By: Kylan Watson
Baylor Women’s Basketball Coach, Kim Mulkey is facing very strong criticism, after comments she made on Saturday, February 25th, 2017. Mulkey said, “If someone says Baylor is not safe for women punch them in the face” (http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2695898, 3-2-17). Mulkey’s comments came after reports surfaced that 55 sexual assaults happened on the campus of Baylor University. Mulkey’s comments put the spotlight back on Baylor’s administration and how they are handling sexual assault, in the wake of a lawsuit filed in January.
Baylor University fired their Chancellor, football coach, and Athletic Director because of the sexual assaults that happened between 2012 and 2016. To be exact at least 55 sexual assaults were committed at Baylor University. A large percentage of those sexual assaults were committed by members of the football team. It was also discovered that some Baylor officials were covering up the sexual assaults. Once these reports became public Baylor was under fire, with some people calling for Baylor’s football program to be eliminated.
Ms. Mulkey should know better, as a coach her number one responsibility is to take care of her players, and make sure they grow into not only great basketball players, but also bright young women. Mulkey currently coaches one of the top two teams in women’s college basketball, and she needs to take her responsibility seriously. Instead of saying punch people in the face for not wanting to send their kids to Baylor, she should have use her platform to highlight what Baylor is doing, to make sure that a sexual assault never happens again on the campus of Baylor University.
Ms. Mulkey apologized for her comments, but the damage has already been done to her reputation, her comments were unsolicited. No one asked her to comment on the sexual assaults that occurred on Baylor’s campus, but she commented on it anyway. Mulkey has now added her name to the mess at Baylor. She not only needs to do more to redeem herself, but also do more to make sure she values the young lives she shapes. Parents trust her with their most precious possession, their children. For the sake of sexual assaults victims and the women on Baylor’s campus, she needs to become more sensitive about these issues and do something about sexual assaults.
