The NCAA’s “amateurism” policy allow the NCAA to generate billions of dollars in revenue off the labor of Black athletes. The #MarchMadness tournament alone will bring in nearly $1 billion dollars for the NCAA, coaches, schools and corporate sponsors, but not for Black athletes.
Because of the NCAA’s strict rules, many student-athletes often go hungry or have difficulty paying rent. And because of the the rigorous demands the NCAA puts on Black athletes to generate revenues – many find it impossible to earn a degree while they play. In fact, Black student-athletes are significantly less likely to graduate than their fellow white student-athletes. Not only are the NCAA’s rules denying Black athletes fair compensation, they’re robbing players of a chance to get a degree.
Take action and tell the NCAA to #PayThePlayers: https://act.colorofchange.org/sign/NCAA-exploitation/
Transcript provided by YouTube (unedited)
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n-c-double-a college basketball players
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are seen as the people everyone wants to
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be by the time many of them are in high
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school they have already amassed
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thousands of fans are poised to get a
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free ride to school and are groomed for
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a lifetime of fame and millions of
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dollars when they go pro right except it
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isn’t that simple NC double-a players
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are monstrously exploited with some of
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them who are literally starving at night
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while the NCAA makes billions of dollars
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from the revenue the players bring in
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this disparity is most apparent during
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one of America’s most celebrated annual
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sporting events
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March Madness during the three weeks of
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March Madness in 2018 alone the NCAA
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made nine hundred million dollars the
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players 0 and present n-c-double-a
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President Mark Emmert has an annual
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salary of nearly two million dollars per
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year and some of the power conference
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commissioners our salaries closer to the
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3 million range coaches for division 1
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teams can also make millions more but
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according to the NCAA’s internal rules
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the players are entitled to none of that
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member schools cannot use tournament
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revenue to pay their athletes based on
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an outdated NCAA principle of amateurism
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this means that the college student
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athletes who bring in the money remain
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just about the only individuals to not
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bring home a big paycheck from March
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Madness and the obvious economic
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injustice underscores our darker reality
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race plays a significant factor in who
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gets paid and who doesn’t today the
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student athletes who generate the most
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revenue for universities brands and TV
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networks and the football and basketball
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programs are black to maintain amateur
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status and thus be eligible to play
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athletes cannot accept any money or
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gifts off their image or likeness
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oh cool because of rigorous practice and
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game schedules most cannot work while
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under scholarship and
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they go hungry or have difficulty paying
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rent while many black student athletes
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struggle more than 82 percent of college
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basketball coaches are white and more
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than 86 percent of conference
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commissioners are wiped
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not a single person of color has served
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as a commissioner for one of the power
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five conferences in 2015 alone
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the top programs made a combined 9.1
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billion dollars the NCAA itself signed
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an eight point eight billion dollar TV
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deal with CBS Sports and Turner to air
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the March Madness Final Four in 2018
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each of these parties are able to gain
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some financial payout the athletes
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themselves receive nothing what is clear
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is that something must change the
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n-c-double-a must change their amateur
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policy increase and mandate athlete
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stipends or provide a percentage of
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their conference earnings to the players
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that make this all possible without the
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players there would be no college ball
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it’s time for the NCAA to commit to
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their players as much as they do their
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own paychecks
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[Music]
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This post was previously published on YouTube.
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