Stephen A. Smith Argues Against Clay Travis' Take On Florida's DEI Decision But Fails To 'Stand On Business'

ESPN's Stephen A. Smith promised to give a blazing response to OutKick's Clay Travis in support of DEI.

SAS promised a scathing response but hid behind a poor argument on his YouTube show, calling opposition to 'Diversity, Equity and Inclusion' essentially racist.

Smith was too scared to utter the word. Worry not, SAS invited an actual proud bigot to say it for him as a follow-up to the ESPN pundit's weak response to Clay.

Why Did SAS Go At Clay?

Stephen A. Smith went after OutKick founder Clay Travis early Monday after catching Travis's response to the University of Florida's decision to fire all employees dedicated to enforcing DEI, aided by the support of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.

In today's progressive landscape, diversity, equity and inclusion no longer mean equality for all. Instead, DEI promotes that the ‘underprivileged’ deserve a leg up, strongly predicated on historical oppression and essentially making amends for America's past sins.

Clay argued on "OutKick the Show" that DEI has led to more harm than good.

"I would say this in general, I think every diversity, equity and inclusion employee on the planet should be fired," Clay said. 

He added, "I believe that identity politics combined with cancel culture which is its kissing cousin, are the two foundational elements destroying America. The idea that based on your race, your gender, or your sexuality in some way, you are profoundly different and can never get along with anyone else, I think is actually incredibly toxic to American life. 

"I give credit to Ron DeSantis. I give credit to everyone involved in this decision at the University of Florida, and I want this to happen in every red state, with every red attorney general and also in companies."

DEI is destroying America, and Stephen A. Smith disagrees with that notion.

Only Scared White Men Oppose DEI, Stephen A. Smith Claims

Not only that, SAS claims that Clay's rebuke of DEI denies African-American history, strongly associating the belief with that of racist white men of the Antebellum South. 

Don't get it twisted; Smith's beliefs about the necessity of DEI were no different from MSNBC's Joy Reid. SAS just used prettier words to say it.

"Why didn't you touch on [DEI's] origin; why don't we get more specific and talk about ‘affirmative action,’ the mother of DEI essentially?" Smith asked.

Smith then claimed that Clay Travis rejects DEI because Clay is part of a group of white Americans who despise seeing opportunities taken from white men. 

He said, "Is it the dissipation of the white population in this country? Is it the open border that has more migrants coming into this country? … If it is say so, if you're scared say you're scared."

Smith's blindfolded response did nothing but beg the OutKick founder to accept his opinion as fact predicated on being on the ‘right side’ of American history.

"Why did you leave history out?" Stephen A. Smith said regarding Clay's response.

"Equity" (which is right there in the name, SAS) argues that the "disenfranchised" should gain an advantage. SAS acknowledged DEI could be flawed, and even supported by African Americans, but failed to acknowledge that the modern practice of DEI strays far from classic Democrats' notion of "equality." 

Smith defined DEI as a tool against racism and fell short of calling any of its opponents outright racists.

Enter: Michael Eric Dyson.

NEW ORLEANS, LA - JULY 07:  Michael Eric Dyson speaks onstage during the 2018 Essence Festival presented by Coca-Cola at Ernest N. Morial Convention Center on July 7, 2018 in New Orleans, Louisiana.  (Photo by Paras Griffin/Getty Images for Essence)

Actual Bigot Michael Eric Dyson Gives History Lesson On Bigotry

A preacher and race bigot, Dyson joined SAS to speak on the significance of DEI — reminding us all along the way how it's been weaponized to gain advantages.

Dyson criticized Clay and Governor Ron DeSantis with far less subtlety than Stephen A. 

The racist preacher "stood on business," unlike Smith.

"Here is a governor trying to ban books; trying to keep at bay the history of African-American people; trying to politicize advanced placement in terms of African-American studies," Dyson said.

"DEI exists because of the history of bigotry, white supremacy, and the resistance to the inclusion of African-American people."

Dyson then claimed that without the message promoted by DEI, generational athletes like Michael Jordan would be kept on the sideline in favor of far less talented white dudes.

"Without DEI, Michael Jordan wouldn't have been what he was on the basketball court because he would've been excluded. … "

In case you were wondering if this guy was kissing up to SAS for airtime, Dyson also added, "Stephen A. Smith couldn't be the king of media right now because he would've been written out of the laws that permitted him to do so."

The bigotry by Stephen A. and Dyson pigeonholes Americans into accepting DEI without excuses. DEI has taken away more opportunities than it grants and slashes the social fabric of a diverse nation with deleterious effects. 

If your group — be they Asian-American or Jewish, for example — is deemed the ‘oppressor,' DEI has every right to take your opportunity from you and grant it to the ‘oppressed.’

"The biggest voices claiming that giving any sense of support to African-American people were those conservative brothers and sisters from the Confederate," Dyson added.

To recap Stephen A.'s rant: if you oppose DEI, you're probably racist and white. If you're not white, you're probably just racist.

Look out for Clay Travis' official response on Tuesday's OutKick The Show.

Follow along on X:@AlejandroAveela