Athletes worldwide support the Black Lives Matter movement
|
Listen to this story
|
Since the death of George Floyd, an unarmed Black man who was killed in police custody in May, many American athletes and sports leagues have been throwing their support behind the Black Lives Matter protest movement, calling for change.
The NFL started its 2020 season with messages in the end zones. In some stadiums, teams gathered together on the field to lock arms in a pregame “moment of unity.” A few players across the league took a knee or raised a fist during the national anthem.
After the first game in Major League Soccer went ahead as planned, the remaining five scheduled contests were postponed. MLS players have shown solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement since the league resumed play at the beginning of July.
Bubba Wallace, the only black driver in NASCAR’s top circuit, has been an advocate of the Black Lives Matter movement. Fellow drivers and pit crew members have walked alongside Wallace’s car in a show of support.
“We see things that have been hidden for years, the things that we as people have to go through. This has been happening for years. People just couldn’t pull out their phones and video it before.”
Serena Williams in British Vogue
Protests against police brutality and racism towards Black people also took place in many other sports worldwide. The West Indies cricket team knelt before a test match in Manchester against England. Like other teams, members of the Trinbago Knight Riders also knelt before a cricket match in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago.
In the Bundesliga, SGS Essen player Nicole Anyomi celebrated a goal against Tribune Potsdam by taking a knee. “We are in 2020 and racism and injustice still prevails,” he told Deutsche Welle. “We have to be active and raise our voice and speak out. If something happens you can’t just stand by, look on and say nothing.”
During a practice round for the BMW Championship, pro golfer Cameron Champ used his shoes to show support for Jacob Blake and the Black Lives Matter movement.
Even further afield, Tyler Wright, a two-time World Surf League Champion, took a knee before her competition event in Tweed Heads South, Australia.
Solidarity and support have helped the Black Lives Matter movement to gain visibility for the fight against systemic racism, not just in the United States of America, but worldwide.
