The Murray State University football team marched on campus Friday afternoon in support of the Black Lives Matter movement.
Players chanted phrases including “No Justice, No Peace” and said the names of Black people recently killed or severely injured by law enforcement, including Breonna Taylor and Jacob Blake. Players and a coach interviewed by WKMS said the decision to march was made earlier that day in light of recent events regarding police brutality and racial injustice. Cortezz Jones is a freshman and plays running back. He said the march is to send a unified message as a team.
“We want to bring people together through love and positivity. We want to spread that love and positivity and have a better relationship with everyone,” Jones said. “This aint only about Black Lives Matter, it’s about all lives matter because at the end of the day, we want this thing for everyone.”
The @murraystateuniv football team: pic.twitter.com/xbnaJh3Sbj
— Liam Niemeyer (@liamniemeyer) August 28, 2020
Murray State Football Outside Linebackers Coach and Special Teams Coordinator Chris Cunningham said a few ideas were considered to find ways to show support for one another, and the idea of the march got approval from players.
“We just came together to say, ‘Hey, we need to make some change.’ And this is our first step of many to make that change in the community and the world,” Cunningham said. “There’s a lot of people that look up to athletes, different regards, different levels whether it’s college or professional. And we just want to use our voice as much as we can to help make that change.”
The Ohio Valley Conference recently postponed fall sports competition including football due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Murray State Athletic Director Kevin Saal told WKMS safe practices were being planned for the university’s teams.
