Ohio State‘s former football coach confirmed the claim he used a photo of Trayvon Martin to enforce a program rule.
On Jan. 4, 2021, Urban Meyer told The Columbus Dispatch his staff used the picture of Martin when discussing a “no hoodies” policy in 2017.
“I wasn’t there [in the meeting],” Meyer said, according to TMZ. “None of the coaches were present. It was a support staffer who was in error and apologized.”
The tactic came to light when former OSU player Marcus Williamson tweeted about his experiences as a Black student-athlete at a predominately White institution on Jan. 1.
Williamson also claimed his first interaction with Meyer on campus when he enrolled early in 2017 was that if he ever got caught smoking, the coach would “ruin [his] f—— life.” The photo of Martin came up in his first team meeting in a PowerPoint presentation. Williamson’s father, Marlon Williamson, supported his son’s claims with comments he posted on Jan. 4.
Martin was 17 when George Zimmerman killed him as “a suspicious person” walking. Martin was wearing a hoodie.
“For many people in the AA [African American] community, Trayvon’s senseless murder was extremely traumatizing…and repeated mental, social and physical trauma is the issue,” Marlon Williamson’s post read.
Marcus Williamson’s thread detailed why many student-athletes can’t focus fully on their educations with vigorous athletic training schedules. He also said he was pushed past his physical limits and played through injuries on a regular basis.
“[In] 2018, I used to wake up, put my shoulder in place … and go to practice,” Williamson tweeted. “The industry is often silent because everyone is obviously chasing the big payday [to make the NFL]. But the injustices these players face just aren’t right. We literally put our bodies and lives at risk with 0 guarantees.”
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