Missouri players take stand on racial issue

Missouri football players announced Saturday night on Twitter that they will not participate in team activities until the university president is removed from office.

The statement from the athletes of color was tweeted out Saturday by several members of the football team, including starting running back Russell Hansbrough.

The move aligns the team with campus groups who have been protesting the way university President Tim Wolfe has dealt with issues of racial harassment during the school year. Jonathan Butler, a black graduate student, is in the sixth day of a hunger strike to call attention to the issue.

The statement from the players included a photograph of 32 black men, including Butler.

Wolfe met with Butler and student groups on Friday to discuss the university’s handling of racial harassment cases.

Butler also has expressed concern about other student issues, including the removal of graduate student health care subsidies and an end to university contracts with a Planned Parenthood clinic.

Student groups have been critical over how Wolfe has handled issues of race and discrimination, and blocked his car at homecoming in an attempt to speak with him.

In a text message statement to the Associated Press, the Missouri athletic department said it was aware of the statement by “many of our student-athletes.”

“We all must come together with leaders from across our campus to tackle these challenging issues and we support our student-athletes right to do so.”

Missouri last played Thursday night at home, losing to Mississippi State to fall to 4-5 on the season. The Tigers have three more games left, including next Saturday at home against BYU.