NASCAR Driver Development Program

Context Several factors have been attributed to the absence of minorities in stock car racing. One is the costs of auto racing and dependency on sponsorship dollars, with many minority individuals and families lacking the capital to enter the inherently expensive racing world. Others believe that minority youths are more drawn to conventional "stick-and-ball" sports such as basketball. A key factor is the overt racism in the country that had plagued other sports as well, but was particularly strong in American stock car racing due to its roots in the South. This included the presence of Confederate flags in the infields of many tracks at both the regional and national levels. For these reasons, NASCAR has been slower to racially integrate than other major sports in the country. In spite of the lack of minorities and women in the sport, some claim that on paper NASCAR provides a more-balanced playing field than other sports. The first and most notable African American driver in the sport is Wendell Scott, a former bootlegger who broke the color barrier in the 1950s and raced competitively in inferior equipment and with sub-par support, while contending with discrimination and threats from fans and other drivers. Scott's only win at the Cup Series level came at Jacksonville Speedway Park in 1963. The win and the trophy was initially given to Buck Baker, and Scott did not receive official recognition until a month later, when he was given a small wooden trophy with no nameplate. In 2019, Driver Lacy Kuehl, age 12, was the youngest ever signed youth development driver. NASCAR gave Kuehl the Young racer award at NASCAR's Hall of Fame in Charlotte. Kuehl raced in the 2019 Summer Bojangels Shootout and 5 other races, including Atlanta Speedway. Female drivers have been equally scarce within auto racing. there has been no official legislation preventing women from participating during most of NASCAR's history. Sara Christian drove in the inaugural Cup Series (then Strictly Stock) race at Charlotte Speedway in 1949, and is the only woman in Cup Series history to score a top five finish. Another notable driver was Louise Smith, known as "the first lady of racing". Smith made 11 starts in what is now the Cup Series, and was used to promote the sport in the 1940s by NASCAR founder Bill France Sr. Ribbs ran 23 out of 24 races in the 8 Dodge Motorsports Ram truck (DNQing at Martinsville), finishing 16th in points but with no top 10 finishes. Lester ran 5 races in BHR's 4 truck with a best finish of 18th, scoring a pole at Charlotte in 2003 and finishing 17th and 14th in points in the two seasons respectively. He would leave BHR after 2003 due to lack of sponsorship. Female driver Deborah Renshaw moved into BHR's 8 truck in 2005, finishing 24th in points. Erin Crocker also ran two races for BHR in 2005, before moving on to Evernham Motorsports in 2006 and 2007. In 2003, Joe Gibbs Racing partnered with former NFL player Reggie White to start a team that would assist minority drivers in rising up the ranks of the Motorsports world. In 2004, the team came into form with assistance of Gibbs' Cup and Busch Series sponsors Home Depot, MBNA, and Rockwell Automation. The original two drivers were Aric Almirola (a future winner at the Cup level) and Chris Bristol (who would join NASCAR's D4D program in 2006), who drove cars numbered 20 and 18 respectively at two different short tracks in the NASCAR Weekly Racing Series. Almirola and Bristol returned in 2005, with both drivers running number 92 to honor the late Reggie White. NASCAR hired Access Marketing & Communications, a company started with money from NASCAR given to the Rainbow/PUSH initiative of Rev. Jesse Jackson, to find drivers, conduct a testing combine, and set the drivers up with owners who would receive stipends to fund competitive rides at short tracks in the Dodge Weekly Racing Series. The first Drive for Diversity combine, featuring 12 drivers and 28 pit crew members, was held in January 2004 at Hickory Motor Speedway in North Carolina, with five drivers and six crew members selected. After two seasons, several reports surfaced of teams not receiving adequate funds, while other teams owners did not supplement the NASCAR investment with additional funds, leading to limited results on the track. Another shortcoming of the early D4D classes was the age of the participants, as many of the drivers (such as Morty Buckles and Reggie Primus) were over the age of 30 and past their prime. Due to the lackluster performance, NASCAR cut ties with Access Marketing after 2008 and proceeded to hire Max Siegel (music executive and former president of Dale Earnhardt, Inc.) to revamp the program. and have had several drivers move on to the national series. Controversies In November 2023, America First Legal, an organization founded and led by Stephen Miller, a former Senior Advisor to President Donald Trump (and future Homeland Security Advisor and White House Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy in Trump's second term), filed a petition to the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission to investigate NASCAR and Rev Racing for the program leading to "illegal discrimination against white, male Americans." in violation of the Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. ==Impact on NASCAR==