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NCAA News Archive - 2007
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Minority panel wants to stay course on flag policy
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The NCAA Minority Opportunities and Interests Committee is recommending that the NCAA maintain its current policy regarding the Confederate battle flag on predetermined championship events in South Carolina and Mississippi.
The MOIC revisited the issue after concerns had been raised over schools in South Carolina and Mississippi being allowed to host NCAA postseason baseball competition last year in light of an NCAA Executive Committee resolution prohibiting member institutions in those states from hosting postseason events until the Confederate flag is removed from statehouse grounds. The MOIC noted, though, that the policy refers only to predetermined sites, and that in baseball, and other sports such as cross country and tennis, the highest-seeded team is offered the opportunity to host a championship round.
The MOIC at its January 22-23 meeting in Indianapolis affirmed its support of the policy, noting in particular that NCAA institutions in South Carolina and Mississippi do not have control over where the Confederate flag is placed. Accordingly, MOIC Chair Robert Vowels, commissioner of the Southwestern Athletic Conference, said, “It is not fair to penalize institutions and student-athletes who earn the right to host non-predetermined championships in those states.”
In addition, the MOIC distinguished the Confederate flag policy from the Native American mascot policy based on institutional control. Whereas NCAA colleges and universities have control over the images, nicknames and mascots on their individual campus, institutions in South Carolina and Mississippi do not have control over where the Confederate flag is placed outside of their campus. In the case of South Carolina and Mississippi, the Confederate flag is not officially displayed on any NCAA institution’s campus.
The Executive Committee in 2001 declared a moratorium on assigning new predetermined championships and certifying collegiate events in South Carolina and Mississippi. The moratorium followed concerns raised by the National Association of Basketball Coaches, the Black Coaches Association, the Student Basketball Council and other organizations.
MOIC members noted the NAACP and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference continue to discuss with state legislators from South Carolina and Mississippi the removal of the Confederate battle flag from state grounds. The committee also noted that Georgia previously modified its display of the Confederate battle flag in a way the NAACP found acceptable.
The MOIC asked NCAA staff to draft a letter to state legislators in South Carolina and Mississippi encouraging them to resolve the matter.
The MOIC revisited the issue after concerns had been raised over schools in South Carolina and Mississippi being allowed to host NCAA postseason baseball competition last year in light of an NCAA Executive Committee resolution prohibiting member institutions in those states from hosting postseason events until the Confederate flag is removed from statehouse grounds. The MOIC noted, though, that the policy refers only to predetermined sites, and that in baseball, and other sports such as cross country and tennis, the highest-seeded team is offered the opportunity to host a championship round.
The MOIC at its January 22-23 meeting in Indianapolis affirmed its support of the policy, noting in particular that NCAA institutions in South Carolina and Mississippi do not have control over where the Confederate flag is placed. Accordingly, MOIC Chair Robert Vowels, commissioner of the Southwestern Athletic Conference, said, “It is not fair to penalize institutions and student-athletes who earn the right to host non-predetermined championships in those states.”
In addition, the MOIC distinguished the Confederate flag policy from the Native American mascot policy based on institutional control. Whereas NCAA colleges and universities have control over the images, nicknames and mascots on their individual campus, institutions in South Carolina and Mississippi do not have control over where the Confederate flag is placed outside of their campus. In the case of South Carolina and Mississippi, the Confederate flag is not officially displayed on any NCAA institution’s campus.
The Executive Committee in 2001 declared a moratorium on assigning new predetermined championships and certifying collegiate events in South Carolina and Mississippi. The moratorium followed concerns raised by the National Association of Basketball Coaches, the Black Coaches Association, the Student Basketball Council and other organizations.
MOIC members noted the NAACP and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference continue to discuss with state legislators from South Carolina and Mississippi the removal of the Confederate battle flag from state grounds. The committee also noted that Georgia previously modified its display of the Confederate battle flag in a way the NAACP found acceptable.
The MOIC asked NCAA staff to draft a letter to state legislators in South Carolina and Mississippi encouraging them to resolve the matter.
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