Friday, the Minnesota Vikings announced several measures to highlight social justice awareness. As part of the NFL's campaign to bring awareness to social justice issues, Sunday's Packers-Vikings game will feature several game elements highlighting these issues, from field markings and uniform decals to recorded pregame performances.
Pregame Warmup Shirts
Throughout the pregame period, players will wear custom t-shirts with “Be the Change” verbiage on the front and the names of 200 individuals who have been killed by acts of racism or police brutality on the back. Please see a photo of the shirt here. Players may also wear NFLPA-and player-created Nike warmup t-shirts with the phrase “An injustice to one is an injustice to all of US.”
End Zone Markings
The Vikings and Packers will come together in their respective end zones, which will be marked with the messages “It Takes All of Us” and “End Racism.” This will be a unified league-wide message across all clubs for NFL Kickoff and home openers. Please see a photo of a sample end zone marking here.
Player Helmet Decals and Coach Hat Patches
Starting Week 1, all players have the option to wear their personal choice of helmet decals with social justice related messages or the name of a victim of systemic racism. Players can wear the decals for the first game or can choose to keep them on their helmets for the entire season. Coaches also have to option to participate with a patch on their hats. Please see a photo of the helmet decal examples here.
National Anthem
Three-time Grammy Award winning ensemble, Sounds of Blackness, will perform a pre-recorded rendition of the Star Spangled Banner prior to kickoff. Based out of Minneapolis-St. Paul, Sounds of Blackness has been featured on Billboard R&B and Hot Dance Music charts and has received an NAACP Image Award and four Stellar Awards. In addition to countless achievements in music, Sounds of Blackness was also been with a star on the outside mural of the iconic Minneapolis nightclub, First Avenue.
Lift Every Voice and Sing
At the conclusion of player warmups, a pre-recorded musical performance of “Lift Every Voice and Sing” by James Weldon Johnson will accompany a video showcasing the social justice work that NFL clubs and players are doing to make an impact in the community.
George Floyd Family Recognition
The Vikings will recognize the family of George Floyd, who will be inside U.S. Bank Stadium, following the performance of “Lift Every Voice and Sing.”
U.S. Bank Hometown Hero: Sara and Jamil Stamschror-Lott
The Vikings will honor two members of the Twin Cities community who have donated their time and resources to give back to those in need. In 2017, Sara and Jamil Stamschror-Lott founded Creative Kuponya, an organization designed to provide therapy and healing to members in the community. On top of their work with Creative Kuponya, both Sara and Jamil work with numerous organizations to bring equality, social justice and health to the forefront of our society.
Sara and Jamil also serve as the Institute Director and Wellness Director, respectively, at All Square, a local nonprofit social enterprise that invests in the minds and lives of formerly incarcerated individuals. The Vikings social justice committee has committed to supporting All Square’s programming and business in a variety of ways, including bringing more awareness to All Square’s mission and supporting the launch of the Fellow Fund (Allsquarempls.com).
via Minnesota Vikings press release
Photo: Getty Images