Richard Sherman Says He Finds it Hard to Fully Support Black Lives MatterOutspoken Seattle Seahawks superstar Richard Sherman stopped short of supporting the Black Lives Matter movement on Tuesday [July 26], but he didn't rule out joining in with the unified front of social justice seeking athletes Carmelo Anthony, Chris Paul, Dwyane Wade and Lebron James recently proposed. In an interview with The Undefeated, Sherman went into great detail, as he acknowledged that police violence is a problem, while also including violence within the Black community as a notable area of concern. He then said he struggles with fully embracing Black Lives Matter because grouped in with those who protest behind the mantra, are some with views that are too radical for his comfort.
"It’s hard to formulate an opinion and generalize because they have several different messages. Some of them are peaceful and understandable, and some of them are very radical and hard to support. Any time you see people who are saying, ‘Black Lives Matter,’ and then saying it’s time to kill police, then it is difficult to stand behind that logic. They are generalizing police just like they are asking police not to generalize us. It is very hypocritical. So, in that respect, I find it difficult to fully support that movement," said Sherman. "I want African-Americans and everybody else treated decently. I want them treated like human beings. And I also want the police treated like human beings. I don’t want police officers just getting knocked off in the street who haven’t done anything wrong. Those are innocent lives."
Many news outlets focused their coverage on Sherman saying that he better identifies with the idea that all lives matter, but readers of the full interview transcript will note that he first declared that he doesn't believe race exists. Sherman endorses the idea that race is a social construct, which would naturally explain why he wouldn't feel authentic distinguishing Black lives. He made clear that he does believe there is such a thing as systemic racism, but implied that obsessing over such a notion might be holding Black people from striving to transcend such imposed limitations. "I will continue to use my platform to encourage our youth to overcome "systematic" circumstances. I will challenge them to be great," he would tweet on Wednesday afternoon.
Sherman said that he would get on board with an all-sports movement to address issues in the Black community, but said it would have to be a unified message he can get behind, specifying gang violence as an issue he'd like to tackle. In discussing who he might rally to support him from within the NFL ranks, he named Doug Baldwin, Michael Bennett, and Tyrann Mathieu as outspoken players. When asked whether he feels the NFL should do more to speak to issues of violence and race he affirmed, but gauged that it would be unlikely seeing how such issues are primarily the concern of African-American players and that the league would not see it "affect their bottom line."
Source: nydailynews.com