Following the death of George Floyd and protests across the United States, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell released a video declaring that the NFL was wrong for how it handled player protests in the past.
“We, the NFL, condemn racism and the systematic oppression of Black People,” the league tweeted on Friday. “We, the NFL, admit we were wrong for not listening to NFL players earlier and encourage all to speak out and peacefully protest. We, the NFL, believe Black Lives Matter.”
Here’s the full statement from Goodell:
We, the NFL, condemn racism and the systematic oppression of Black People. We, the NFL, admit we were wrong for not listening to NFL players earlier and encourage all to speak out and peacefully protest. We, the NFL, believe Black Lives Matter. #InspireChange pic.twitter.com/ENWQP8A0sv
— NFL (@NFL) June 5, 2020
Goodell did not mention Colin Kaepernick, who started the protests four years ago, by name. There will likely be many more protests this season.
“We are listening, I am listening, and I will be reaching out to players who have raised their voices and others on how we can improve for a better and more united NFL family,” Goodell said.
Broncos players attended a BLM march in Denver on Saturday.
[vertical-gallery id=642574]