NAACP urges Southern college athletes to fight voter disenfranchisement

The NAACP launched the “Out of Bounds” campaign on May 19, calling on college athletes at flagship public universities in eight Southern states—Mississippi, Tennessee, Louisiana, Alabama, Florida, South Carolina, Texas and Georgia—to use their platform and the economic power of their sports programs, which generate more than $100 million annually, to combat recent redistricting that dilutes Black voting strength.

The campaign responds to a Supreme Court ruling that weakened key protections of the Voting Rights Act and to state actions that have reshaped congressional maps. In Louisiana, a new map eliminated two majority‑Black districts by splitting them, forcing former district leaders Tony Carter and Castro Fields to run against each other in a single district. The NAACP argues these changes reduce Black political representation and urges athletes, fans, alumni and donors to redirect ticket, merchandise and apparel spending toward historically Black colleges and universities and civil‑rights groups.

“This generation of Black athletes understands something that those who came before them were rarely allowed to say openly: their talent carries influence, and so does their community’s political power,” said Tylik McMillan, national director of the NAACP Youth and College Division. NAACP President Derrick Johnson added that the campaign was launched to counter a coordinated effort to diminish Black representation following the court decision. The initiative also references past athlete activism, such as former Mississippi State running back Kylin Hill’s 2020 challenge to the state flag.