The NFL is finally putting its money where its mouth is.
The organization reportedly agreed to give nearly $100 million over the next seven years to social justice causes.
The deal was reached between the NFL and a coalition of about 40 players concerning causes that are important to the Black community, such as criminal justice reform and police reform.
The language in the agreement does not call on the players to stop their national anthem protests in return for the donations, though the NFL hopes that by acknowledging the protests’ root causes and taking action, they will be able to put an end to those protests.
However, it’s not likely that the protests are going to end anytime soon. 49ers safety Eric Reid, who was the second player to protest alongside Colin Kaepernick, expressed frustration with the way fellow NFL stars Malcolm Jenkins and Anquan Boldin had run The Player’s Coalition. He and Dolphins safety Michael Thomas left the coalition earlier.
No matter what happens with the anthem protests, the fact remains that, if the agreement goes through, this will be the NFL’s largest contribution to social causes, even greater than for Salute to Service or Breast Cancer Awareness/Crucial Catch. And that is a step in the right direction.