Warren would not say if he would personally take a knee during the national anthemGETTY IMAGES
Big Ten Commissioner Kevin Warren said that conference athletes "would be able to kneel during the national anthem if sports are played this fall," according to Christine Brennan of USA TODAY. Warren said, “I’m going to personally empower student-athletes to express their right to free speech and peaceful protest." Warren, who is African-American, "would not say if he would personally take a knee during the anthem." Warren: “I want to hear what’s important to our coalition and what’s important to our student athletes. I want to listen.” Warren said that his decision to start the Big Ten Anti-Hate and Anti-Racism Coalition, which will be comprised of about 180 student-athletes, coaches and officials from the 14 conference schools, "stems in part from his personal history." He said that the coalition "fits 'hand in hand' with the voter registration drive that seeks to make sure every Big Ten athlete is registered to vote for the Nov. 3 presidential election." Warren, asked if the Big Ten will recommend that athletes have the day off on Election Day to vote, as others have advocated, said that the issue "'will be on the table' for the coalition when it meets virtually in the next few weeks" (USA TODAY, 6/16).
PROGRAM FOR CHANGE: The AP's Larry Lage wrote the Big 10 through its newly created voter registration program is "hoping its 14 schools and thousands of student-athletes can leverage their platform to spur social change." Warren said that yesterday's announcement of the initiative "finalizes plans that have been in the works since February." Warren hopes that the nonpartisan program will "encourage student-athletes to become part of the electoral process." It will include "monthly programming, beginning in July and ending with the general election in November, with participants from each Big Ten school" (AP, 6/15).
