Over the majority of the summer, the Black Lives Matter movement was prominent in getting the word out regarding the numerous killings of African-American individuals that occurred in the hands of police officers. The involvement of activists has allowed the movement to be at its peak recently and given the chance to those who were not initially aware of the situations to have an understanding now. A number of activists who are trying their best to advocate for rights and the movement have been prominent athletes in all major sports. They are currently using their platforms to make sure that they are being heard, and they’re letting the audience of the sports know that the athletic community stands with BLM and are able to support them at all causes.
During the aftermath of the Jacob Blake shooting, NBA players boycotted their playoff games and were on the edge of canceling the season due to the severity of the situation. At this time, a few NBA players also came forward with their own stories of police encounters. It gave perspective to the situation and gave them a purpose to fight against police brutality. Eventually, other athletes such as Naomi Osaka began protesting during the US Open and wore masks of numerous victims to anti-black racism and police violence. This led to major protests around the sports world and many athletes, from WNBA to MLB to international surfers, were protesting against racism and police violence towards black individuals.
As someone who grew up playing sports and being heavily influenced by athletes, it was so amazing to see so many renowned athletes coming to together to fight for justice and get in touch with governors and attorney generals to make sure their voices are being heard and the public knows that big names in society are all fighting for the same thing. Athletes positively used their platforms to bring forth the fight for all the victims but they continued to do so throughout the course of the entire movement and even when it wasn’t the most trending thing in the world. They made sure that even if one person was beginning to forget the reasons for the BLM movement, they would be reminded on the daily basis. NBA players worked closely with the commissioner and management to make sure that BLM is represented during their games and even went a step further to convert their arenas in their home cities to voting areas for the US elections. They are using commercial times between their games to show the importance of voting and encouraging all Americans to vote.
Although their efforts are not accepted by everyone, the athletes have established where they stand and show that they would continue to fight until every victim is served justice and all future incidents would be prevented. Athletes are not only there to provide sports entertainment for the public but are also entitled to their own opinions and rights and are able to use their platforms to ensure that everyone else is aware of their rights.