In a Tuesday appearance on ESPN’s “SportsNation,” New York Jets quarterback Josh McCown talked the NFL’s new player-owner committee focusing on social and racial justice, of which McCown is a member.
McCown called on his fellow white Americans to join in the social justice reform discussions and protests.
“So often when people talk about the intersection of race and politics and things like that, and this conversation about criminal justice reform is a person of color leading the way, and often times white people, for whatever reason, don’t feel comfortable being part of that space. Why do you feel so comfortable, and what can you do to encourage other white individuals to get involved in this conversation? Because it’s a ‘we’ thing, not just a black thing,” asked LZ Granderson while sporting a “Been Woke” shirt.
“I think that is how the conversation is going to change,” McCown replied. “It can’t be just people of color making these requests or protests. It has got to be people from both sides sitting and listening and, for me, it’s a human issue. It’s looking at people who are being marginalized and their communities being underserved and going, ‘What can we do to make that better?’ Because for me at my core, I look at that and it’s empathy.
“For white Americans … this conversation is never going to change unless we step into these things and start being a part of them. For me, that is what was important and what pressed upon my heart to want to do it,” he added.
Follow Trent Baker on Twitter @MagnifiTrent
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