Opinion
Today, in a landmark step—which itself remains fraught with many issues that need be resolved—the NCAA agreed in principal to allow NCAA athletes to profit off their likeness and receive compensation for the efforts and talents.
And immediately an old white man in the Senate wants to tax the kids.
NCAA athletes have long pushed for the right to received compensation for, be reimbursed for, or make money off their services. The NCAA has long stuck to the antiquated notion of amateurism to keep students from receiving money, even as star players and programs raked in cash for schools.
Today, in hopes to avoid a court fight over a California law that would allow NCAA athletes to seek profit for their labor, the NCAA board of directors capitulated. And Sen. Richard Burr (R-N.C.) immediately called for these athletes—the majority of which would be able to make a profit are young people of color—to start being taxed.
Burr said on Twitter he would find a way to tax the scholarships they receive, making them pay in some way for the education that a school is willing to give them for free because the trade-off is astoundingly profitable for the university.
Imagine if your response to young people of color of exercising their economic might is to demand they give that money back.
If college athletes are going to make money off their likenesses while in school, their scholarships should be treated like income. I’ll be introducing legislation that subjects scholarships given to athletes who choose to “cash in” to income taxes. https://t.co/H7jXC0dNls
— Richard Burr (@SenatorBurr) October 29, 2019
Right.
This would be the part where we flag all the hypocritical things Burr’s done in the past—like voting for Trump’s tax cut which was geared at people who already had tremendous wealth—but come on, you already knew that was the case.
Because the rules, as you know, are different if you’re white and rich.
Burr also voted to kill healthcare coverage for millions.
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