As higher education embraces social justice and abandons oppressive language and symbols, universities should banish one more offensive term.
After Mississippi State University’s best returning football player took to Twitter to announce that he would not play football if the state continued to display the Confederate emblem on its flag, the Mississippi legislature voted to remove the icon.
Athletes at the University of Texas advocated for reforms, too, such as changing the school’s racially undertoned spirit song and renaming part of Royal-Memorial Stadium to honor a Black athlete. The song remained, but the school renamed the football field after a pair of Black Heisman-winning running backs. A small, yet positive step.
Finally, the University of Virginia changed and re-changed its V-saber athletics logo, removing the curved handles that represented the school’s serpentine walls, which were originally designed to hide enslaved laborers from the view of faculty and students.
On many campuses, athletes have paved the way to right social injustices that have received increased attention since the murder of George Floyd. However, little conversation has been dedicated to discussing the oppressive, unjust history of the term student-athlete.
In 1955, while competing as an offensive lineman for Fort Lewis A&M, Ray Dennison suffered a knee to the head, which shattered his skull and eventually killed him. Dennison’s widow filed for death benefits since her husband’s death was the result of his work while serving as an employee of the institution.
The NCAA and Fort Lewis A&M took her to court in what is arguably one of the most important cases in intercollegiate athletics history. Here, the NCAA introduced member institutions and the public to a new term: student-athlete.
