Steve Kerr, head coach of the NBA’s Golden State Warriors, and Doc Rivers, head coach of the NBA’s Milwaukee Bucks, have joined with other current and former college coaches in an organization called Coaches for College Freedom. In their letter, they state:
We are speaking out because we care about student athletes and the colleges that nurture them, and are alarmed to see the independence and integrity of American universities come under political attack….
Right now, at both the federal and state levels, acts of political interference threaten the independence of our colleges and universities. Punitive cuts to research funds, censoring of curricula, intimidation of university leaders and faculty, and the deployment of federal enforcement officers on college grounds are dividing our campuses and detracting from teaching and learning. Steep funding cuts put women’s and Olympic sports at risk.”
The letter asks “fellow coaches, athletes and fans to join us in this call.”
Kerr, who has been outspoken on a number of political issues, supported the Black Lives Matter movement, spoke out against the murders in Minneapolis by ICE, participated in the “No Kings” protests against the Trump regime, criticized federal intervention in the universities, and wore a Harvard University shirt to support academic freedom against the attempts at overall fascist takeover.
About the Coaches for College Freedom, Kerr said, “I’m not leading the effort, but I was asked to be a part of it, and I looked into it, and it’s something I agree with just in general. Academic freedom, universities being able to control their own mission, to teach what they want to teach, to serve their student-athletes in a really productive way.”
Much more of these kinds of courageous stands—in sports and throughout society—are needed.