Women’s Caucus Calls For Endeavor CEO To Remove Dana White As UFC President

The California Legislative Women’s Caucus has called for President Dana White to be removed from his position in a letter to Endeavor CEO Ari Emanuel.

As MMA’s premier promotion gears up for its first event of 2023, it’s doing so with a sizable dark cloud looming overhead in the form of a major controversy surrounding its leading man.

Earlier this month, TMZ obtained footage of a physical altercation between White and his wife Anne. The incident occurred while the couple celebrated New Year’s Eve at a nightclub in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico.

In the video, White’s wife can be seen striking him during a confrontation, with the UFC president responding with a slap of his own hand a subsequent show of aggression as the pair are split up.

After the clip surfaced, along with individual statements from the couple, reactions emerged from all corners of the MMA community and beyond.

While many have condemned White’s actions, something the UFC president also did during his statement, some fans and fighters have appeared to defend the incident. In a series of tweets, UFC light heavyweight Jamahal Hill insisted that White’s wife shares the blame.

That view is certainly not held by the California Legislative Women’s Caucus, which slammed both White and the silence from Endeavor and the UFC in a letter.

In a letter to Endeavor CEO Ari Emanuel posted on its website and social media, the political women’s advocacy group expressed “deep concern” over both Dana White’s actions and the response from the promotion and its ownership.

We write with deep concern about the recent violent video we have seen online from the Ultimate Fighting Championship (U.F.C.) President Dana White. Our caucus, which is both bicameral and bipartisan, is composed of women across the State of California who are committed to creating better lives for women and girls.

“Given Mr. White’s previous remarks against domestic partner violence, we believed that
Endeavor and the U.FC. shared this commitment to safety, respect, and accountability.
You yourself have written extensively about the need to speak out and act when we see
things that are not in line with our values. And yet, we have seen the video of U.F.C. President Dana White, where he strikes his wife at a New Year’s Eve celebration with a closed fist. We were appalled. It was alarming to say the least.”

The letter went on to cite Emanuel’s own words surrounding the need to speak up against domestic violence, highlighting the “hypocrisy” that comes with the Endeavor CEO labeling silence as “not an option” but demonstrating the opposite following the altercation between White and his wife.

With that, the California Legislative Women’s Caucus, consisting of 18 state senators and 33 assemblywomen, called on White to be removed from his position as UFC president.

“In the days since the video was released, you have remained silent. Your continued
silence speaks volumes. As you once wrote: ‘Silence and inaction are not an option.’
We agree – and we are urging you to take immediate action. Like you, we are people
who live by our values. We, too, are people of action. We are allies against violence, advocates for women, and we are parents like yourself. This is why it is clear to us: we are calling for the immediate removal of Mr. White as President of the U.F.C.”

In justifying its call to remove White from the role, the bipartisan group of female legislators noted that Endeavor’s silence becomes more worrying with every day that passes without White facing consequences for his actions.

With that in mind, the group insisted that White must be removed in order to show that Endeavor doesn’t condone violence against women.

Fuck em.

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They wouldnt say that to Danas face.

If he were drunk.

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What action did they recommend for Dana’s wife for hitting him first?

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Dana should come and say the 19th amendment is not absolute

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Caucus

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You mean her response to Dana holding her wrist as she tried to walk away?

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I didn’t see a closed fist strike when I saw the video. I wonder if this is tied to Dana’s Trump support

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The UFC doesnt even listen to CSAC, they arent going to pay attention to the California women’s caucus.

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Women really shouldn’t hit men.

Women hit men far more often than men hit women because deep down inside they know and we know that it’s very difficult for them to actually hurt us when they hit us, at least that goes for most women.

So many women think they have license to just hit men. They don’t.

Hitting a woman is no different than hitting a frail man that hit you first. You can choose to be the bigger person or you can give them what they’re asking for. You can hit them hard or you can get them a little harder than they hit you but either way

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For all we know she hits him all the time and that was the last straw

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After such a long successful run, I’d honestly hate to see him go out this way.

Not defending him. Just respecting what he has accomplished in that seat since Zuffa took over.

The first few UFC events will be awkward… Will he be there, will the majority of the press conferences refrain from including him to avoid more questions about this situation and his future at this company or a potential replacement for him?

I think he needs to do some PR stuff if he wants to stay in the business: community service, publicly going to couples therapy, and a donation to domestic abuse clinic may turn the tide with the public opinion.

On to the situation. Terrible to see. Maybe she hits him often, and this was a last straw since they were in public. Maybe he got caught with another woman af the party. Maybe it was the alcohol and a knee jerk reaction to her smack. We dont know the details of the conversation.

Dana fucked up either way and there will be a cloud on his future moving forward.

Fuck this woman’s caucus, any chance to step into the light. This is about their recognition, not Dana’s wife or any other victim. Closed fist, wtf…

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Also seems like WME head wants Dana to step down but can’t or won’t fire him so is publicly posting this to pressure him.

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Matt Serra

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So much this

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I think most people realized the moment that video leaked that that was the end for dana as sitting president.

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You keep repeating this in every thread as if it’s a justification to strike someone in the face.

It isn’t.

Even if it was, by your logic, Dana could’ve slapped her if she grabbed his wrist.

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No. It’s just he committed battery/assault first. Many seem to have missed this detail.

How about you go to a club, get into an argument with a woman, and grab her wrist as she tries to walk away. See how that works out for you if she decides to call the police and there are witnesses. :wink:

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This “call” reminds me of the line; “I think of a man, and take away reason, and accountability.”.

If Dana White didn’t have business to tend to, he could ask the women’s caucus head to step down over this demonstration of victim blaming, and sexism.

Alright, deal. Meanwhile, you go to a club, and when a woman touches your arm, slap her across the mouth. You’ll be justified since, according to you, she assaulted/battered you first by grabbing your arm.

Let’s report back with our findings