Florida is preparing for a challenge to eliminate the NFL’s old Rooney Rule, which was created to increase the number of minority coaches and top executives in the league.
Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier calls on NFL officials in a Wednesday, March 25 letter that the Rooney Rule and other similar hires are “illegal” under Florida civil rights laws.
In a letter to league commissioner Roger Goodell, Uthmeier wrote: “As a Floridian, I wish the Miami Dolphins the best with their new head football coach. However, as Florida’s chief legal officer, I write with a warning to the NFL regarding its hiring policies based on race and sex.”
Uthmeier pressed the NFL to confirm by May 1 that it would no longer enforce its policies requiring teams to interview minority candidates, including women, or else the state could take “actions to enforce civil rights.”
“NFL fans in Florida don’t care what color their coach’s skin is. They care what colors their coach wears and that those colors win on the football field.
The Rooney Rule and its derivatives are illegal in Florida,” Florida Attorney General Uthmeier concluded.
What is the NFL Rooney rule?
The Rooney Rule was adopted in 2003 to ensure diversity in leadership among NFL clubs in an effort to promote promising candidates an equal opportunity to demonstrate they can lead based on their skills and qualifications.
For this purpose, the NFL created a committee called the “Workplace Diversity Committee” and later renamed it the “Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Committee.”
It is therefore named after then-committee chairman Dan Rooney, owner of the Pittsburgh Steelers.
The Rooney Rule was formulated in 2003 and requires NFL clubs to interview two outside minority candidates for vacant head coach, general manager and coordinator positions.
What sparked criticism of the Rooney Rule was that this offseason, only Tennessee Titans coach Robert Saleh, with roots of Lebanese descent, was brought in.
Of 10 vacancies, only one minority candidate landed a top coaching job.
On the other hand, the NFL has confirmed having received the letter and that the league is reviewing its content, as reported ESPN.
“We believe our policies are consistent with the law and reflect our commitment to fairness, opportunity and building the strongest teams possible,” said NFL executive vice president Jeff Miller.
