The next meeting between NFL representatives and the players to talk about social justice issues reportedly will include Colin Kaepernick.
The former 49ers quarterback, who is controversially unemployed and has filed a grievance accusing NFL owners of collusion, will be at the second meeting dedicated to discussing issues like racial inequality and how the league can help, Yahoo reported Thursday. ESPN had reported Kaepernick would be invited, and the meeting was slated for Tuesday in New York.
Kaepernick was not formally invited to the first meeting, though one of the players — Eagles safety Malcolm Jenkins — had asked him to join. His protests, which he started last season by sitting and then kneeling during the national anthem, sparked a movement across the NFL that has spread to other sports and other countries. His intention was to raise awareness for the mistreatment of minorities by police officers and racial inequality in general.
The NFL did not get involved much last season with the protests, but President Trump’s attacks on the players who protest and the NFL have changed the dynamic of the situation. Commissioner Roger Goodell and other NFL representatives moved to set up this series of meetings in part to have more dialogue with the players about what they are protesting, but Goodell was criticized for making it seem like the league was more interested in ending the anthem protests than helping the players.
One player who was at the first meeting, Chargers left tackle Russell Okung, made a similar charge, according to ESPN. Okung ripped into the NFL for a lack of action since the first meeting, which was Oct. 13 in New York.
“I am disappointed that further progress has not been reached on discussions with the league,” Okung told ESPN. “NFL officials appear unmotivated and don’t share the same sense of urgency. Increasingly, the meetings appear unproductive at best and disingenuous at worst. Furthermore, the ongoing disparagement of Colin Kaepernick is a factor needing remedy for the players and public to feel heard and for real progress to be made.
“I thought there were concrete plans to help. To my dismay, that wasn’t true at all. It’s only remained as just talking. There hasn’t been any action. It’s disappointing, because anytime the NFL says it cares about something, like breast cancer awareness, domestic violence, concussions, it comes out in force. So far we haven’t seen that.”