When Colin Kaepernick knelt, it simply wasn’t enough to spark the change he was seeking.
Amid the protests and athletes speaking out after George Floyd’s killing, the NFL and the rest of society is finally beginning to make changes to further support and show respect to the Black community.
Racism in everyday life and in the professional world is something minorities struggle with constantly, and athletes like former Tennessee Titans wide receiver Harry Douglas are no exception.
“This movement is huge,” Douglas told me in a recent interview. “I think a lot of people have been blind to what’s going on in our country for the last 400 years. I think this generation that’s coming up now is finally saying it’s enough. To see the younger people fighting for equality, I think it’s huge for our country.”
People like Douglas have been affected by some type of racism since they were children, finding ways to cope with it and brush it off — something they shouldn’t have to do.
“Growing up in Georgia and just anywhere I go in life, I deal with it all the time,” he said. “I’ve learned to understand that sometimes you just have ignorant people in the world, and they don’t define who you are.”
Douglas played nine seasons in the NFL between the Atlanta Falcons and the Titans, selected by the former in the third round of the 2008 NFL Draft.
Obviously, there’s no shortage of money and status that comes with playing in the big leagues for a considerable amount of time.
“When people see you driving nice things, the first thing they say is ‘oh, he must be an athlete,'” he said.
But the Louisville alum knows he would have been successful even without a career in sports.
“I tell them that, yes, I am a former athlete, but that’s not the reason that I drive this. If I wasn’t an athlete, I would have been a successful lawyer. I would have graduated from law school, and I would still be in the position I’m in.”
Regardless of race, athletes are more than the product they put out on the field.
“That’s why I tell guys to never let people call you a football player, or a baseball player, or a basketball player. That’s just one of the things that contributes to your life. You are a man that plays the game of basketball or football or baseball. That doesn’t define who you are.”
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