"Rooney" Rule

[Detroit Blues]

I do not think anyone would argue that black people we're denied the same level of opportunity due to racism in the past. The issue is that not having past managing/coaching experience has a cascading effect into the modern day.

 

There are plenty of black and minority candidates that would make good coaches, but they don't have the necessary experience. Why don't they have the experience, because back in the day no team would hire a black manager, let alone an assistant coach. So when the next premier league job opens up, who will be the first names listed as possible replacements? The same 5-6 white candidates who already have had experience at the premier league level.

 

I would completely disagree with the Rooney Rule if it was affirmative action, where teams we're given an incentive or quota to meet for hiring black or minority candidates but that's not what it does. The Rooney Rule gives them a chance to interview and get their foot in the door. When you think about it, all it does is forces teams to do what they should have been doing already. In any hiring process, be it sport or business, it makes sense to interview a diverse set of candidates with different backgrounds and experiences. Don't just settle for the same retreads because they're experienced and familiar.

 

I think the NFL is an extreme example. The vast majority of athletes in the NFL are black, yet the vast majority of NFL coaches were white. Too often you would hear racist phrases like "black players don't have the brain to be a quarterback or a coach." Luckily those days are long gone. But none-the-less the Rooney Rule forced teams to consider black candidates for jobs, and shockingly enough, former athletes might know a thing or two about the game they played. Once teams started feeling comfortable with hiring former athletes to be position coaches, they would have the necessary experience to work up the ladder to eventually become a head coach. That's what i mean by getting your foot in the door. You don't have to hire black and minority candidates to become a premier league coach with no experience, but they should be given the opportunity needed to get into coaching and work their way up just the same as anyone else.

 

I want to add one more thing, and i don't know if it's necessarily appropriate. But i notice some posts on FT that remind me of what people used to say about black athletes in the NFL back in the 90s. A lot of time when people criticize black players from Leicester like Jeff Schlupp (maybe a poor example), Kelechi Iheanco, Ahmed Musa, etc. it seems borderline racist. It's always "these players are lazy, they don't have a brain, etc. But those same phrases are never used when criticizing shit white players. They're just generally referred to as slow, or poor work rate, poor final ball, etc. I assume most people here are not racist, but it just kind of makes me wonder because it reminds me so much of Philadelphia Eagles fans criticizing Donovan McNabb back in the 90s, saying he doesn't have the brain to be an NFL quarterback. 

 

 

Edited 17 January 2018 by Detroit Blues