It's simple, really. The NCAA exploits college athletes. According to a recent article in Fortune (no left-wing hysterical rag, but a multinational business magazine), college sports generates $13 billion dollars revenue per year which is in fact more than the NFL. And yet, despite the terrible treatment the NFL has for its players (don't get me started), at least they get paid. College athletes are not. What do they get? In theory, a college degree. But they're not really getting college degrees, or at least many of them aren't. Black male athletes who comprise 56% of NCAA football players and 61% of basketball players are even less likely to graduate than black male non-athletes (54%-athletes, 58% nonathletes) (Associated Press article).
So, I'm opposed to the NCAA exploitation of athletes in big money sports games such as basketball and football, and I can think of no better way to demonstrate my dislike of its policies than by boycotting its biggest spectacle of the year, the NCAA Men's Basketball Division I Championships, also known as March Madness. So, for the first time in at least 25 years, I'm not filling out a bracket.
It's a small step. I love watching the tournament. My college's team is in the tournament for the first time in 53 years, and just today they won their first game in the basketball championship ever. I will backslide and watch them play a little this weekend. But no bracket. It's time to stop the Madness.
So, I'm opposed to the NCAA exploitation of athletes in big money sports games such as basketball and football, and I can think of no better way to demonstrate my dislike of its policies than by boycotting its biggest spectacle of the year, the NCAA Men's Basketball Division I Championships, also known as March Madness. So, for the first time in at least 25 years, I'm not filling out a bracket.
It's a small step. I love watching the tournament. My college's team is in the tournament for the first time in 53 years, and just today they won their first game in the basketball championship ever. I will backslide and watch them play a little this weekend. But no bracket. It's time to stop the Madness.
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