The controversy over protests during the national anthem at NFL games last season helped propel issues of racial inequality and social
injustice to the forefront and gave athletes a stronger voice to bring about
change
Cheap DJ
Chark Jersey , current and former players said Friday.
The players, who spoke at a Harvard Law School summit on criminal justice reform, said they capitalized on the attention surrounding the protests to
highlight issues they care about, like mass incarceration.
Now, they’re using their platform to talk to lawmakers, police chiefs and prosecutors across the country about injustices they see in the communities
where they grew up.
”With all of the controversy and the fanfare around (the protests), it created a platform that was probably larger than any of us would have had
individually, and we were able to leverage that,” said Malcolm Jenkins, a safety
on the Philadelphia Eagles and co-founder of the Players Coalition, a group of
NFL athletes advocating for policies to further social and racial equality.
Colin Kaepernick started the NFL anthem movement when he was with the San Francisco 49ers in 2016 to protest racial inequality and police brutality. Some
players knelt during the
anthem
Clay
Matthews Jersey , an act that drew the ire of Republican President Donald
Trump, who called for NFL owners to fire such players.
In response to the player demonstrations, the NFL agreed to commit $90 million over the next seven years to social justice causes in a plan that
involves league players.
New England Patriot Devin McCourty said in an interview with The Associated Press that the NFL’s support of the players’ mission has been encouraging.
”I think the NFL has seen the bigger picture – that this is not just the players trying to do something to give back – but these are real issues that not
just the players should care about but we should all care about,” said McCourty,
who spent Thursday at the Massachusetts statehouse lobbying lawmakers on
juvenile justice issues.
The athletes were joined at the Harvard summit by Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner and other lawyers as well as professors, judges and
activists. The players participated in small group discussions about policing,
prosecutors and sentencing reform.
During a panel discussion led by The New York Times Magazine’s Emily Bazelon, the players discussed personal experiences – like watching videos of police
shootings of black men or hearing the stories of their own family members – that
drove them into activism.
They spoke of the need for police to have stronger relationships with people in their communities and the importance of having real conversations about race,
even when it makes people uncomfortable.
”We have the unique ability to bring people to the table and now we have the responsibility when we have everyone at the table to speak truth and kind of
force that conversation,” Jenkins said.
The players said some athletes worry that getting involved in social or political issues will hurt their careers. But they said they hope that lending
their voices to these causes will inspire others to take action.
”A lot of people just think about athletes as just jocks, but there are some brilliant minds in those locker
rooms
Landon
Collins Giants Jersey ,” said Anquan Boldin, a former Baltimore Raven.
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This story has been corrected to reflect that Jenkins’ first name is Malcolm not Malcom.
—
Follow Alanna Durkin Richer at
TORONTO — The New York Yankees will open an 11-game road trip in Toronto on Friday, a journey that will take them to the All-Star break.
But the Yankees received some bad news on what was an otherwise a happy Fourth of July.
After the Yankees defeated the Atlanta Braves 6-2 in the rubber match of a three-game series at Yankee Stadium on Wednesday, it was revealed that their
superb rookie second baseman Gleyber Torres had a hip strain that will sideline
him until at least mid-July.
Torres will be on the disabled list when the Yankees (56-28) open a three-game series against the Toronto Blue Jays (40-46) at the Rogers
Centre.
The Yankees will start right-hander Sonny Gray (5-6, 5.44 ERA) against Blue Jays right-hander Sam Gaviglio (2-2, 3.97).
Torres was removed from the game Wednesday during the fourth inning and an MRI showed a strain.
“Any time you’re talking about a groin, a hamstring, quads or a hip — once you have a strain in there, you can punch through it or make it a worse strain,”
Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. “So, I think the wise thing is to do this now.
Gleyber wants to take a couple of days and work through
it
Rashaad
Penny Youth Jersey , but I think he also understands this is the best
thing for him and for us.”
Infielder Tyler Wade will be recalled from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre for the game on Friday. After going 3-for-35 (.086) in 13 games with New York early
in the season, Wade was demoted to the RailRiders and batted .271/.332/.376 with
two homers and 18 RBIs.
Torres is batting .294/.350/.555 in 63 games with 15 homers and 42 RBIs for the Yankees since being called up from Triple-A April 22.
The Blue Jays lost their game Wednesday to the New York Mets 6-3 to split the two-game interleague set. They are 3-3 on the homestand and 23-23 overall at
home.
Gray has pitched well at the Rogers Centre, going 2-3 with a 1.88 ERA in seven career starts while pitching for the Yankees and the Oakland Athletics,
who traded him to New York during last season.
The 28-year-old is 4-3 with a 2.71 ERA in 11 career starts against Toronto. As a Yankee, he is 1-1 with a 2.96 ERA in five starts against the Blue Jays, and
he is 0-0 with a 3.52 ERA in three starts this season.
Gray has lost his past two starts, including Saturday against the Boston Red Sox when he went 2 1/3 innings, his shortest of the season, and allowed six
earned runs.
“That was embarrassing for me and I think for everybody in here,” Gray said. “I haven’t beat a lot of teams since I’ve been here. I’ve been bad against the
Red Sox, I’ve been bad against a lot of teams. I don’t think one particular team
you can say has my number or whatever. I’ve been bad against multiple
teams.”
“The good thing about Sonny is
Carlton
Davis Youth Jersey , he’s got the equipment to get this right,” Boone
said. “He’s got the stuff to be the same pitcher he’s been at times in his
career. This guy’s still a dude. He’s got to dig his heels in and it’s on all of
us to try and help unlock that.”
Gaviglio has faced the Yankees once in his career, pitching seven scoreless innings against them June 6 in a no decision as New York won 3-0 in 13
innings.
In his most recent start, the 28-year-old allowed three runs, four hits and three walks in seven innings Saturday against the Detroit Tigers but did not
factor in the decision. Toronto won the game 4-3 on Justin Smoak’s leadoff homer
in the bottom of the ninth inning.
This will be Gaviglio’s 11th appearance and ninth start with Toronto after going 0-0 with a 1.86 ERA in five starts with Triple-A Buffalo.
The Blue Jays made two moves before the game Wednesday, designating right-handed reliever Preston Guilmet for assignment and returning left-hander
Tim Mayza on option to Buffalo. Right-handers Luis Santos and Rhiner Cruz were
called up from Buffalo. Each had a scoreless relief outing against the Mets.
The Yankees lead the season series 7-3.
.
