Gamecocks deliver powerful, personal messages on racial injustice in America
South Carolina wide receiver Dakereon Joyner slung down his backpack, then paused for a moment.
Standing by a temporary stage in the middle of the university campus, he looked away from the lectern for a second, before turning, striding up in his pair of Converse shoes while bearing his tragedy and his fears.
He introduced himself as a son of Charleston, calling it the home of two profound moments of racial violence in the shooting of Walter Scott and the shooting at the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church. As he said that, he voice caught in his throat.
“One of my family members, by the name of Tywanza Sanders ... he recorded Dylan Roof on Snapchat that night at Bible study, not knowing an hour later or an hour and a half later, he would take their lives,” Joyner said. “I will never be able to go to church without thinking somebody across from me, the opposite color as me, even the same color as me may hate me for who I am or want to take my life.
“I think that feeling will always sit with me, not being able to enjoy church and enjoy Christ and be able to be at peace.”
The demonstration Monday morning spearheaded by the Gamecocks football team was a short one, not 20 minutes from players arriving in near silence to a quick departure. Five athletes spoke, four football players and one women’s soccer player, none for very long, but each with force and impact.
The whole event had only been broached the Friday before and announced publicly Saturday. It came in the wake of the shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wisconsin, which ignited scores of protests and led to NBA players refusing to play in an effort to bring attention to racial injustice to America.
“We are fighting the same fight my ancestors once fought,” senior defensive lineman Jabari Ellis said. “The Jacob Blake video made me afraid. Made me afraid I could be next. Afraid it could be a family member or one of my teammates.”
After the five speakers, which included quarterback Jay Urich, offensive lineman Eric Douglas and soccer player Lauren Chang, there were no additional interviews, letting the moment speak for itself.
Douglas’ remarks were short and succinct, cutting to heart of some of the issues facing the country.
“I am the voice to the voiceless,” Douglas said. “In this country, how can we claim to be together and united as one if all lives matter, but mine doesn’t? The Black Lives Matter movement isn’t an issue of politics. It’s an outcry for change and justice. For generations, Black people have faced their fair share of hardships and violence. Police brutality is just one of its many forms.”
Chang spoke about the importance of being an ally. She admitted she can never truly know or understand the Black experience in the United States, but stressed the importance of listening and using one’s power to vote.
“We all have the ability to be an ally, to listen to Black voices, to educate ourselves and to stand up for what is right,” Chang said. “To our Black friends and our Black teammates, I am sorry. I am sorry that it took the senseless killings of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, Elijah McClain and so many others for us to fully see the police brutality and systemic racism that is ingrained.”
Urich found himself in a spotlight after a simple message he penned on a sign in early June with the help of friends found a powerful resonance. His words that “Matter is the Minimum” and that Black lives should be so much more carried across the country to the eyes of powerful and important people, including the daughter of Martin Luther King Jr.
But he knows his role is supportive, pushing for change in behavior, fostering unity and safety for all.
“I’m standing here to do my part,” Urich said. “I feel strongly for my teammates, my classmates and my community. I was ignorant and unaware to what my Black brothers and sisters went through every day. After talking to some of my teammates and seeing the pain in their eyes, I knew I couldn’t stand on the sideline anymore. I knew I wanted to get in the game and be a voice of love to everybody, especially my teammates.”
Urich followed by leading the group in a prayer, one powerful enough it would’ve impressed many a preacher.
Joyner also spoke about the fear he feels not just in church, a sacred place for peace, but in something as mundane as driving. He referenced “the talk” Black parents have to give their children, to be excessively pliant and do absolutely everything to put an officer’s mind at ease, lest a flippant comment, hasty movement or even mindless fidget turn a situation deadly.
“I know I’m not perfect,” Joyner said. “I’m going to make mistakes, and not knowing if that could be the end of my life at a traffic stop.
“Me and my brothers and my sisters are here today, not asking for sympathy. I’m just asking for your mind, your heart, your soul and a piece of understanding to be able to hear everyone speaking.”
