California Women’s Caucus calls on Endeavor to remove Dana White as UFC president after slapping his wife
At least one notable group is calling for the UFC’s parent company to remove Dana White as its president.
The California Legislative Women’s Caucus shared a letter it wrote to Endeavor CEO Ari Emanuel on Monday in which it called on the company to remove White as UFC president after video surfaced of White slapping his wife at a nightclub on New Year’s Eve in Mexico.
“The head of a major sporting organization cannot claim to be for the safety of women while a video of him striking his wife continues to circulate online without a response from you,” the letter read, in part. “The hypocrisy is astounding. Enough is enough. It is time to remove Mr. White from his leadership role, to allow him and his partner to get the help they need while reminding the world of what Endeavor stands for and that violence against women is not a conduct that you condone.”
The bipartisan group is made up of 17 state Senators and 32 state Assemblywomen. Senator Nancy Skinner, from the East Bay Area, serves as the group’s chair. Assemblywoman Cecilia Aguiar-Curry, from the Sacramento area, is the vice chair.
White admitted to slapping his wife on New Year’s Eve after video obtained by TMZ showed the incident at a Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, area nightclub. White’s wife is seen with her head in her hands before slapping White in the face. White then slapped his wife in the face shortly before the situation dissolved and the video ended.
“There was definitely a lot of alcohol, but there’s no excuse,” White said on TMZ. “I’m literally making no excuses for this thing at all. It’s never happened before. It’s the first time that it’s ever happened, and people are going to say what they’re going to say. It is what it is. And whatever people do say, it’s deserved. I deserve it. It happened.”
"I don’t know why it happened. My wife and I have apologized to each other. We’ve apologized to our kids.”
As a result of the incident, TBS postponed the debut of White’s new Power Slapping League by a week. White then promoted the league’s debut Monday in a rather tone-deaf tweet.
Endeavor, like broadcast partner ESPN, has so far declined to comment on White’s incident.
“In the days since the video was released, you have remained silent,” the letter read, in part. “Your continued silence speaks volumes … Every day that Mr. White’s actions go unaccounted for, your silence becomes more piercing and troubling. At this point, thousands of young men, women, and adults worldwide have seen the video of Mr. White striking his wife. We have also seen his apology. What we have not seen is any consequences for his actions.”
