College Athletes Should Be Paid

 

 

The NCAA, which is a nonprofit, tax-exempt 'educational' organization, has come under fire recently for capitalizing on the commercialization of college sports. Many athletes have accused the organization of unfairly using them for financial gain.

Since 1995, the NCAA has spent more than $84 million on legal fees, including some settlements. Former UCLA basketball star Ed O'Bannon filed a lawsuit on July 21 against the NCAA and its member schools, accusing them of illegally profiting from using the likeness of former players for commercial pursuits like video games, DVDs, and jersey sales.

Dr. Boyce Watkins, a finance professor at Syracuse University, has become a vocal critic of the NCAA, for what he calls its exploitation of the black community.

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Your Black World: Brothers In Flight: A Poem For College Basketball

Brothers in Flight

By: Bruce Edwards

Young brothers ballin’

Dunkin’, shootin’, scorin’

High priced coaches in their Armani best

Corporate logos pinned to their chest

Best teams in the land

All wanting Final Four glory

But behind the hoop and hype

A totally different story

A story of Black Gladiators

Performing incredible round-ball feats

More blacks on the court

Than in the arena seats

Sponsors, media and of course the schools

All making big money

Everybody getting paid

All but those who upon their backs

The money is shamefully made

College basketball

In a sorry, sorry state

All you need do

Is check the black graduation rate

Exploitation

Academic manipulation

The sham and the shame of higher education

NBA training ground

Where brothers think they will play

White players sit the bench and cheer

They are the ones who graduate

While boosting the team GPA

Brothers for hire

Jumping higher and higher

Campus heroes

Some living large

Through a variety of sources

Trying to stay eligible

With bogus and remedial courses

Billions of dollars generated from the game

Brothers in flight

The trade off is a shame

All but the brothers

Have a huge financial stake

Brothers being used

For the millions others make

Financially, it’s unfair

Morally, it’s not right

See them score

Brothers in flight

BE

© 2001

Your Black World: Dr Boyce Watkins Speaks On NCAA Racism

FYI: We have a coalition of activists, scholars, athletes, students, coaches, attorneys and parents who are working to address the NCAA and what some perceive to be an exploitation of the Black community due to the fact that the families of college athletes are not being compensated. Revenues for college sports are in the billions, many coaches sign contracts worth $2 - $4M dollars per year, and the NCAA is in direct competition with the NFL, NBA and other professional sports leagues. All the while, half of all Black basketball and football players come from families in dire poverty, and the NCAA has been allowed to implement Draconian legislation to control the options of these players to keep their families from having access to the revenue pool. I've seen players earn $20 million for their school by carrying the team to the Final Four, while simultaneously watching their mother get evicted, or a sibling get murdered in a housing project.

As educators, many of you are aware of the fact that these students do not always receive the education they deserve. Many academic institutions make the educational mission secondary to the primary objective of getting players on the court/field so they can make money for the campus. Myles Brand, the NCAA President, understands this hypocrisy, which is why he has never responded when CNN and other media have asked him to publicly debate myself or anyone else on this issue. Instead, he has only been willing to issue statements or appear in private interviews in response to the voices of thousands of critics across the country. Even the former Executive Director of the NCAA, Walter Byers, has stated that it's time that the NCAA realize that the families of athletes have as much right to this revenue as the coaches, athletic directors, campus presidents, and sports commentators, all getting rich from the labor of young kids. A scholarship is nice, but that is far from fair compensation..... I say this as a Finance Professor who has carefully analyzed their numbers.

I hope you will consider joining our coalition to address this issue by going to this link: https://greatblackspeakers.wufoo.com/forms/please-join-our-coalition/

To become more educated on this issue, please click some of the links below. These are some of the interviews I've done on this topic in the past, and help explain why I, as a Finance Scholar, a Black man and an educator, feel that this issue should eventually be brought to the steps of Congress for reconsideration of the NCAA's anti-trust exemption. At the College Sports Research Institute at UNC Chapel Hill, we are also conducting scholarly research on this issue, to find fair paths to reform for the NCAA.

This is not just an academic exercise: this has a real impact on the real lives of real families. I hope you'll join us.

Sincerely,

Dr. Boyce Watkins

www.BoyceWatkins.com

P.S: The links are below:

Part 1

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ksQPIoqIrvM

Part 2

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LcJtSE98sY4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZbvKH_3Ttaw&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cUIr1my-wJA&feature=related

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/28517-is-a-scholarship-enough-boyce-watkins-on-ncaa-reform

http://www.ajc.com/sports/content/sports/stories/2008/07/26/student_athletes_pay.html

http:/yourblackpolitics.blogspot.com/2008/09/ode-to-black-male-college-athlete.html