On the first anniversary of the so-called The Alliance Los Angeles (The Alliance of Los Angeles) that emerged in the Los Angeles metropolis after the murder of George Floyd, Latinos and African-Americans -mainly young people- participated in the so-called “March Against Racism”, backed by the 11 Southern California professional sports teams.
Indeed, the Los Angeles Alliance brings together the directors of the Anaheim Ducks , Los Angeles Angels , Los Angeles Dodgers; Los Angeles Chargers , Los Angeles Clippers , Los Angeles FC , LA Galaxy , Los Angeles Kings , Los Angeles Lakers , Los Angeles Sparks and Los Angeles Rams , who use sport for social justice, particularly in communities of color.
This is a comprehensive five-year commitment to drive investment and impact for justice social through sport.
This alliance was born after the protests over the assassination of George Floyd, in Minneapolis, on 25 May 2020, at the hands of police officer Derek Chauvin.
Floyd Jr. was killed after a store clerk suspected that he may have used a dollar bill e $ 25 counterfeit.
Chauvin, one of the four police officers who arrived at the scene, knelt on Floyd’s neck and back for 9 minutes and 29 seconds to end his life, while he implored: “I can’t breathe.”
“It was the murder of Floyd and so many others . That was broadcast on national television, a public lynching if you will, and the presidents of the teams came together and we had this deep sense of empathy, “said Renata Simril, president and CEO of LA 84 Foundation and the Play Equity Fund.
The Play Equity Fund is an equity fund that focuses on bringing the transformative power of sport and gaming to all children, regardless of race, gender, zip code or socioeconomic status.
“Each of the teams does a great job in their relationships and foundations with the community. But they wanted to do more; came together as a collaborative group of 07 teams called Alliance LA, and partnered with the Play Equity Fund, which is the charitable partner of the foundation L 84 to create a Youth Leadership Program ”, he added.
“Racism is a virus”
Under a bright sun and high temperatures, hundreds of young people gathered on Sunday in Exposition Park, in front of the famous Rose Garden, from where they marched towards the Banc of California stadium, home of the football team, LAFC Club.
With messages of “Racism is a virus”, “Stand up to racism”, Justice = Peace “and” Unity “, they advocated for social justice, they addressed disparities in education, health, and police brutality.
“I oppose racism ; We have to report it because if we do not, we will be complicit by not acting, “said Raymond Alvarado, a student at Inglewood High School and the son of Salvadoran parents.
Among the protesters was also Michael Roth , vice president of communications of AEG / Staples Center, home of the multi-time NBA champions, Lakers, who declared: “Racism has to be cured like any disease,” he told Real America News.
“Racism can be stopped, and the education of our children is important to open people’s minds,” he emphasized.
On her way to justice, the main organizing leader of “United Against Racism”, Dr. Dee Bremond, consultant to the called the Brotherhood Crusade (Crusade of the Brotherhood) of south central Los Angeles, highlighted that one of the great changes that young people want to see is in relation to police brutality and murders committed against Latinos and Afro-Americans rich us.
“We tell them that enough is enough,” he said. “We want those who commit crimes to be held accountable.”
Inglewood High School graduate Diana Lemus added that “many times police officers treat people living in low-income communities differently. income”.
Ability to make changes
At the end of the march, the protesters had lunch and met in an exclusive area of the Banc of California stadium with the directors of the sports teams where, in addition , had an open dialogue session with county sheriffs and Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) officers.
There, Lon Rosen, executive vice president and chief marketing officer for the Dodg ers recalled that a year and a half ago, when the covid pandemic began – 19, the directors of the 11 teams came together to talk about how they would handle the matter in the stadiums and how sports would be played again.
“And then George Floyd’s murder happened. And we all said: Okay, enough with covid. We will resolve it. We will have a much more important vocation in life. We need to gather our collective power and think about making a change in the world. And that’s what this whole Alliance is about. It’s about change, doing things fairly, giving everyone the same opportunities. That’s what we have to do. ”
Rosen stressed that, although teams fight on the fields, in the fields, for sponsorships and for the fans,“ what really matters is that we need to use our collective powers and their intellectual capacity to make changes and change is not easy… It takes time. ”
Imagining a better world
“We imagine a south of Los Angeles devoid of disparities health, deprivation of rights and adverse public health conditions associated with poverty ”, highlighted Renata Simril, president and executive director of LA 84 Foundation and Play Equity Fund.
“We believe that South Los Angeles can be a safe, prosperous, culturally relevant and inclusive community that provides all residents equitable access to human and social services and enhances continuously their quality of life ”, he stressed.
Simril acknowledged that the mission of the LA Alliance coalition appears to be difficult, considering that white supremacists in the United States still feel empowered by former President Donald Trump.
“I believe that when we show the power of coalition, our black brothers and sisters, Latino or white allies who come together to truly celebrate the power of sport and show the humanity that is in all of us or that there is a more common bond, that unites us instead of dividing us, ”he added. “I think it’s a powerful statement.”
LA Foundation Director 84 expressed his excitement at having the alliance of the 11 professional sports teams that put aside their rivalry and competition to come together and show the power of sport to change communities.
“It is a great gain that we have in Southern California and a tremendous commitment that these team presidents have joined our communities to work for that change,” said Simril.
“I agree, the challenge it is challenging, it is difficult. But if we don’t start today, we will never see progress towards our long-term goal. ”
