With NFL owners set to meet this week to discuss a potential policy change that would end player protests during the national anthem, one player believes he and his fellow players need to be prepared for protest-pocalypse.
Los Angeles Chargers’ offensive tackle Russell Okung penned an open letter on the Players’ Tribune, saying that active NFL players—all of them, not through specific teams—who have strong feelings about the sideline protests should unify. “I hope this letter … serves as a catalyst to convene a conversation among those of us who are uncomfortable having important decisions made without us in the room,” writes Okung.
Despite having reservations about Colin Kaepernick‘s initial sideline protests, writes Okung, he’s since come to realize that “what [Kaepernick] did last season was a courageous, prophetic, self-sacrificial act that has captivated a nation and inspired a powerful movement.”
Because Kaepernick’s message “has been distorted … to further divide us,” Okung believes players have to figure out a way to “come together and respond collectively.” The NFL Players Association is not the way to advance their side, he explains. The best foot forward is “[opening] up a line of communication just between us, and be ready to respond with one voice as players,” he writes. “Let’s transcend the ‘natural’ divisions that have been defined by the league and sanitized by a fictional narrative of competition above all else.”
The revolution, says Okung, won’t be televised or done via text message … but started on Twitter. You can follow his updates here.
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