The Minnesota Vikings are honoring George Floyd’s family before Sunday’s game
The Minnesota Vikings will honor George Floyd’s family on Sunday before the team’s home opener against the Green Bay Packers.
The family will be at U.S. Bank Stadium and will be recognized after the pre-game performance of “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” a hymn that is also known as the Black National Anthem.
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Floyd died in Minneapolis Police custody on May 25 as an officer knelt on his neck. All four officers involved face murder charges and have been fired. Floyd’s death has sparked widespread protests calling for racial justice and an end to police brutality.
A dozen Vikings players attended Floyd’s memorial service in June, and last week the team awarded its first George Floyd Legacy Scholarship.
The Vikings issued a statement pledging to “continue to use the team’s platform to bring awareness to critical issues of racism and injustice when they kick off the season this Sunday.”
The players will wear custom T-shirts during pregame warmups with the message “Be the Change” on the front and the names of 200 people “who have been killed by acts of racism or police brutality” on the back, according to the team. They also have the choice to wear shirts designed by players and the NFLPA that say, “An injustice to one is an injustice to all of US.”
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell announced a series of league-wide social justice initiatives earlier this month.
In August, Goodell said he wished the NFL had “listened earlier” to former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick when he began protesting by kneeling during the National Anthem back in 2016.
Kaepernick has not played in the NFL since the season he sparked the controversy.
