A week ago, a black man died after a white police officer knelt on his neck for nearly nine minutes. Bystanders took video of the assault, which was both shocking and familiar in how it fits a pattern of often fatal police brutality against black civilians. Over the weekend, despite suggested social distancing precautions meant to stem the spread of the coronavirus, demonstrators took to the streets in cities around the country to protest the system that killed George Floyd and the people who perpetuate it.
Now, athletes are speaking up: about how their celebrity status and financial security fails to save them from the racial injustices predicated on their skin color, about what active allyship looks like from white community role models.