Need to Knows
• The NAACP launched its “Out of Bounds” campaign targeting public university athletic programs in eight Southern states.
• The campaign follows the Supreme Court’s 6 to 3 ruling in Louisiana v. Callais, which voting rights advocates say weakened protections under the Voting Rights Act.
• The NAACP is calling on Black recruits, current athletes, fans, alumni and consumers to withhold athletic and financial support from targeted programs.
• The Congressional Black Caucus is backing the campaign, saying silence from major athletic institutions amounts to complicity.
CBC Backs NAACP College Sports Boycott Over Black Voting Rights Rollbacks: ‘Silence Is Complicity’
The NAACP has launched a national campaign calling on Black athletes, families, fans, alumni and consumers to withhold athletic and financial support from public universities in states accused of limiting Black voting representation after the Supreme Court’s 6 to 3 ruling in Louisiana v. Callais. The ruling was issued April 29, 2026, and voting rights groups have described it as a major blow to Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act.
The campaign, called “Out of Bounds,” targets flagship public athletic programs in Tennessee, Louisiana, Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas and Georgia. According to the NAACP, those states moved quickly after the Supreme Court decision to limit, weaken or erase Black voting representation while their largest public universities continue to recruit Black athletes and generate major athletic revenue.
NAACP Says Black Athletic Power Should Not Support Political Erasure
“What these states have done is not a policy disagreement. It is a sprint to erase Black political power,” said Derrick Johnson, President and CEO of the NAACP. “These actions happened in days, in some cases in hours, of a Supreme Court ruling that gives extremist lawmakers a playbook to erode Black representation.”
Johnson said the campaign is aimed at exposing what the NAACP views as a contradiction between the value placed on Black athletic talent and the political treatment of Black communities.
“The NAACP will not watch the same institutions that depend on Black athletic prowess to fill their stadiums and their bank accounts remain silent while their states strip Black communities of their voice,” Johnson said. “Out of Bounds is our answer: we are naming the contradiction, and we are calling on Black athletes, families, fans, and consumers to act on it. The same power that built these programs can be redirected. And it will be.”
The financial stakes are significant. The campaign focuses on public university athletic programs that generate more than $100 million in annual revenue, with the targeted flagship universities collectively bringing in billions of dollars through athletics.
Related: The Return Of Jim Crow Politics Through Redistricting
Campaign Calls On Recruits And Athletes To Withhold Support
The central ask of “Out of Bounds” is aimed at top football and basketball recruits currently being pursued by targeted programs. The NAACP is urging those athletes to withhold commitments until the states involved restore fair congressional maps and meaningful Black representation.
The campaign is also calling on current college athletes, including those already enrolled at targeted programs, to consider all available options, including the transfer portal, and to use their NIL reach and public platforms to support fair maps and voting rights.
“This generation of Black athletes understands something that those who came before them were never afforded the chance to say so plainly: your talent is yours, and so is your community’s political power,” said Tylik McMillan, National Director of the NAACP Youth and College Division.
McMillan said the campaign is asking young athletes to connect the political decisions being made in their states with the institutions that benefit from their labor and public image.
“These are not separate issues,” McMillan said. “The state that is working to erase your grandmother’s congressional district is the same state whose governor will stand on the field and celebrate your touchdown or game-winning shot. We are asking young people, recruits, current athletes, fans, to see that connection clearly and to act on it. The Out of Bounds campaign is about redirecting what has always been ours, power and perseverance.”
Fans, Alumni And Donors Asked To Redirect Spending To HBCUs
The NAACP’s call to action extends beyond athletes. The organization is asking Black fans, alumni, donors and consumers to stop purchasing tickets, merchandise and licensed apparel from targeted programs.
Instead, the campaign encourages supporters to redirect that money to HBCUs, including athletics programs, scholarship funds, NIL collectives, bands and alumni foundations.
The Congressional Black Caucus has also backed the campaign. According to reporting from the Associated Press, the CBC said it would oppose college sports legislation known as the SCORE Act unless major athletic conferences speak out against redistricting efforts that reduce Black voting power.
The campaign will remain in effect until the targeted states adopt state level voting rights protections, repeal maps that dilute Black voting power, restore congressional and judicial districts that reflect the strength of Black populations, and commit to transparent, community centered redistricting processes.
The NAACP’s message is direct: “No Representation. No Recruitment. No Revenue.”
