Yahoo Finance Liberty’s Asia Todd transferring due to ‘racial insensitivity’ from school leadership
One of Liberty’s top players is transferring out of the program — though her reasoning has nothing to do with the team itself.
Asia Todd announced that she’s transferring from the school on Twitter on Wednesday night because of “racial insensitivity” from school leadership.
Announcement: I have entered my name into the Transfer Portal and will no longer be attending Liberty University 🙏🏽 pic.twitter.com/LwESGkjwNs
— Asia Todd🔛🔝🔜🏀 (@hoopersgalore_) June 11, 2020
“Please know that this decision was not taken lightly,” Todd said in a video while wearing a Black Lives Matter shirt. “This decision had nothing to do with basketball or the program. For this decision was simply bigger than basketball. Now the basketball program, the coaching staff and my teammates at Liberty was amazing. I developed lifelong relationships that I will cherish forever.
“However, due to the racial insensitivity shown within the leadership and culture, it simply does not align with my moral compass or personal convictions. Therefore, I had to do what I felt was best within my heart and stand up for what is right.”
Todd averaged 8.6 points and 2.8 rebounds in all 31 games for Liberty in her freshman campaign last season while playing more than 26 minutes per contest. The Flames finished with a 20-11 record, good for second place in the Atlantic Sun conference standings.
Liberty University and its president Jerry Falwell Jr. have been involved in a number of incidents in recent months. He apologized this week for a tweet he sent last month that both mocked social-distancing orders from Virginia’s governor and included an image of a mask, a man in blackface and another in Ku Klux Klan robes, per The New York Times.
Both the men’s basketball team and football team issued statements in the wake of Falwell’s tweet, too, calling for unity and positive change.
— Liberty Football (@LibertyFootball) June 3, 2020
Falwell, a prominent evangelical leader and staunch supporter of President Donald Trump, has also been linked to numerous other scandals, including using offensive language to students and staff members, cultivating a “culture of fear” at the school, allegations of shady real estate deals, hypocritical actions and more.
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