The murder of George Floyd by a police officer in Minnesota, who had his knee on Floyd’s neck for nearly nine minutes while he was handcuffed, has sparked nationwide protests of the continuing police brutality toward the black community.

Many prominent athletes have spoken up about the issue, as they have in the past, from Stephen Jackson, a childhood friend of Floyd’s, to Jaylen Brown, LeBron James, and others. Some in the Bundesliga in Germany made sure to make statements on the pitch during games over the weekend, and even Trevor Lawrence, Clemson’s star quarterback and the presumptive top quarterback taken in next year’s NFL Draft, issued tweets calling out racial injustice and supporting his teammates, the majority of whom are black.

It is that latter point, the high percentage of high-level college athletes who are black, that makes some like North Carolina Central head basketball coach LeVelle Moton upset at the silence of so many high profile head coaches in college athletics — most of whom are white — in a situation such as this. Moton spoke to the issue on ESPN radio, highlighting how coaches seem to fall silent on issues that affect their athletes but don’t directly impact them.

“I come across the timeline of coaches, and everyone is silent. And I have a major issue with that. For years I’ve never really said anything, but now I think enough is enough. Here’s the harsh reality, we have coaches in Power 5 football and basketball coaches, the reality is a lot of these coaches have been able to create generational wealth. I mean, their grandkids kids are going to be able to live a prosperous life because athletes who were the complexion of George Floyd was able to run a football, throw a football, shoot a basketball, or whatever have you. So they have benefited greatly from athletes who look like George Floyd, and many more.

“But whenever people the complexion of George Floyd is killed, assassinated, murdered in the street, in broad daylight, they’re silent, and I have a problem with that because it seems like black lives matter to them whenever they can benefit from it, whenever they’re getting them a first down or catching an alley-oop or shooting a three or whatever. But when it’s time for the humanity to speak up on behalf of those student-athletes, it’s silence. It’s crickets. So my problem is, if the murder of black Americans is too risky of an issue for you to stand up as a leader, then who are they really playing for.”

It’s a strong statement from Moton and one that should be addressed. That it is in some way a controversial stance to admit racism exists and that black people shouldn’t be killed or brutalized by police when unarmed, one that coaches are afraid to take that stance out of fear that they may lose boosters or fans, is a significant issue, particularly given the benefit they receive from players who play (without pay, I should add) for them and face these issues in real life.

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The death of George Floyd in Minnesota last week sparked nationwide outrage and protests in a number of American cities. One of those cities is Chicago, where actor John Cusack shared video from on Saturday that highlighted the aftermath of protests that turned violent between police officers and those protesting police brutality against people of color.

Floyd’s death in police custody came after video footage showed an officer kneeling on his neck for nearly nine minutes despite protests that he couldn’t breathe. Subsequent protests have ranged from peaceful demonstrations to those that veer toward vandalism and destruction of property as police forces try to disperse protesters using force, violence which has been captured on video and shared online.

Cusack shared video late Saturday night of an incident in which police officers shoved him while he was filming a burning vehicle from a clash between protesters and law enforcement. It started with Cusack riding his bike around Chicago to survey the scene.

Later, Cusack expressed frustration with his own encounter with law enforcement, claiming his bike was hit with police batons and ordered to leave, footage he captured and shared on Twitter.

In another tweet, Cusack took a picture of the “peace officers” he claimed used batons on him.

The past five days have been defined by protests nationwide against the death of George Floyd, who was killed by a police officer that had his knee on Floyd’s neck for nearly nine minutes while Floyd pleaded for his life. It was just the latest example of an unarmed black person being killed by a police officer and has sparked massive protests in cities across the country.

Some of these have been headed up by athletes like Stephen Jackson, a childhood friend of Floyd’s who called him “Twin,” and Jaylen Brown, who organized a protest in his hometown of Atlanta at the Martin Luther King Jr Center on the east side of downtown. The movement hasn’t just affected athletes stateside, as some Bundesliga players have used their platform to amplify the message globally.

On Sunday, Borussia Dortmund’s Jadon Sancho scored a goal to give his team a 2-0 lead and then removed his jersey to reveal a shirt with “Justice for George Floyd” written on it.

Sancho finished the game with a hat-trick in a tremendous performance in a 6-1 win, and made sure he used the opportunity to keep the message of seeking justice for black people at the forefront of the conversation. He wasn’t alone this weekend in voicing support for Floyd on the pitch in Germany, as others offered remembrances of Floyd on armbands or knelt in support of the movement.

For many, sports are the distraction, and it’s precisely for that reason that demonstrations and continued messaging from athletes during games is so important. Violence against the black community isn’t something they get to escape at any time, and as such it’s important to remind audiences of that uncomfortable truth at all times so it’s inescapable to them as well. The more the majority is confronted with these images and messages, the better chance we actually step forward and make the calls for change.

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“That is not peaceful protest. Let’s not kid ourselves,” Mayor Bill de Blasio said as he promised a full investigation.

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A number of artists have stepped up over the weekend with messages that align with their fans who have hit the streets to protest following the death of George Floyd while in police custody. Killer Mike, Cardi B, Lil Wayne, Beyonce, Billie Eilish, and Rihanna have all shared messages that fall in line with that of protestors all across the country.

Other acts have joined protestors in the streets including J. Cole in Fayetville, NC. But at least one artist has seen their protest efforts end in arrest. Chika joined a peaceful protest in Los Angeles on Saturday, things turned for the worst as she was arrested in the middle of her protest.

Sharing multiple videos to her Instagram, the first video showed Chika on a bus where she revealed that they were getting cited as a result of their participation in the protest.

“Hey y’all, so we’re on the f*cking bus, they’re calling us bodies in cages,” she said in the video. “As of right now they’ve let us know that we’re getting cited. I’m in here because I watch them put their hands on my manager, while she was trying to leave. I said ‘Hey, she walking away,’ and they said, ‘Get her too.’ Nobody in this bus did anything wrong, every single person here is in here unlawfully. The dude next to me is pissed, he’s been here for five hours. I’m okay though, I’m f*cking okay, y’all don’t worry.”

Chika would also share a video of her attempts to disperse and calm down the crowd during the protest, despite later being arrested for failure to disperse. Upon her release she returned back to her home where she shared another video, one that lasted more than 30 minutes and detailed the events that led up to her arrest as well as what occurred after.

Chika is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

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