NFL Hall of Famer Emmitt Smith blasted the University of Florida’s decision to shut down its diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) department.
Smith, a star player for the celebrated 1990s Dallas Cowboys and former Florida Gator’s standout, voiced his thoughts about the school’s move in a scathing social media post.
“I’m utterly disgusted by [University of Florida’s] decision and the precedent that it sets,” he began.
He highlighted the burden now expected to fall on the university’s Provost’s office without the support of the staffers they laid off.
— Emmitt Smith (@EmmittSmith22) March 3, 2024
“Without the DEI department, the job falls to the Office of the Provost, who already has their hands full, to raise money for the university and continue to advance the academic studies in athletic programs.”
Florida’s laws introduced in January 2024 seek to cut back on public funding for programs based on identity classifications such as race, gender, or sexual orientation.
Last week, the University responded by dissolving the department that previously employed 13-full time DEI staff and 15 administrative appointments.
After axing the entire department, the college announced the $5 million they earmarked for DEI implementation would be repurposed for faculty recruitment.
“We need diverse thinking and backgrounds to enhance our University and the DEI department is necessary to accomplish those goals,” Smith said about his former alma mater.
The record-setting running back slammed the school for obeying the recently passed Florida laws.
“Instead of showing courage and leadership, we continue to fail based on systemic issues with this decision, UF has conformed to the political pressures of today’s time,” he wrote.
Smith concluded by addressing minority athletes at the school and encouraging them to speak out about the department’s closure.
“To the MANY minority athletes at UF, please be aware and vocal about this decision by the University who is now closing the doors on other minorities without any oversight,” he wrapped up.
“And to those who think it’s not your problem and stay on the side lines and say nothing, you are complicit in supporting systemic issues,” Smith noted.
DEI is toxic and has no place in our public universities.
I’m glad that Florida was the first state to eliminate DEI and I hope more states follow suit. https://t.co/oThvwowKu6
— Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) March 1, 2024
Conversely, Florida’s Republican Governor Ron DeSantis was positively thrilled about the DEI department culling.
“DEI is toxic and has no place in our public universities. I’m glad that Florida was the first state to eliminate DEI and I hope more states follow suit,” he tweeted last Friday.
Meanwhile, neighboring Alabama Republicans are championing a bill that would ban DEI initiatives and offices at universities, state agencies, and other public entities.
Senate Bill 129 seeks to bar state universities and agencies from funding DEI offices, programs, and initiatives that promote “divisive concepts,” that include race, ethnicity, sex, national origin or religion.
The bill also includes a provision that will require students at public colleges to use the bathrooms that correlate to their biological sex, rather than their gender identity.
“Higher education must return to its essential foundations of academic integrity and the pursuit of knowledge instead of being corrupted by destructive ideologies,” one of the bill’s sponsors, State Senator Will Barfoot commented.
“This legislation will build bridges to celebrate what people have in common, not erect walls that silo people into the idea that their race, religion, and sexual orientation solely define who they are and how society should view them,” he added in the statement.
The ACLU of Alabama strongly opposes the bill and warned of the “chilling effect” the legislation would have on “discourse regarding race, class, sexuality, and national origin.”
“SB129 disrupts the work of student, staff, and faculty organizations at higher education institutions that rely on public funding from their university to develop DEI or culturally based programming,” the organization said in a statement.
“This is not only a form of classroom censorship, it’s an anti-truth bill which curtails an education on systemic inequities, racial violence, and the historic efforts to gain civil rights and civil liberties for marginalized communities throughout our nation’s history.”