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The TikTok bears the watermark, asherthegreat24 and is posted to his account with the hashtag, #valdostastateuniversity. Captions with the video include "Valdosta state university 2023 or 1945." Guilliams ends the conversation and tells Akridge there’s nothing that could put him back on the baseball team. In a TikTok video posted Tuesday by Asher Akridge, the athlete can be heard conversing with Valdosta State University Baseball Head Coach Greg Guilliams. "If you want to be treated like everyone else, then follow the rules I give you," the head coach is heard saying. Asher, who is black, repeatedly asked the head coach, who is white, why he's making this decision, to which the head coach does not budge.
Valdosta State Investigating Incident Involving Head Baseball Coach, Former Player Regarding Hair Length, Playing Time
The player then questions the unequal treatment and points out that his white teammates with longer hair aren’t held to the same standard. This highlights a glaring double standard that is not only discriminatory but also raises questions about fairness within the team. In the viral video, the player asserts that his hair adheres to the required length. However, the coach vehemently insists that he must cut his dreadlocks in order to participate.
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“The VSU Office of Human Resources is conducting a comprehensive inquiry into the current matter and will address any personnel actions that are deemed to violate university policy if the inquiry reveals anything. We are progressing through the required due process procedures,” the school said, according to WALB. Local outlet WALB sent a reporter to practice on Wednesday to get a look at other players and their hair lengths and noted that team members, both black and white, had long hair. The station also noted that they did not see head coach Greg Guilliams at practice.
Former Jackson State player forced to cut hair at Valdosta State
VALDOSTA — A recording of a conversation between a person described as a Valdosta State baseball coach and a player about the player's hair has gone viral. Commentators on the original TikTok recording post raised questions of racism and unequal treatment of the VSU baseball player, Asher Akridge. Neither party involved refers to or identifies the other by name during the recorded conversation. VALDOSTA — A recording of a conversation between a person described as a Valdosta State baseball coach and a player about the player’s hair has gone viral. Valdosta State has released a statement and the findings from their investigation into a former HBCU baseball player forced to cut hair.
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VSU has since released a statement in relation to the coach’s comments. TheGrio contacted the school multiple times for a statement but did not receive a response by press time. It’s that he’s not enforcing the rule with everybody on the team,” a TikTok user wrote. At the end of the video, Akridge showed a picture of his thin locs that barely hung past his ears.
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Akridge also mentions that other players don't have to follow the same rule for their hair. Valdosta State University has released a statement following the conclusion of the institution's investigation into former Jackson State baseball player Asher Akridge who transferred to Valdosta State and was forced to cut his hair. Aug. 23—VALDOSTA — A recording of a conversation between a person described as a Valdosta State baseball coach and a player about the player's hair has gone viral. “If you complied with what I said, you’d got your hair cut and I wouldn’t had to keep telling you about it,” the coach says, suggesting there were multiple times he told the player to chop off his long hair.
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This incident serves as a reminder that efforts to eliminate such discrimination should extend to all areas of life. The leaked video and subsequent public reaction have sparked conversations about the boundaries of authority and fairness within college sports. The student-athlete’s decision to record and share the conversation showcases the power of advocating for one’s rights in the digital age. Moreover, the incident raises concerns about the role of coaches in enforcing appearance-related rules that may perpetuate bias. The player believed to be at the center of the controversy with the coach over his hair is not listed currently for VSU's baseball roster for 2023 or 2024, but is listed in official box scores posted by the university to its athletics website.
Valdosta State releases findings of investigation into player forced to cut hair - ClutchPoints
Valdosta State releases findings of investigation into player forced to cut hair.
Posted: Wed, 25 Oct 2023 07:00:00 GMT [source]
EssentiallySports is a digital-first sports media house that surfaces the best stories on America's favorite sports celebrities with a fan's perspective to 30+ M average monthly readers. “In keeping with the Valdosta State University Non-Discrimination Policy, the university is committed to maintaining a fair, respectful, and non-discriminatory environment for all,” the school said. “All the people interviewed (not counting the complainant and respondent) stated they believed that Mr. Akridge’s departure from the team was due to something other than race,” the report showed. The Valdosta Daily Times requested more information with details on the investigation report. Hair discrimination is still a hot-button issue in the U.S. although laws were passed in various states to combat this matter.
Baseball Reference, a website that compiles baseball statistics for college and professional teams, lists Akridge as only participating in one game in 2023 for VSU. In a leaked video posted to a TikTok account asherthegreat24, you can hear the player discussing the length of his hair with the coach and trying to get back on the team. In a video posted to TikTok by Akridge with the caption “Valdosta State University 2023 or 1945,” a player tells the coach he was always respectful and always complied with the strict hair policy. The statement said the coach initiated a team hair-length policy that was inconsistently applied to team members. Student-athletes of various races were allowed at times to remain non-compliant with the hair-length policy, including for months at a time, the report said. The post Viral video purportedly shows college baseball coach barring student from playing because of his locs appeared first on TheGrio.
The recording, which appears to be via a phone’s video feature, does not show either individual in the conversation as it seems to have been placed in a hidden location. “VSU is aware of this video and is currently reviewing the situation,” according to a statement released by Valdosta State University. The use of software that blocks ads hinders our ability to serve you the content you came here to enjoy.
The video, which has a picture of a VSU baseball player's hair touching his shoulders as its opening image, had more than 30,000 likes and 5,200 comments as of Wednesday morning. The video does not show the faces of the coach and player, but WALB-TV identified the player as Asher Akridge, who is Black, and the coach as head coach Greg Guilliams. Collected feedback from the overall perceptions of the interviewees found that the issue was not racial or discriminatory. Current players and alumni dating to 2007 who interacted with the coach also shared feedback to the committee. The report said their feedback indicated that Guilliams has never exhibited racially discriminatory behavior in the past.
A video recently posted to social media appears to expose a recorded conversation between a Valdosta State University baseball player and his head coach. Hair discrimination remains a deeply concerning issue in various aspects of American society. A recent incident involving an African-American baseball player has brought this problem to the forefront. This student from Valdosta State University has shed light on the persistence of this problem within the realm of sports.
"VSU is aware of this video and is currently reviewing the situation," according to a statement released by Valdosta State University. As of Friday morning, the video has been viewed nearly 470,000 times on TikTok. Valdosta State issued a statement confirming it’s looking into the video. Neither Guilliams nor any of the baseball coaching staff, athletics directors, or Valdosta State University administration immediately returned The Daily Beast’s multiple requests for comment Thursday. “Are you a college that allows the ‘Head Coach’ of your Baseball team to openly discriminate against players? ” a Facebook user commented on an unrelated post on Valdosta’s page.
The video went viral on TikTok and it eventually made its way over to other high-traffic social media and video-sharing applications such as Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube. Upon the video going viral Valdosta State announced that they were launching an investigation. A former Valdosta State University employee and 2004 national championship football team member was upset by the dialogue in the viral video.
'Dogs WR signee may be drafted in baseball - Savannah Morning News
'Dogs WR signee may be drafted in baseball.
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The video went viral on TikTok, at the time of the publishing of this article getting over 403,000 views, 37,100+ likes, and over 4,000 shares. The video has also made its way to other social media and video-sharing platforms. Many posts in support of Akridge have cited the C.R.O.W.N. Act, which stands for Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair. The bill passed on June 27, 2019 in California, the first state to pass such a bill addressing hair discrimination. However, efforts to pass a similar bill in Georgia but it has yet to become law. A bill (SB 266) was reintroduced in the State Senate in February.
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