A group of black football players at the University of Missouri is refusing to “participate in football-related activities” until the university’s president resigns. The ultimatum comes after a series of racial incidents on campus that the players say have been handled poorly.
The university has issued a carefully noncommittal statement: “We all must come together with leaders from across our campus to tackle these challenging issues and we support our student-athletes right to do so.” But if Missouri’s student-athletes really want to establish a safe atmosphere on campus, they might try looking in the mirror:
Missouri had 63 criminal cases involving 46 athletes [between 2009 and 2014]. Twelve athletes were involved in more than one incident, Outside the Lines found, and Missouri had the second-highest number of allegations of sexual assault, violence against women, and harassment. Florida State had the most.