When TJ Carter heard the news that Jacob Blake had been shot seven times in Kenosha, Wisconsin, through police officers, he made him think: What if it was him?
The Memphis senior defensive back said that if he was arrested while wearing a team jersey, he could have a break if the officer is a fan. But if you don’t dress up in your shirt, things can be different.
“It’s bigger than football. I see it as my brother or my cousin who doesn’t play football.” Carter said Thursday. “This total scenario can be different if I wasn’t a football player.”
Blake, 29, was shot in the back after getting into his car and hitting himself inside. Officers were responding to a shock call from Blake’s circle of relatives and Blake’s circle of relatives said he was paralyzed from the waist down.
As a result, the Milwaukee Bucks refused to play their playoff game Wednesday night, resulting in the postponement of all three games and all WNBA games that day. Thursday’s NBA games were also postponed, and USF and Boston College were among the schools that canceled the practice.
Memphis did not cancel, but coach Ryan Silverfield held a pre-practice assembly to discuss the incident and the upcoming protests in Wisconsin. He said he was just looking to pay attention and give players a space to talk about how they felt.
This is all it has done since the team participated in a Unity Walk protest opposed to social injustice in June. He called Thursday’s assembly revealing and comforting as a learning experience.
“I talked to the team (after practice) and I said, “Hey, look, it’s a fucked-up world, a lot of bad things,” Silverfield said. “We are a circle of relatives and the replacement cannot be done overnight, however, we will have to do everything we can to make a replacement, day after day.
Silverfield has forced its training to continue to provide a discussion area at long-term meetings to address existing problems. For some, it’s less difficult because they share some of the same considerations as their players.
Racer coach Anthony Jones Jr. explained how he woke up between 4:15 a.m. and 4:30 a.m. to ride a motorcycle or run in his neighborhood. Think about what happens if you can think of it and your daughters have to worry if your father gets home.
When he saw the video of Blake’s shooting, he reminded him that he was a high school coach attending the funerals of former players or court hearings for arrested players.
“It’s hard to see this young man shot seven times in the back,” Jones said. “Just seeing everything that’s going on there right now, it’s hard, it’s mind-blowing. This is all we expect and pray for it to end very, very soon.
Carter said Silverfield asked Thursday what he could do to raise awareness. He reminded him how the coach sought player reviews before declaring that the Tigers would wear a decal on the helmet of “Black Lives Matter” this season.
After Blake’s shooting, he was also reminded that the fact that he is a football player in Memphis does not mean that he may not be protected from racial discrimination.
“That’s what I’m thinking about because everyone will be football players, everyone will have the privileges I have,” Carter said. “So I look at it from this point of view and I just look to spread as much awareness as possible.”
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