For Immediate Release: Wednesday April 29, 2020
The following statement can be attributed to Brandi Collins-Dexter, Senior Campaign Director at Color Of Change the largest online racial justice organization in the country.
“Today the NCAA Board of Governors approved a policy today that will finally allow athletes to make money from their own likeness and promotions. This change in policy shows the impact social movements can have on the league. Color Of Change’s 1.7 million members advocated for California’s Fair Pay to Play Act for months, forcing the NCAA to the table. But while we celebrate progress, it’s clear this is a cynical attempt to avoid further legislative action requiring the league to actually pay athletes for their labor.
“Black student-athletes, who make up the majority of the NCAA’s billion dollar revenue-generating teams, should be fairly compensated and free from exploitation. In the 2018 March Madness events alone the NCAA made $900 million, while players remained unpaid. Like any other group of workers in this country, student-athletes deserve protections set by lawmakers — not corporate executives — who are held accountable by the American public. So long as these rules on pay and benefits, which can define a student’s ability to financially support oneself, are set by a profit-driven monopoly, student-athletes will not be fully protected.”