The recent mass shootings in Buffalo, Tulsa, and Uvalde have rocked the United States of America and its people. A racially motivated gunman killed ten people at a Tops Market in Buffalo. In Tulsa, an angry and crazed patient walked into an Oklahoma medical office and shot four people, killing two. At Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, a gunman murdered nineteen students and two teachers and injured seventeen others. In the wake of these terrifying events, conversations over gun control legislation and proper responses have dominated public discourse.

Throughout modern professional sports, players have been at the forefront of calling for and conducting political action and protest. In 1965, the Black American Football League all-star players boycotted the All-Star game in response to racial discrimination from New Orleans. At the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City, Tommie Smith and John Carlos raised their fists during their medal ceremony, protesting civil rights violations and the Vietnam War. Recently, Colin Kaepernick knelt for the national anthem, sparking countless protests and conversations about police brutality. There are many more examples of athletes using their platforms for activism.

Moreover, the horrific nature of each recent shooting and the apathy towards prior shootings in Sandy Hook, Pittsburgh, and Parkland, amongst others, has led to coaches, managers, and organizations taking an activist role as well. In a press conference before the Golden State Warrior’s playoff game with the Dallas Mavericks, Steve Kerr, head coach for the Warriors, refused to take questions on the game and implored Congress to do something. Kerr choked up and slammed the table, expressing his exhaustion and pain. Kerr then directly faced the camera: “So I ask you: [Senate Minority Leader] Mitch McConnell, I ask all of you senators who refuse to do anything about the violence and school shootings and supermarket shootings…Are you going to put your own desire for power ahead of the lives of our children and our elderly and our churchgoers? Because that’s what it looks like.”

Kerr used his platform to speak out again before Game One of the NBA Finals, where his Warriors will face off with the Boston Celtics. On NBA Today, Kerr said, “Murdering children in their classrooms has become a political issue. What are we doing?” He continued. “So let’s put pressure on the people that are making these decisions to act on our best interests.” Never before has the sports world seen a head coach before a playoff game, let alone an NBA finals game, give impassioned statements, demanding change. 

Gabe Kapler, the San Francisco Giants manager, told the press he would remain in the clubhouse during the national anthem. Kapler wrote on his blog kaplerstyle.com. “When I was the same age as the children in Uvalde, my father taught me to stand for the pledge of allegiance when I believed my country was representing its people well or to protest and stay seated when it wasn’t. I don’t believe it is representing us well right now.” On Memorial Day, Kapler wrote that he would pause his protest to honor our country’s veterans and fallen soldiers. Kapler’s protests will continue until he “feels better” about the direction of the United States. Baseball is America’s most traditional sport, and no manager has ever used his platform to this extent.

The New York Yankees and Tampa Bay Rays made an unprecedented decision on their Twitter account for their series during the last week of May. Instead of live score updates, statistics, and highlights, both teams opted to use their feeds as channels to offer facts about gun violence. 

Both teams did not outright call for stricter gun control regulations, but throughout the game tweeted facts like “Firearms were the leading cause of death for American children and teens in 2020,” and “Every day, more than 110 Americans are killed with guns, and more than 200 are shot and injured.” These facts and more were meant to inform Americans about gun violence in our country. 

The sports world has openly supported the statements and actions taken by Kerr, Kapler, and the Yankees and Rays; however, fans have also criticized their efforts. Many people see sports as an escape from the turmoils and chaos of everyday life. Fans have unfollowed the Yankees and Rays and called for the teams to stick to baseball. White Sox manager Tony La Russa criticized Kapler for protesting the national anthem, citing disrespect to troops. Kerr has received backlash for his outspokenness and knows it will not change. 

Many fans see sports as an escape from the turmoil and chaos of American politics and culture. However, recent years have shown us that the lines between sports, politics, and activism have blurred. The fact that coaches and organizations, not only players, are taking active stances on political and cultural issues is unprecedented. The future of professional sports and their responsibility to promote sought-after values and ideas will be continuously challenged and supported in the coming years.

For more information and ways to help:

https://www.everytown.org/

https://marchforourlives.com/

https://www.heartandarmor.org/

https://nami.org/Home

https://www.activeminds.org/about-us/our-story/