EB3 got quite a discussion going with his point about the non-presence of African-Americans in the Red Sox organization. Today the Globe writes a similar story — but about Harvard University.
Harvard University, which prides itself on promoting racial diversity, is facing scrutiny for running an athletic department devoid of black leadership. Not one of the 32 head coaches guiding Harvard’s intercollegiate sports programs is African-American. Nor is the athletic director or his 13 senior administrators.
The absence of black leadership was particularly striking to equal-opportunity advocates because of Harvard’s distinguished stature in higher education and the school’s claim that it funds “the nation’s largest Division 1 athletic program.” Harvard has not employed an African-American head coach in any sport since Peter Roby guided the men’s basketball team from 1985-91.
“To think that Harvard would not have a single African-American head coach, male or female, in 2007 is breathtaking,” said Harvard Law professor Charles J. Ogletree, one of the institution’s leading civil rights advocates.
And I love this quote:
[Athletic director Robert] Scalise was not available to comment, according to Chuck Sullivan, Harvard’s director of athletic communications.
“We’re certainly not going out of our way not to have black coaches,” Sullivan said.
Well, that’s reassuring. The sad thing is that, once upon a time, Harvard led the way, but it seems to have fallen way behind.
Former Celtics coach and player Tom “Satch” Sanders became one of the first African-Americans to serve as a head coach of any sport in the Ivy League when he took over the men’s basketball team at Harvard in 1973. Sanders, who coached the Crimson until 1977, said the lack of black head coaches and senior administrators in the athletic department 30 years later warrants special attention by school leaders.
“We’re not talking about a college or university somewhere else in America,” he said. “We’re talking about Harvard, a university of international renown, to put it lightly. Clearly, one wonders about the reason for the lack of diversity, particularly at this date. I can’t begin to fathom the reason why.”
If Harvard athletic officials believe they have done their best, Sanders said, “Whatever their best has happened to be, it clearly has not been their real best.”
Look at the faces in the NBA and college basketball. It’s time for diversity, inclusion and quotas.
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Then we have the lack of certain faces in olympic swimming? Where are our minority swimmers? Where is the outrage?
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The NHL—gotta have immediate quotas for the NHL.
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You mean like African American Cullen Jones, a world record holder?
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These are people, like the Red Sox, who want to preach how others should live and constantly remind us hgow great and important they are. Yet the rules don’t apply to them. As a result their out of touch elitism cause them to be myopic when it comes to, at the very least, window dressing.
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Even racists hire african americans. I mean Coke, Texaco, and Ameriquest all hired Deval. (sorry, I couldn’t resist)
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This is more of a living in their own world thing than outright racism.
Articles framed on the premise that racial diversity = a few black people in a sea of white drives me nuts. Since when is our country comprised of only black and white people? Asian and Pacific Islanders, anyone? Hispanics? Multiracial people? Native Americans? We will never get beyond our huge racism problems if we insist on perpetuating this false dichotomy, IMHO.
And I wanted to make it. And it is relevant to the discussion.
is more diverse than just a sea of whites. It appears to me* that women, who are still a minority in coaching and management, are gaining representation — at least at the D1 level. Are they at 50%? Nope.
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The thing about the dichotomy is (a) it’s so easy to see visually. A&PIs, Hispanics, NAs, and multiracials aren’t always so easy to identify visually as belonging to that group. Furthermore, the black/white racial disparities run longer and encompass a far greater number of people.
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I agree, it shouldn’t be the only metric of diversity. But, if that metric of black employment/involvement is well below population levels, it is an easy question for which to identify and develop data.
* based on personal observation, which I would agree is lousy data
Consider the population of Hawaii, and to a lesser extent Hawai’i, where Asian populations have mixed with Pacific Islander and Native American populations over many generations.
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And then there’s the folks from the areas just east of the Ural Mountains. Asians by most accords, but they sure don’t look Southeastern-Asian, or like Asians from India/Pakistan/etc.
It will not be possible to increase “racial” diversity at Harvard, because we are all of the same “race”. Since “race” doesn’t exist a biological phenomenon, what we are really talking about is skin-color and ethnic diversity.
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There needs to be more skin-color and ethnic diversity at Harvard, because excluding people on the basis of skin color and ethnicity is a poor way to create a winning team in any field of endeavor. Just look at Tiger Woods! Where would golf be without him?
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If Tiger Wood father had been eligible to coach a whole professional team in spite of his skin color, then that professional team would likely have been at the top of its game. Look where Tiger Woods ended up.
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Although Tiger Woods’ father coached Tiger to the top of the game of golf, he would probably not have found a job as a coach of any white team, simply because of the color of his skin.
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White institutions are holding everyone back by insisting that a mediocre white coach is better than an excellent Black, Latino or Asian coach.
I hate getting baited into other people’s research. But, here’ goes, alphabetically by gender then sport (that’s how H-town does it). I’m eyeballing race based on skintone and surname — a dangerous guesstimate to be sure. Feel free to correct me on any of ’em. Note: these are head coaches only. Assistant coaches are worthy of mention, but it makes for a much bigger search and they obviously have lesser roles.
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Mens Teams
Joe Walsh, baseball: white.
Frank Sullivan, basketball: white.
Harry Parker, heavyweight crew: white.
Charley Butt, lightweight crew: white.
Jason Saretsky, X-country/track&field: white.
Peter Brand, fencing: white.
Tim Murphy, football: white.
Fred Schernecker, golf: white.
Ted Donato, hockey: white.
Scott Anderson, lacrosse: white.
John Kerr, soccer: white.
Satinder Bajwa, squash: not white.
Tim Murphy, swim&dive: white.
Dave Fish, tennis: white.
Chris Ridolfi, volleyball: unobvious
Erik Ferrar, water polo: white.
Jay Weiss, wrasslin: white.
Michael O’Connor, sailing: white.
Peter Graves, nordic skiing: white.
Tim Mitchell, alpine skiing: white.
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So, that’s the mens teams. That took too long for me to do the womens teams — somebody else do it, eh?
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But, here’s what we found: 20 head coaches. 18 white, one certainly not, one unclear.
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It’s also worth noting how (American-wise) culturally white the sports are. I’m not just talking about ice hockey, skiing, and golf. Two crews, fencing, sailing, squash, etc. Good grief. It means that the prospects for American born non-white coaches are lower, because the participation by non-whites in those sports now (and in the past 40 years) is so low. Throw in internationals, and it gets far more complex of course.
Begin rant.
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The Supreme Court decided in the UMich Law case that universities actively pursuing diversity for its own sake was only about a hair’s width away from illegal, and in 25 years (less, now) should be outlawed entirely. They certainly, absolutely did not say active pursuit of diversity is required.
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In fact, in the twin case involving UMass Undergrad, the court said the practice was illegal. The lawyers for UMass Undergrad made the mistake of admitting that the department used numerical standards to achieve diversity.
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Now Harvard doesn’t happen to have a black head coach, and it’s a crime? The Harvard representative was right on: “We’re certainly not going out of our way to [hire staff based on race].” There. I accept that. I wouldn’t want Harvard to go out of its way to hire a coach of a certain race, that’s wrong. What is the issue here?
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I’m disgusted by the level to which this discussion has sunk…no, actually the level it started out at.
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End rant.
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David, you posted this. Would you care to offer some legal basis for the outrage?
just because something is legal doesn’t make it right. your question about what law has been broken is really beside the point, IMO.
What she said.
Laurel and EB3 are right. This isn’t a legal issue (unless Harvard has actually been discriminating against African-Americans, which it says it hasn’t been, and of which there’s apparently no evidence), and I never said it was. But gosh, it’s a little hard to believe that the only qualified African-American to coach at Harvard was Satch Sanders. If Harvard didn’t say that it valued diversity, OK, that’s their call to make. But of course, they do claim to value diversity. And diversity aside, it’s not like there’s any dearth of qualified African-American coaches, so the numbers seem, well, funny.
check this out. Hilarious.
Harvard is employing a solidly legal, as well as solidly fair, hiring policy; and you guys are saying, “Harvard! Shame on you for not adopting a hiring policy that will be illegal in less than 25 years, and may not even be legal today!” Nor, I would add, moral.
….don’t speak for David. Answering for myself –
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Just because someone finds something outrageous doesn’t mean it has to be illegal.
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Please show me exactly where in the Univ. of Michigan Law School case Justice O’Connor (I think) said affirmative action should be outlawed in 25 years. You’re going to have a hard time, because she didn’t. There is some dicta that suggests the Court would loose tolerance after 25 years, but it is hardly controlling. She’s not even on the Court anymore.
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Why are people so rabid about protecting white control? Harvard has no legal obligation to hire a diverse coaching staff but they sure do give diversity a lot of lip service. They haven’t broken any laws but they are guilty of hypocrisy, perhaps.
Because here’s your answer.
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That quote, which is from the case summary, concludes the 2nd paragraph from bottom of page.
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And the actual text of O’Connor’s opinion to which it refers:
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Again, 2nd paragraph from bottom.
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I hope you find this helpful.
You’re re-quote(?)missed one word.:
According to David, Harvard’s director of athletic communications actually said:
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Which was why I thought he pointed out the quote in the first place.
In other words, “We’re not making any extra effort to keep blacks out, just the regular effort”.
American athletics wouldn’t be nearly as interesting without the stats, now would they? Let’s see how the figures work out for the Harvard women’s teams.
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Harvard Athletics lists 18 women’s sports. Most of the head coaches would probably classify themselves as white and non-Hispanic. Two apparent exceptions:
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Women’s Soccer
Ray Leone, Head Coach (Feb. 2007- ).
Harvard Univ.–Ray Leone’s Bio, http://www.gocrimson… (2007).
Apparent origin: Hispanic.
See photograph, http://www.gocrimson….
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Women’s Squash
Satinder Bajwa, Head Coach (1999- ).
Harvard Univ.–Satinder Bajwa’s Bio, http://www.gocrimson… (2006).
Apparent race: Asian.
See photograph, http://www.gocrimson….
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A random sample of people living in the U.S. would most probably include 12.9% who classify their race as Black and 12.5% who classify their origin as Hispanic. See U.S. Census Bureau, Census 2000. (A random sample of head coaches living in the U.S. would be expected to have different characteristics, for who knows how many reasons.)
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J. Herms
Stalcommpol, Inc.
A 501c(3) nonprofit organization
…that Hahvahd runs such an extensive interscolastic sports program. 32 head coaches? Query, just what does interscolastic sports have to do with readin’, writin’ and ‘rithmatic?
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Absolutely nothing, obviously.
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What does it gain the Hahvahdians? Well, money of course.
and H-Town’s got plenty of it. It also helps to generate Rhodes Scholars, due to the (recently somewhat diminished) athletic requirement. I mean, Harvards got 6600 undergraduates and maybe 10% of them are varsity athletes!
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As I posted earlier, I got a chuckle about the cultural draw of the sports. I mean, they really need a Polo and a croquet team to round out the category of sports played while wearing a white sweater.
….also generate revenue for many universities both in direct terms of charging for sporting events and selling swag and indirectly by providing a link to the university for sports minded alumni. I can only imagine the amount a university like Harvard receives from donors that they keep in touch with through the athletic connection. It is not uncommon, and in fact regular practice, for universities to use popular sporting events that attract alumni as fund raising events.
anthony @ Thu Mar 29, 2007 at 09:52:09 AM EDT
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has it exactly correct.
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BTW, it is also true that the non-sports alumni associations of private universities are used, not only as fundraising operations, but also as operations to “increase the value of their degrees” from those universities.
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I first noticed that when I got mailings from a private university from which I got one of my degrees, George Washington Univ, Wash DC. (Tuition paid for by my then employer.) And it became clearer when I noticed some of the senior partners of the lawfirm that I was working for in the early 1980s went off to some Hahvahd reunions. It was funny as heck.
I don’t agree that sports have ‘absolutely nothing’ to do with the three R’s. Any more than I would agree if you said that music & art have nothing to do with the three R’s.
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Sports can play an important role in helping students to develop critical thinking skills, and IMHO that’s why they have had a place in education, dating back to the ancient Greeks.
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Granted the focus today on big college sports is overblown, but the majority of kids who participate, including in “club’ sports, are doing it for the sheer enjoyment.
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BTW, I have no connection to Harvard, but I’ll give them this.
The Ivy League doesn’t allow athletic scholarships, and it’s academic requirements are rigorous for all students. Yet Harvard puts out a consistently good mens ice hockey team, one that competes well against all of the best teams in the country, including BC, BU, UNH etc. No small feat.
…hand/eye coordination (which is what sports is) an academic pursuit, so be it. I don’t. You might as well consider playing video games an academic pursuit.
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Music and art have something to do with history. Playing video games does not.
i think some team sports have a certain equivalency to playing music in an ensemble. it is a collective event and you learn to “harmonize” with your mates. not that i’m much of a sports person and certainly not a “booster”, but i think it’s a bit shortighted to just say all sports are about is hand-eye coordination. i could counter by saying that playing the clarinet is only mouth-finger coordination. i will agree though that not all social sports interactions are positive, and so for example i find no value in the militaristic aspects of football, even though the players on a team are also learning to work in harmony.
David, David, David. Tch, Tch . . .
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One would think you were advocating for quotas, not excellence!
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20 years in the US Military taught me many lessons about excellence. An additional 25 years in the civilian sector have taught me many MORE lessons about excellence. You see, the problem is not whether a coach has a certain ethnicity, or is a certain color, the problem is whether the coach knows how to put together a winning TEAM!
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Feel free to substitute any word you wish for “coach.” Unless you go from reality to the sublime, you will not wreck the sentiment.
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My best friend during my first tour in Viet Nam was tall, mud-fence ugly, a MARINE (a Sailor should admit THAT?!?) not the sharpest knife in the drawer, and Black. Wow. God just shouldn’t DO that to people, huh?
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If he had not been killed saving my dumb ass on our fifty-third mission together, he would STILL be my best friend.
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Two of my favorite people in the whole world coached the opposing teams in the Super Bowl this year. The were the BEST! They BELONGED there. Both are Christian. Both are Black.
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Was Larry Bird better than, say, Gayle Sayers? (Different sports, but we’re talking diversity, here!) OK, how about Johnny Unitas and Donovan McNabb?
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And does anyone out there know MY ethnicity?
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Just asking.
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Here is the bottom line: If Hahvahd, in its infinite opinionicity, has elected to devote its dollars for coaching to an exclusively WHITE club (which it hasn’t, I am assured), then Hahvahd deserves every loss opposing teams can slam them with. On the other hand, if Hahvahd has selected its coaching staffs on the basis of excellence, their records will so illustrate.
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Opinionicity isn’t a word. Yet. We should make it one. That way, Mah Friend, you would be better encompassed when you raise such issues . . . :-)!
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Enjoy your Spring Weekend!
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Best,
Chuck
Yes.
OMG! Rampant racism on BMG!!!
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:-)))))