Wildcats football players, coaches condemn George Floyd tweet from K-State student
An insensitive tweet from a Kansas State student about George Floyd has drawn the ire of key members from the Wildcats’ football team.
K-State athletic director Gene Taylor, football coach Chris Klieman and several players all issued statements on social media Friday morning that made it clear they would not tolerate racial hate on their campus.
“Our program and our coaches will continue to be part of the solution when it comes to racial injustice,” Klieman wrote in a tweet. “I love our players and they know I have their backs.”
Added Taylor:
“Recent tweets from a K-State student downplaying the Black Lives Matter effort and the tragic and senseless death of George Floyd are disgusting and totally inappropriate and not reflective of who we are as a university or our athletic department,” he wrote. “They are not reflective of our administration and goals. We are committed to listening and supporting our black athletes, black students and members of our Black community and taking positive steps in the matters of social injustice and racism.”
Those social media posts were in response to a tweet from K-State student Jaden McNeil, a junior who is president and founder of America First Students, an independent student organization that promotes bigotry and the white nationalist movement at the university.
He angered many of his fellow students Thursday by tweeting the following message: “Congratulations to George Floyd on being drug free for an entire month!”
Richard Myers, the president of the university, said K-State will be launching an immediate review of the school’s options in response to the tweet, adding that “Black Lives Matter at Kansas State University and we will continue to fight for social justice.”
“The insensitive comments posted by one K-State student hurts our entire community,” Myers wrote in a statement. “These divisive statements do not represent the values of our university. We condemn racism and bigotry in all its forms.”
His tweet was also met with outrage from K-State football players, who have marched in peaceful protests against racism since Floyd was killed by a police officer last month.
Joshua Youngblood, Tyrone Lewis, Malik Knowles, Walter Neil, Briley Moore, A.J. Parker, Tee Denson and others all condemned the tweet once it was brought to their attention on Friday.
Denson, a freshman defensive back, went so far as to say that “I refuse to play for a program that tolerates ignorance such as this.”
Youngblood later backed him up by suggesting he might not return to K-State’s campus until McNeil was expelled by the university. He has since deleted that tweet.
K-State basketball player Antonio Gordon also tweeted that he “will not be able to represent this university” if no action is taken against McNeil.
Their comments weren’t ignored. All of their tweets were liked and retweeted across the Internet, drawing a mushroom cloud of attention to the racially charged tweet. They also received the support of their athletic department, many of whom issued statements supporting their posts.
“The student-athletes who are standing up for what they believe in (on) social media are STRONG!!” wrote K-State assistant athletic director for student athlete development Julian Jones. “I look at the comments that’s under the posts, and I get pissed off. For them not to respond is STRONG!! Keep using your platforms.”
Another Kansas State student-athlete, women’s basketball player Christianna Carr, also responded on twitter.
“You want a reason?” she wrote. “As if there already aren’t enough at K-State. How do you expect your students/student-athletes to feel safe when we have to walk by and interact with people like this? I AM an athlete but I’M A BLACK WOMAN FIRST.”
A day earlier, Carr joined other sports figures such as Chiefs safety Tyrann Mathieu and Kansas basketball coach Bill Self in a forum on race and sports presented by The Kansas City Star and emphasized understanding each other.
“The most important thing is that we get on a level where everybody understands,” she said. “Everybody understands injustice, and not only when people say. “I don’t see color.’ I want you to be able to see my color, and I want you to be able to accept it, and I want you to be able to learn and educate yourself and learn about why I am the way I am, and why I have to move the way that I do. And it’s not just for African-Americans. It’s for everyone.”
“I’ve done a lot of research on why people are so closed minded on this topic. How can I better educate them to understand where I’m coming from?”
K-State basketball coach Bruce Weber also showed his support on Twitter, saying he was united with all of the Wildcats’ student-athletes against racism and injustice.
Skylar Thompson showed support for his Black teammates by sending out a series of tweets, writing that “typing out a statement isn’t enough” and that real action must be taken. He also promised to help lead the effort.
“I can’t even put into words how I feel right now,” Thompson wrote. “My heart hurts. The fact that the comment made is being referred to as a joke is disgusting. That’s the problem, people think this is a joke. The tweet HURT my brothers and sisters of color and it’s not acceptable. I stand with them.”
At least one K-State football player seemed satisfied with the school’s response to McNeil’s tweet as afternoon arrived Friday.
“Extremely frustrated by the comments made,” wrote freshman Talor Warner. “But I love my coaches and my teammates and could not be more proud of the support we have in light of the racist and ignorant message this kid has portrayed.”
This story was originally published June 26, 2020 at 11:15 AM with the headline "Wildcats football players, coaches condemn George Floyd tweet from K-State student."