The Opportunity

From Jesse Owens and Billie Jean King to Colin Kaepernick and Chris Long, professional athletes have ascended above the greatness of their athletic achievements to lead and support movements for social change. There is a special opportunity for professional athletes and sports franchises to play pivotal leadership roles in mobilizing cultural and legal change for three reasons:

• Sports touch every community in America. Athletes inspire, they capture our imagination, and they break our hearts. It is hard to find a place in America where people don’t welcome athletes, their teams, and the sports they play into their lives. Cleveland Cavalier LeBron James has a social media platform that reaches people in Ohio that Ohio Governor John Kasich will never to connect with or meet.
• Sports cross all divides. Race, ethnicity, religion, political preferences, and socio-economic status are all checked at the gate when you are watching and cheering for your team. A nurse in Grand Rapids, Michigan and a lawyer in Flint, Michigan will both cheer for the Tigers even if they don’t watch the same TV shows, consume the same news, or vote for the same political party.
• Professional athletes have credibility. Professional athletes demonstrate characteristics that are respected universally: hard work, resilience, and physical as well as mental strength. Athletes have a chance to use that credibility and to raise their voices on a wide range of causes.