Story at a glance
- Wisconsin’s Green Bay Packers decided to cancel its training camp in a show of solidarity with protesters.
- Several professional sports teams have gone as far as to cancel games and seasons following the police shooting of Jacob Blake.
On the heels of other professional sports teams boycotting upcoming games in a show of solidarity with protesters in Kenosha following the police shooting of Jacob Blake, the NFL’s Green Bay Packers opted to cancel practice saying that it is difficult to focus on sports amid nationwide civil right protests.
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports that Packers Coach Matt LaFleur considered postponing the team’s training camp to later in the morning, but ultimately decided to cancel it and recommend that players watch the documentary “13th” about the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.
Section 1 of the 13th Amendment outlaws slavery or forced servitude, except as a punishment for a crime. The film examines how this amendment acted as a path to convict and sentence Black Americans to prison at a disproportionate rate relative to the total U.S. population.
“Not one guy said that they didn’t want to practice [on Thursday],” LaFleur said. “That didn’t even come up. It was more or less we were having some really long conversations. When you feel that emotion in the room, it’s hard to focus on football. It is emotionally draining for everybody in that room, so I made the decision that, hey, we’re not going to go today. I just didn’t think it was right.”
Other Wisconsin sports teams, including the Milwaukee Bucks basketball team and Milwaukee Brewers baseball team made headlines by boycotting their scheduled games in a show of solidarity with protesters.
Two other teams, the Los Angeles Lakers and Clippers, also made the decision to boycott upcoming games in protest after weighing the option to cancel their season completely.
The Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) also postponed multiple games in the wake of the police shooting of Blake.
“We stand in solidarity with our brothers in the NBA, and will continue this conversation with our brothers and sisters across all leagues, and look to take collective action,” Atlanta Dream center Elizabeth Williams said.
Other teams, including the Indianapolis Colts, the Chicago Bears, Arizona Cardinals, Tennessee Titans, New York Jets, and Washington Football Team also canceled practices to support the Black Lives Matter protests.
While most Packers players were not available for comment, the Journal-Sentinel noted that wide receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling tweeted “Black Lives Still Matter” following the practice cancellation.
Jacob Blake, a 29-year-old Black man, was shot multiple times by police on Sunday while entering his vehicle. He remains hospitalized, and his family has said that he is now paralyzed. His shooting comes just three months after the police killings of Black Americans, including George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, renewed the Black Lives Matter movement, with many across the country calling for an end to systemic racism and police brutality.
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