The Race and

Sports Lecture
Race and the National
Football League:
The Rooney Rule and Beyond
The Rooney Rule was passed in 2003 to address the lack of opportunities for
African-Americans as head coaches in the NFL. It mandates that NFL teams
in search of head coaches and general managers interview at least one candi-
date of color for the position. The program will examine racial issues pre
Rooney Rule and discuss the future of African-Americans in the NFL.

Panelists:
KEVIN BLACKISTONE (Moderator)
is a sports columnist and the Shirley Povich Chair in
Sports Journalism at the University of Maryland. He is
a panelist on ESPN’s Around the Horn, the former
national columnist for AOL Fanhouse and former award-
winning sports columnist for The Dallas Morning News.

N. JEREMI DURU
is Associate Professor of Law at Temple
University. He is among the nation’s fore-
most authorities on the intersection of
race, sports, and law. Professor Duru’s new
book, Advancing the Ball: Race,
Reformation, and the Quest for Equal
Coaching Opportunity in the NFL, is the first
book to examine the battle for equal
employment opportunity among coaches and front office
personnel in the National Football League.

CYRUS MEHRI
is a civil rights attorney and founding partner of the law
firm Mehri & Skalet, PLLC. On September 30, 2002, he

Thursday,
and Johnnie L. Cochran, Jr. released the report, Black
Coaches in the National Football League: Superior

April 28, 2011

Performance, Inferior Opportunities. The report became the
catalyst for the NFL’s creation of a Workplace Diversity

5:30 p.m.
Committee and the adoption of a comprehensive diversi-
ty program.

The Auditorium,
Jon M. FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC

Huntsman Hall
For more information, contact the

38th & Walnut Sts

Center for Africana Studies at 215.898.4965
or africana@sas.upenn.edu