These Athletes Made, Impactful Statements in 2020.
From social injustice across the United States to the continued terror of the COVID-19 pandemic, 2020 has been a hard year.
In times like these, we look to our favorite athlete to act as leaders and inspire us to do better.
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Here are 10 athletes that have made particularly impactful statements this year.
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1.
During the U.S. Open, Naomi Osaka sported seven different face masks, each displaying the name of a Black individual killed by police.
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2.
Washington Wizards player Bradley Beal led his team to release one of the league’s strongest statements against police brutality.
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3.
At a rally in Auckland, New Zealand, Israel Adesanya spoke to the crowd and encouraged people of all races to “speak up” and “say something” following the death of George Floyd.
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Four-time WNBA champ Maya Moore took a sabbatical from basketball to overturn the wrongful conviction of Jonathan Irons.
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Kyrie Irving produced a TV special on Breonna Taylor and criticized the NBA’s “bubble” for being a distraction from critical social justice reform.
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Dallas Cowboy’s quarterback Dak Prescott normalized conversations pertaining to mental health by opening up about his own struggles with depression and anxiety.
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In addition to repeatedly speaking out in support of Black Lives Matter, LeBron James led a massive initiative to ensure equal voting access.
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Dodgers player Mookie Betts challenged MLB to address social justice matters by kneeling in protest and boycotting the team’s game following the death of Jacob Blake.
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9.
Zdeno Chara publicly spoke out and led a group of NHL players in protesting social injustice in the United States.
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10.
Not only did Jaylen Brown organize a BLM protest following Floyd’s death, he also spoke out after the deaths of John Lewis and Taylor.