The world of mixed martial arts has been rocked recently with many revelations of racial insensitivity coming from the UFC fighter stable.
UFC flyweight Andrea Lee posted a lakeside photograph of herself and her husband Donny Aaron to Instagram and a tattoo of “SS” or the Schutzstaffel (Protection Squadron) which was a major paramilitary organization under Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party.
MMA fans quickly took note and called the fighter on her choice of romantic partner and trainer. Lees recently won Fight of the Night honors at her UFC debut in Chile last month. Lee released a lengthy apology in which he explained that he got the tattoos when he was in prison and that they are a reminder of a “dark time” for him. It is clear which part of the day room Aaron sat in during his incarceration.
Donny Aaron on Twitter
Please read.
These scars tell my history which includes a dark time when I was in prison, he wrote. However, they do not accurately represent who I am today as a person, my personal belief system and the respect I have for people of all races and religion. For 13 years I have tried to atone for my sins and seek forgiveness from those most certainly find my body reprehensible. Ive, in most cases, gone to great lengths to always wear long sleeves in public setting.
Aaron, a former Shreveport, Louisana police officer, was found guilty of negligent homicide in 2009 after shooting an unarmed black man seven times in 2005. He was incarcerated ahead of that conviction in 2007 because he allegedly beat up his ex-wifes fianc while awaiting trial. During the exchange before the unarmed man was shot, Aaron said Jamison stated, “White boy, I’ll kill you” and then began to open his car door and bent forward in his seat as if he were reaching down for something. The judge agreed that Aaron used excessive force and he faced 40 years had he been convicted of manslaughter.
JE Snowden on Twitter
It’s just a Nazi tattoo. You “sensitive ass mofos.
Lee is the former Legacy Fighting Alliance flyweight champion and apparently saw nothing wrong with the tattoos sent a scathing reproach to the fans in light of her husband’s many revelations. Lee later apologized for tweeting, and defended Aaron again in a tailored more composed way but not before further revealing her limited views.
Andrea Lee on Twitter
@Barry61325536 I actually have many ethnic friends, regardless of what y’all keep saying I am not racist, nor have I ever been. And the more you call me racist is never going to make it true.
In light of Andrea Lee’s husband’s racist past, the UFC should ban her husband from being a cornerman in the promotion and rethink Lee’s involvement in the promotion. In the UFC Fighter Conduct Policy it states that discipline may be imposed for misconduct, which includes without limitation:
Derogatory or offensive conduct, including without limitation insulting language, symbols, or actions about a persons ethnic background, heritage, color, race, national origin, age, religion, disability, gender or sexual orientation. Given the recent remarks by Colby Covington against Brazilians and Mike Perry’s usage of the n-word and assertion that his DNA gives him the right, the UFC and the fighters of color across the world need to step up and chin check this pattern of behavior. If not, the docile powder keg of unrest will become further unsettled.
