February is Black History Month and the Green Bay Packers in particular had a unique role in the ongoing struggle for equality for all.
In the 1960s, at the peak of the civil rights movement, the Packers were forming the first true dynasty in the history of the National Football League. Under the leadership of head coach Vince Lombardi, the Packers of the 1960s re-wrote the record books and dominated the league, winning five of the decade’s championships including the first two Super Bowls.
Lombardi was a pioneer in many ways but perhaps in no bigger way than how he integrated the locker room at a time of peak racial tensions in the United States.