Literally every league tried “have a cool ceremony/moment of silence before the game,” since they started playing again. Some put on practice clothing with slogans like “Black Lives Matter”, “Say Their Names”, “End Racism,” etc.
That clearly did nothing, and while I doubt boycotting games will do much either, it’s a hell of a statement. It says “this system is broken, and we no longer endorse it.”
It’s strange how some people talk about athlete empowerment, and then get upset when athletes get empowered about political and social issues. To quote many of the players who chose to boycott today, “Some things are bigger than sports.”
Also, I find it sadly hilarious that the same people who argue “we’d respect the issue more if they protested peacefully,” or “they should protest peacefully if they want to be heard;” throw an absolute tantrum when players come together to protest peacefully.
This reminds me of a statement “This Is America” tried to make. The child dancers are distracted by pop culture, so they can’t see all the chaos happening in the background. I feel like this is players realizing that many Americans see them as an escape from reality, and they are saying “No, this is reality...look at it.”
I respect your opinion about them playing. I get it. A lot of people don’t like when sports and politics mix. A lot of people use sports as an escape from darker things in their life, and some of us live and breathe sports because that’s our love in life. However, I think it’s important to respect the player’s decision. Many of these players haven’t seen their families in a month our more. Many of the players have had to remain silent on issues in their communities for years, so as not to jeopardize their chance at playing professional sports. Some of these players have even been victims of the very violence we see in America right now. It seems wrong, to me, to ignore the needs of these players. It seems wrong, to me, to not give these players a voice. It seems wrong, to me, to ask these players to act as a distraction from social unrest in this country. It seems wrong, to me, to ask these players to play, when so many of their brothers and sisters no longer can.
That’s just my take on this. I don’t mean anything as a personal attack on any users. I think it’s important to have this conversation. To be honest, I don’t know how to feel right now, so voicing this helps in a way.