University of San Francisco athletics department has issued the following statement from Director of Athletics Joan McDermott and its 13 head coaches.
The University of San Francisco has always championed equality, and for decades, Dons of all ethnicities, races and backgrounds have proven those endeavors not only on the fields, courts and courses, but also off them – in the classrooms and in their communities.
As one of the most diverse institutions in the United States, it is imperative we continue setting those examples for the rest of the nation. We celebrate the memory of our 1951 Dons football team that chose to forego a bowl invitation rather than see members of its team discriminated against. USF was the first college basketball squad to start three African American players – Bill Russell, K.C. Jones, and Hal Perry – who won back-to-back national championships. Against oppression and discrimination, USF Athletics has always been a leader of doing what is right.
65 years later, the same issues that have plagued our country are once again in the forefront of the news. At USF, we know that racism hasn't gone away; that it has always been a burden many of our student-athletes, coaches, administrators, friends, neighbors, and family have had to battle with.
If we as a department say nothing while those very same people are asking for help, we would not be living up to the standard we have always championed.
As coaches, we know it is our duty to advocate for our student-athletes, to use our voices to raise theirs. We want all our student-athletes of color to know that we are willing and ready to do this. We stand with you as you bear the burden of these recent atrocities and the history of racial injustice in this country. We are proud to coach on one of the most diverse campuses in America, and to coach for an institution that values diversity and inclusion so highly. We have the opportunity to change the experiences of our student-athletes, to change narratives on these issues, and to indeed change the world from here. Know that we are committed to just that.
We want all people of color to know that in the USF Dons Athletics department, you have support. And not just in empty gestures of a social post or a statement issued to a website, but a promise that we support you and the quest for equality. We will listen, we will encourage, and we will stand arm-in-arm with you to ensure there is a better tomorrow.
