Events Calendar

(Photo: 1896 Iowa Hawkeyes football team, including Frank Kinney Holbrook, the UI's first African American athlete)

The recent past has been a tumultuous period for UI athletics. Several former University of Iowa football players claimed they had been subjected to racist treatment during their time on the team. These accusations led to the departure of a coach and ongoing conversations about racial justice within and beyond the team.

Meanwhile, efforts have been mobilized to spotlight and address the experience of racism in college athletics on campus. Recently, Iowa named representatives to the Big Ten's recently established Anti-Hate and Anti-Racism Coalition. There have even been proposals to rename Iowa's football stadium.

This is not the first time that UI athletes and others have sought to change the racial climate in their teams, in the university, and in the wider community. From the nineteenth century to the present day, sport has been a site of struggle over the meaning of race, opportunity, and community, both on this campus and beyond. This roundtable discussion is an attempt to contextualize the current moment by examining past challenges and considering future opportunities.

Moderator: Broderick Binns
Former University of Iowa Football Player
Executive Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion for UI Athletics 
 

Quinn Early
Former University of Iowa Football Player
Writer and producer of a forthcoming documentary and feature film about Frank Holbrook, the first Black athlete at the University of Iowa
 

Alexis Sevillian
Current University of Iowa Basketball Player
Diversity and Inclusion Chair for the Iowa Student Athletic Advisory Committee
Representative, Big Ten Anti-Hate and Anti-Racism Coalition
 

Dr. Louis Moore
Associate Professor of History, Grand Valley State University
Author of We Will Win the Day: The Civil Rights Movement, the Black Athlete, and the Quest for Equality
Co-host and co-founder of The Black Athlete podcast

This webinar is part of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences-sponsored Theme Year series,  "Pursuing Racial Justice at the University of Iowa." 

In this collaborative 2020-21 series, faculty, students, and staff are exploring—through cross-disciplinary and intersectional lenses—issues of racial justice and how they affect diversity, equity, and inclusion in our college, university, and society.

The goal of each event is to invite members of CLAS, the UI, and the broader community to engage with the issues, reflect upon what they have learned, and consider personal and institutional actions we might take in response.

For more information about DEI work in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, visit clas.uiowa.edu/dei.