AUBURN — Prominent athletic officials including Auburn head football coach Gus Malzahn and Alabama athletic director Greg Byrne attended peaceful demonstrations about George Floyd’s death on Sunday afternoon.
The protests attended were part of the ongoing national unrest stemming from the death of George Floyd while in Minneapolis police custody.
Events attended by the officials were organized by students at their respective universities. Other officials in attendance included Auburn athletics director Allen Greene, Auburn baseball coach Butch Thompson, Alabama men’s head basketball coach Nate Oats and his counterpart at Auburn, Bruce Pearl. Malzahn arrived at the Auburn event flanked by his players, many of whom had recently reported to campus for voluntary offseason workouts.
Gus Malzahn leads the Auburn football team to the Black Lives Matter rally at Toomer’s Corner on Sunday. pic.twitter.com/a8TPNNoJPU
— Auburn Gold Mine (@AUGoldMine) June 7, 2020
Both demonstrations were in line with the state of Alabama’s largely peaceful demonstrations amid the ongoing national unrest.
The Yellowhammer State suffered one night of violence, vandalism and looting on Sunday, May 31, in Birmingham. Defacing of monuments to Confederate soldiers and statues of Confederate leaders has occurred in multiple cities in the interim. Additionally, law enforcement officers in Huntsville have broken up demonstrations with tear gas after a few groups of individuals did not follow orders and previously made agreements to disperse at a certain time.
Those incidents contrast with the dozens of peaceful protests that have occurred across the state in the intervening week, including those in Auburn and Tuscaloosa on Sunday.
Yellowhammer News was on the ground for several of those who spoke in Auburn, which by many accounts was one of the largest George Floyd gatherings the state has seen.
Attendees of the Auburn event heard personal messages from a variety of speakers about struggles faced due to having nonwhite skin.
Chants of “black lives matter” and other exhortations for racial justice were interspersed throughout the remarks given by most of those speaking on Sunday.
Volunteers in Auburn passed out cold water and face masks. The vast majority of demonstrators were wearing a mask, even as the government recommended social distancing guidelines were ignored.
Auburn basketball coach Bruce Pearl chose to take a knee outside the Auburn police department in memory of George Floyd.
Bruce pearl kneels outside the auburn police department at the #auburn4change #BlackLivesMattters march: pic.twitter.com/8iHN1ofkpt
— Giana Han (@giana_jade) June 7, 2020
The attending of the rally coincided with statements made by many of those same officials about conversations and reflections they had recently on the state of race relations in America.
Auburn basketball coach Bruce Pearl told Alabama Media Group that he loved his country and the state, before adding about the protests, “People understand the inequality and they understand the pain and they want to try to help make a difference genuinely.”
Before attending Sunday’s protest, Alabama men’s basketball head coach Nate Oats had previously posted to Twitter a personal message about his efforts to comprehend the events of recent weeks.
— Nate Oats (@nate_oats) June 1, 2020
Gus Malzahn told ESPN1067’s Justin Ferguson, “I’ve had a heavy heart the last few weeks, after watching the recent racial injustices on video. I’ve been unsure how to handle and respond, so I decided to listen. I met with my players, I met with my coaches. I asked them to share their hearts with me.”
Auburn athletics director Allen Greene posted a nearly four-minute-long message reflecting on “racial justice and systemic inequities” to social media on May 30, a message that he felt emboldened to post after speaking with Malzahn.
“Issues of racial injustice and systemic inequities are complex, and often leave us angered, confused, conflicted and uncertain as to how to produce meaningful dialogue.”
We must do better! We will do better!#WarEagle pic.twitter.com/unzZx8dLi5
— Allen Greene (@AGreeneIV) May 31, 2020
Alabama athletics director Greg Byrne posted a message along similar lines to Twitter last week before attending the demonstration in Tuscaloosa on Sunday.
— Greg Byrne (@Greg_Byrne) May 31, 2020
The attending of protests by coaches on Sunday came just before an important day in the coronavirus-adjusted sports calendar. Monday, June 8, is the first day SEC athletes are allowed to resume using on-campus athletic facilities.
Henry Thornton is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You can contact him by email: [email protected] or on Twitter @HenryThornton95
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