Tomlinson says NFL’s handling of Kaepernick’s protests is ‘a black eye’ on the league
Hall of Fame running back LaDainian Tomlinson has gone through the gamut of emotions in the last week when thinking about the racial injustices still facing our country.
He’s been frustrated. He’s been sad. He’s been mad. He’s having conversations with his children, ages 8 and 9, and trying to explain the tension from city to city and even in Fort Worth as protests continue amid the death of George Floyd, a black man who died May 25 in Minneapolis after a white police officer pressed his knee into Floyd’s neck as he was handcuffed.
As a former NFL player and now analyst on NFL Network, Tomlinson can’t help but think back on the 2016 season when then-49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick knelt during the national anthem as a way to peacefully protest social injustices.
Kaepernick hasn’t been signed by a team since.
“It’s unfortunate and it’s sad and it’s a black eye on our league, no question about it, what happened to Kaepernick not being able to get a job,” Tomlinson said. “I think now people are starting to appreciate what he did and they’re understanding of why he did what he did even though at the time he was telling us what he was doing it for. People didn’t want to listen. They wanted to hijack the message and say, ‘Oh, he’s disrespecting the flag.’ Now when it’s blatant and it’s in your face, you have to accept the fact that, you know what, I was wrong. This is not right.
“I’m just glad people are not turning a blind eye. I’m happy they’re not saying this is just one incident and that’s a bad cop. I’m glad people are not doing that. We need true police reform. We need justice reform. We need criminal justice reform. We need all of these things.”
Tomlinson went on to say he’s proud to see more white players speaking out on police brutality and the need for change. He recalled two young black kids being shot and killed by police in 2014, Michael Brown and Tamir Rice, and no white players speaking out.
That’s changed this time around with Floyd’s death. Tomlinson praised young quarterbacks such as the Bengals’ Joe Burrow and Clemson’s Trevor Lawrence for speaking up.
“If I’m being honest and true and transparent about this, our white brothers and sisters, to me, have finally said enough is enough,” Tomlinson said. “We know the history and now we’re seeing it over and over again. This is too much. We don’t want to live like this. The younger generation is saying this is not who we want to be, so we see a rise up with the younger generation.
“For so long, when Michael Brown got murdered and Tamir Rice, you know what I wondered? Why isn’t any of our big-time white quarterbacks saying anything? Because in the locker room, we’re supposed to be brothers. We fight and bleed for the same cause. I care about you just like you care about me. I don’t care what color you are. It’s all about winning in the locker room. Why aren’t they saying anything?
“Fast forward to now and Joe Burrow puts out a statement. Trevor Lawrence. Big-time white quarterbacks are now starting to say something.”
Speaking out on social issues is something that Tomlinson has prided himself on in recent years. He talked about uniting and coming together as “Team America” during his Hall of Fame speech in 2017, reflecting back on his ancestors history of being slaves.
Tomlinson created a foundation called “Team America” in retirement with its mission “to help our nation begin to reconcile its differences and become a country where we no longer impede on the opportunities of our fellow man, but instead, as LaDainian said during his historic Hall of Fame speech, stand together to determine the best way forward.”
“In America, in Team America, it’s about caring about our neighbor, our fellow brothers and sisters and caring about what happens to them,” Tomlinson said. “When you see a police officer put his knee on a black man’s neck like that for eight minutes and 46 seconds, if you feel anything, white, black, Hispanic, Asian, then you’re going to go out and protest because you realize that’s not right. That’s not equality. People are seeing the history over and over and we don’t want it repeated.”
This story was originally published June 3, 2020 at 6:00 AM.
