A free speech group sounded the alarm after student athletes at Davidson College were reportedly required to spend a Sunday afternoon viewing and discussing an antiracism video which some students found "offensive" and "insulting."
Davidsonians for Freedom of Thought and Discourse (DFTD), an independent alumni group devoted to promoting free speech and thought on campus, claimed student athletes were compelled to spend three hours on a recent Sunday watching the film called "I’m not Racist…Am I?"
The group shared a clip from the film this week after meeting with faculty to discuss their concerns.
In the video, an antiracism consultant speaks with a group of diverse college students about the differences between racism and bigotry or "meanness." The instructor claims that racism is a power system in the United States that helps White people and hurts people of color.
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A free speech group at Davidson College claimed student athletes were recently required to watch an racism video which claimed only White people can be racist. (Getty Images)
After a female Asian student disagrees, saying that minorities can be racist to White people, the instructor tells her that is actually "bigotry, not racism."
"It's only White people that could be racist, that are racist. People of color cannot be," he tells the students.
DFTD said that student athletes they spoke to found the film "offensive, divisive, and personally insulting" and were disappointed they were required to spend over three hours on a Sunday participating in the exercise.
The alumni group said it doesn't object to discussions on racism, even when using divisive definitions of racism. However, they found the compulsory nature of the exercise and the athletic department's apparent endorsement of the film's "extremist" message, a "hazardous way to go about it."
People hold up signs during a rally against "critical race theory" (CRT) being taught in schools. (ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images)
"Will those teammates classified as ‘the oppressed’ and ‘the oppressor’ continue to trust and respect each other?" the group asked.
DFTD said they met with the Davidson football coach and the former dean of the faculty after raising concerns with the school administration about the video and about a similar issue compelling students to confront "systems of oppression" in spanish and cell biology classes at Davidson.
They praised these meetings as "highly beneficial." The team's football coach "saw the potential risk and benefit in the film’s theme" and sensed that it could disrupt the essential unity of his team. He gathered his team to address the controversy and had a productive conversation about their unease with the film, DFTD said. The coach disagreed with some of the film's message, and emphasized that mutual respect and unity was thriving on campus.
The group was encouraged to ask the school president and dean to send their concerns to faculty for formal deliberation. They are asking the school to adopt policies to protect students' academic freedom and limit staff's ability to require students to participate in political or ideological activities that "are not a standard part of training or education."
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Kenny Xu, President of Color Us United, is running for Congress in North Carolina. (Kenny Xu)
Davidson alum Kenny Xu, a board member of DFTD who is also running for Congress, provided the following statement to Fox News Digital.
"The mandatory viewing of this video by my alma mater shows the dismal trajectory of our higher education system unless things are changed. Universities were supposed to guide us and enlighten us to explore alternative paths. Davidson chooses instead to ram CRT down their students' throats before they are even fully grown. Notice that one student's challenge is immediately shot down and dismissed in the video. This is how woke university administrators behave when they are in power, seeking control and advantage over their students."
Davidson College said the following regarding criticism of the video.
"Students encounter many ideas, perspectives, and beliefs about the world at college, and even though a reading or event is assigned, that does not mean that anyone at the college expects students to agree with every idea they encounter. Learning – and teamwork – is about exploring different ideas, countering with better ones, and expanding knowledge," a spokesperson said in a statement.
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