The Cardinals have had plenty of players speak about their feelings surrounding the Black Lives Matter movement, whether it has been from Larry Fitzgerald or D.J. Humphries or DeAndre Hopkins. Kliff Kingsbury recently talked about how the coaches and the organization will support the players.
"(Owner) Michael (Bidwill) has called me multiple times to talk through things: 'How can we help? How can we do different things?" Kingsbury said.
In an email to staff Tuesday morning, Bidwill announced that Juneteenth – June 19 – would be a permanent paid team holiday, in order for the franchise to "reflect on the history of civil rights in the United States and how we can all work together for a much better future."
Juneteenth dates back to 1865, when on June 19th Union soldiers arrived in Texas with the news the Civil War had ended and slaves were now free.
Fitzgerald had said earlier than he thought the NFL was "trending in the right direction" on the issue when the league made Juneteenth a holiday in their office. The message from multiple players has been both about the need for action on the anti-racism front and the need to put such conversations front and center through awareness.
"It's going to take some time," Fitzgerald said. "It's going to take some understanding. It's going to take a lot of education, and people opening their hearts to things they didn't think was possible in the past. But with the way things are going right now, it's a lot more feasible than it was at any other time in history."
Originally posted 6/17/20.
