of student athletes has finally come to life. What can a team worth millions of dollars - and an industry worth billions of dollars do when a small group of men decide they've had enough? This is not a day laborer or McDonalds workers that can easily be replaced saying no I won't work. This is the second most profitable and popular spectator sports in the country saying no, I won't work. The University of Missouri would have had to write a check for 1 million dollars to BYU if they didn't play this weekend, nevermind lose money from concessions, tickets, etc. Millions of dollars would be lost. No, this isn't fast food workers that can be replaced by the next 7.25 and hour worker, this is 3, 4, 5 star recruits playing for a team that won the best conference in college football's eastern division two years in a row. They are not easily replaceable, especially not from one week to the next.
This situation tells us an awful lot about society, where power lies, and who and what we need to mobilize if we are to bring about any change in our society. Black students on the Missouri campus had little power in their protest. Yes, they made national headlines, and yes they made a powerful point, but as soon as the money got involved, and the passion of an entire state got involved, everything changed. It both showed us literally how politically impotent everyday people and "black live" are in this country, but how powerful money and certain passions are. I played Division I football. I was treated differently on campus - revered. Imagine if that kind of power - usually decried for its corruption of the university's mission - could be turned towards change. Towards obliterating these racist status quos. What if we could create a crisis in the pockets and hearts of Americans that forced them to engage this issue? Sadly, without a functioning political system that affords power to actual people, this may be one of the only tools we as a nation have to bring about change. A strike of college and/or professional football player? Hundreds of millions of Americans would take notice. And if the University of Missouri is any indication, we might be able to bring about change in just a day or two...
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