Outspoken Seattle Seahawks defensive end, Michael Bennett, drew the consensus of teammates Doug Baldwin and Cliff Avril this week, when in an interview with the Seattle Times, he proclaimed that for the protest movement that has steadily grown throughout the NFL, to be effective, it would need to be taken on by white players as well. “I think it would have a great impact,” Baldwin said in agreement. “It would get a different part of the population to open their eyes and ears.”
"You need a white guy to join the fight. The white guy is super important to the fight," Bennett had said. "For people to really see social injustices, there must be someone from the other side of the race who recognizes the problem, because a lot of times if just one race says there’s a problem, nobody is realistic about it.”
Avril concurred with Bennett's assertion by taking it a step further and tagged one of the game's more socially conscious players in his response. “If somebody like, say, Aaron Rodgers got behind us, I think it would touch home for a lot more people,” said Avril. “At the same time, I see why they probably wouldn’t, because they don’t know what we’re going through. That’s one of those situations where it’s unfortunate.” Back in August former NFL cornerback, Domonique Foxworth wrote an Op-Ed piece published on TheUndefeated.com, in which he urged Rogers to speak out on behalf of Black Lives Matter. He recognizes the Green Bay Packers quarterback as "a progressive thinker," in light of his past protest of the exploitation of conflict minerals by American companies in the Congo, his public opposition to Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker's union-busting policies, and his defense of a Muslim fan who was being harassed by fans during a game.
While there haven't been reports of one demonstrating during the National Anthem, several white players have spoken in support of the movement, including New England Patriots defensive end, Chris Long, who last week told reporters: "I play in a league that's 70 percent black and my peers, guys I come to work with, guys, I respect who are very socially aware and are intellectual guys, if they identify something that they think is worth putting their reputations on the line, creating controversy, I'm going to listen to those guys."
Source: latimes.com
