The Black Players for Change shirt designed by Philadelphia Union midfielder Warren Creavalle read, in part “To be clear, this is not your distraction, it's not your escape from real life. For some, this is everyday life.”
The ugly situation at Toyota Stadium Wednesday where some fans booed, chanted “USA” and threw things on the field as players from Nashville SC and FC Dallas kneeled during the playing of the national anthem, is why those shirts were created, Calen Carr said on Extratime.
“This is why they’re doing that,” Carr said. “It’s because people show up at a game and want to watch Black players play, but then don’t actually care about Black lives.”
The demonstration from the players came amid a national movement for racial justice, which MLS players have been at the forefront of with the recently formed Black Players for Change.
In his post-game comments, Reggie Cannon said it was “absolutely disgusting” some fans reacted in that way.
"I think it was disgusting. I think it was absolutely disgusting," Cannon said. "You got fans booing you for people taking a stand for what they believe in. Millions of other people support this cause and we discussed with every other team and the league what we’re going to do and we’ve got fans booing us in our own stadium. How disgraceful is that? Honestly, for lack of a better word, it pissed me off. ... You can’t even have support form your own fans in your own stadium. It’s baffling to me.”
FC Dallas ownership and MLS Commissioner Don Garber condemned the abuse in separate statements. Cannon was subsequently subject to racist abuse on social media.
