TCU football takes stand on injustice, AD introduces plan to support black athletes
TCU legend LaDainian Tomlinson liked seeing the football program make a clear statement on where it stands Tuesday.
In the morning, TCU’s official football Twitter page posted: “It’s a brotherhood, on the field and off. Black Lives Matter. #BlackoutTuesday”
It was more than just a social media post, too. Athletic director Jeremiah Donati announced an action plan to follow through and support the school’s black athletes. Donati said the first step is setting up meetings to hear directly from them about their experiences on campus.
“I do not want to assume anything at this point,” Donati said. “My only goals are to listen and better understand them.”
For Tomlinson, who’s nephew Tre Tomlinson is a defensive back on the team, seeing the words “Black Lives Matter” on an official TCU account was a welcomed sight. It’s something the program felt strongly about doing as a sign of support for its black student-athletes at a time of crisis in the country.
“It certainly sends a message and a statement that this is the culture we want to build and be about,” Tomlinson said. “You’re not going to please everyone. You’re going to make some people angry. You’re going to alienate maybe some people when you make statements and you lean toward one side more than the other, but I do think it’s the right thing to do in the climate we’re in right now in this country.
“People have to understand the hurt and pain that a lot of blacks are feeling, even our student-athletes who are experiencing injustices all the time. They want to feel like the university has their back. They want to feel like this is my family who is speaking up for me. If that makes some people angry, then that’s OK.”
Added former TCU defensive end Ben Banogu: “For the people that think ‘Black Lives Matter’ is controversial, they have to take a step back and understand that you have to look at your race and your community. The black community has been oppressed for hundreds of years. For people to come out and speak up and say something, that matters. That holds a lot of weight.
“For you to say, ‘All Lives Matters,’ that’s very true but you’re taking away the light from the real issue and kind of desensitizing what’s really going on.”
Protests are ongoing across the country over police brutality and racial injustices after George Floyd, a black man, died May 25 in Minneapolis after a white police officer pressed his knee into Floyd’s neck as he was handcuffed.
TCU football coach Gary Patterson and his wife, Kelsey, issued a video message speaking out against racial injustices on Sunday night. TCU men’s basketball coach Jamie Dixon posted a couple similar messages on Monday.
But the strongest message from TCU came on Tuesday from the football’s official account. There is no ambiguity — “Black Lives Matter.”
“It was discussed and it was very important to our coaches and student-athletes to express their thoughts and feelings,” Donati said.
Work to do
Banogu, who is now with the Indianapolis Colts, applauded the football program for making that kind of stand on Tuesday. He also liked seeing Patterson speak out on the issue.
For Banogu, though, there is plenty of work remaining for the school. He feels the athletic department handles these types of issues much better than the university itself.
TCU has received backlash from former and current students for statements it has made on the issue. Banogu is among that group, feeling the school hasn’t done enough.
When he was enrolled and even when he’s on campus today, Banogu said he sometimes feels as though he’s the only black guy on campus. TCU says 20% of its student population is comprised of students of color.
“Every time I look up at a billboard, it’s all white kids,” Banogu said. “Everything you see reinforces white privilege at TCU. So building a more inclusive environment and prioritizing the minorities within the university would go a long way.
“The university as a whole, they’re just doing what any other university would do by putting out a statement. I’m speaking for myself, but I don’t think it’s good enough.
“Whenever you see something and there’s injustice happening, you have a voice and have a platform to speak on it. When you don’t, that’s what disappoints a lot of people. As long as I’ve been at TCU, there’s been countless instances and countless times they’ve had a chance to and they never have.”
Banogu made it clear that he had a positive experience at TCU and felt it was a great environment to prepare him for the rest of his life. But, he said, “I would be doing a disservice if I just talked about the good and I never addressed the bad. I do see some flaws and a lot of things they can address and work on.”
Tomlinson, who is on the school’s board of trustees, doesn’t disagree with Banogu. Tomlinson said becoming more diverse and inclusive is something that everyone in a position of power at the school talks about and strives for.
“There’s obviously more work that TCU can do,” Tomlinson said. “If you talk to any trustee member, if you talk to Chancellor [Victor] Boschini, the vice chancellor, they all will say the same thing. The thing about it is you’ve got to start somewhere. You have to take the necessary steps and sometimes it’s baby steps. Rome wasn’t built in one day. We need to take that approach.
“Every single time we have our board meetings, we talk about what we can do to be more diverse and how can we be more accepting and enroll more minority students? We talk about all that stuff and we’re trying to.”
Going forward
Signs point toward TCU being committed to change with Donati taking the first step.
Donati wrote to the black student-athletes on campus Tuesday, saying: “There is no ‘easy button’ and there are no magic words any of us can provide to navigate pain — I will not attempt to do either. The best thing I can give you in this moment are my ears and my heart. I am going to provide a space where you can share your feelings on the recent killings of members of our black communities and the systemic racism that exists in our country. I want to hear directly from you and better understand your thoughts and your feelings.
“Today we are working with your sports supervisors to set up meetings centered around and focused on the experience of our black student-athletes. The meetings are designed to focus on our black student-athletes but are open to all of our student-athletes. I look forward to our visits.
“Our entire university and athletics department stand with you.”
Patterson and his wife offered a similar message to inspire change.
Banogu liked seeing such progress by the athletic department, and hopes the university itself follows through with similar measures.
As Banogu said, “Coach Patterson and Mr. Jeremiah are good examples of what should be happening. Both have spoken out about all the stuff that is wrong and they’re putting things in place to have group think and group synergy to bring everyone together and have us as a group heal and grow from this situation. I think that’s something the university has been lacking.
“This is not a quick fix. It’s not an easy fix. It’s a big, deep cut that needs stitches. You can’t put a band-aid on it and call it a day. This type of divide needs stitching. It needs time. It needs care. It needs attention.”
This story was originally published June 2, 2020 at 7:15 PM.
