NFL players will have the option of honoring victims of racial violence or police brutality with stickers on the back of their helmets, Front Office Sports and Associated Press reported.
The decision comes after previous reports that the league and players were considering how to make social justice statements on their uniforms.
The league is working with players to create a list of names that can be used, including George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Eric Garner, Michael Brown and Tamir Rice, according to FOS.
Program to run all season
Players will be allowed to wear the decals starting at week 1 and continue for the rest of the season, assuming the league can start as scheduled in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic. The decision to use stickers and honest names will be up to individual players and teams once a list of names is established.
Players will have the option of wearing a helmet sticker honoring a victim of racial or police violence. (Photo by Robin Alam / Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
The NFL continues to change its previous stance
The decision continues on the face of the NFL, which previously avoided kneeling during the national anthem to protest police brutality and social injustice. Colin Kaepernick has still been without a contract since the 2016 season.
In the wake of George Floyd’s murder and subsequent race trial in the United States, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said “we were wrong” on the issue of player protests.
The decision follows those of the NBA and WNBA to honor victims of police violence with names and slogans on the back of the shirts. WNBA players will honor Breonna Taylor, the 26-year-old black woman who was shot to death in Louisville when police broke into her home with a no-touch order on March 13.
NBA players will have the option to choose from a list of social justice slogans on their uniforms when the league begins on July 30, but they will not have the option to use names of victims of violence on their shirts.
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