I love this! The NACCP has launched new a campaign entitled "Out of Bounds") directing young black student athletes, their families, friends, alumni, and fans to withhold and withdraw financial support from eight southern states bent on redistricting congressional maps to weaken the power of black voters. The campaign keenly focuses on persuading black athletes to reject recruitment offers from those states. We already know Texas went into a redistricting mode at convicted felon Donald Trump's urging in August 2025 (see post here); but after the Supreme Court obliterated Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act a few weeks ago, the other states rapidly galvanized their efforts to gerrymander districts for the upcoming midterms. The other seven states Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, South Carolina, Alabama, Florida, and Georgia.
The NACCP succinctly captures the philosophy, the mechanism of operation and the outcome in three bold lines on their website:
No Representation.
No Recruitment.
No Revenue.
Further down the page on their website it lists 6 goals:
1: Adopt state Voting Rights Act.
2: Withdraw or repeal maps that dilute Black voting power.
3: Restore congressional and/or judicial districts that reflect the state's Black population and voting strength.
4: Commit to transparent, community-centered redistricting processes.
5: Protect districts where Black voters have the opportunity to elect candidates of choice.
6: Stop using state power to weaken Black representation while public institutions profit from Black talent."
Some people have been critical of the campaign, claiming involving black youth will deny them opportunity at colleges. Some people think it is unfair, the criticism pointed out by one news network podcaster who later eloquently stated "one of my problems with this "secure the bag" generation is that what do you stand for? If it is time to fight for something, what do you fight for?" I too feel the people who do not want athletes making a political statement are missing the big picture, because the big picture is our current white supremacist regime desires to deny blacks opportunity, economic stability, health, political power...in essence, to hurt blacks on every level of our lives. Will personal wealth erase discrimination? Some of these white nationalist have called for blacks not to be considered as citizens because we are descendants of slaves. A black person with money is still not safe when driving while black, or jogging down a white neighborhood.
We, as a people, surely must recognize the erosion of the gains we have made from the Civil Rights Era of the 60's. We find ourselves back in time into the Reconstruction Era after the Civil War. Once again, we are fighting for our very existence, and we should considered this as a fight which demands personal sacrifice, as our ancestors did, as the demonstrators and boycotters did in the 1960's and even the civil rights activists of years before. Our fight is far from over, and we need everyone on board. We all must vote, and consider to demonstrate, to write congressional leaders, to boycott, and yes, even abstain from our on personal ambitions to pave a more certain and viable future. There are other states besides the eight mentioned where black youth can attend college and get recruited into their athletic programs. Young people have choices which can be made which benefit not only their future, but the future for blacks in America.
I applaud the NACCP for their efforts, and for this new initiative. People, we must look at the big picture. Talented youth can make better choices, and one should consider the states which are redistricting also offer more hostile, vicious racist climates. And this all leads to my point-- money and personal gain will not keep you from being victimized by racism.
We should all have a greater cause then just ourselves on this earth.
