Stills left in tears by new shooting
Kenny Stills watched the disturbing video at dawn Monday, seeing the images of Jacob Blake being shot in the back seven times at point-blank range by Wisconsin police in front of his three children.
This latest example of an unarmed Black man being shot by police angered and saddened the Texans’ wide receiver, one of the most active players in the NFL on social justice issues and a leader in the Black Lives Matter movement.
Stills contemplated whether he should go to practice before ultimately deciding to be with his teammates and coaches. He acknowledged his emotions were raw throughout the morning.
“I saw that video around 5 a.m. and I didn’t know if I was going to come to work,” Stills said. “I had been upset, crying, all the way up until practice. Something happened at practice that had
nothing to do with that, and I’m on the side ready to explode. It had nothing to do with what was happening, but just because I’m an emotional person.
“There’s a sense of fear like, ‘What happens to me if I get pulled over? What happens to my people that look like me, my family, my friends? I’ve been trying to figure out ways to kind of battle through that and try to be the light within my family and my community, this locker room, and not be defeated and not give up. There’s a sense of fear, but there’s also this sense of anger. I’m really just toeing the line on that edge, trying not to be destructive, trying to be constructive in this environment as much as possible.”
The shooting in Kenosha, Wis., is being investigated by the state’s justice department and has already triggered protests. Blake remains hospitalized with serious injuries.
This latest incident covers familiar ground during a volatile year that included Houston native George Floyd being killed by Minneapolis police who kneeled on his neck.
“I think it further proves the point that we need to make a change with what’s going on with our law enforcement,” Stills said. “We have another unarmed Black man being shot seven times in front of his children. I think there’s other ways to de-escalate these situations.”
Wearing a T-shirt that says, “Breonna Taylor’s Killers Are Still Police Officers,” Stills referenced his peaceful protest in Louisville, Ky., where he was arrested this summer and initially charged with a felony along with 86 others who were protesting for Breonna Taylor, a Black woman shot and killed in her home by police while they executed a noknock warrant on the wrong residence.
Stills was arrested outside the home of Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron and initially charged with one felony, intimidating a participant in the legal process. Misdemeanor thirddegree disorderly conduct and second-degree criminal trespass are pending.
“The felony charge, in my mind, was to try and make a statement to us, but also was a way for them to keep us in jail for longer,” Stills said. “We ended up being in handcuffs and within the system for 17 hours. For a minor offense, you would be in and out, but I think they were trying to send a message to us for us being on his property. “
The investigation is ongoing with one officer, Brett Hankison, fired. The other two officers, Myles Cosgrove and Jonathan Mattingly are still employed by the Louisville Police Department.
“We went to Louisville to bring more attention to Breonna Taylor’s case,” Stills said. “We’ve tried to do everything we can to get in touch with Daniel Cameron to sit down and have a conversation with him and figure out what’s going on with this case. There’s been no justice served in this case. We’re hoping that something can happen soon. We need the officers to be arrested, fired and prosecuted for what they did to Breonna Taylor.”
Stills contemplated whether he wanted to play football this year or opt out. The California native reported a bit later than his teammates and committed to play.
“You think about what’s going on in our country right now,” Stills said. “I feel like sports really are a distraction from the movement. I feel like there’s other things that are way more important than playing football or playing sports at the moment. A lot of things went into the decision to opt out or play.
“After speaking with people that I was close to and some of my teammates, I can be more of a benefit to this team and to the movement on the inside, trying to be a leader, working with my teammates, working with the staff here, working with the league and knowing who our audience is in the NFL and trying to have as big of an impact and an influence on them as I can.”
NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said this week that he wished he had handled the situation differently when San Francisco quarterback Colin Kaepernick and other players, including Stills, began kneeling during the national anthem during the 2016 season. Goodell said he “wished we had listened earlier, Kaep, to what you were kneeling about and what you were trying to bring attention to.”
Four years after the NFL didn’t back players who protested systemic racism, police brutality and other social justice issues, Stills didn’t have much of a reaction to Goodell’s mea culpa. Goodell said he had spoken several times to Stills about this issue.
“He can say whatever he wants to say now, but, in a sense, if we would’ve taken a more stern stance and he would’ve listened to us at the beginning of this, there would’ve been so many lives that could’ve been saved,” Stills said. “There’s a lot of progress that we could’ve made within our law enforcement, within our police. It’s a nice gesture, I guess, to say he wishes he would’ve done something different, but look at the NFL.
“We’re supposed to be kind of the leaders in our country. We’re reactive instead of proactive when it comes to a lot of the issues in our country and within the league, as well. I hope that we can do a better job moving forward of listening to our players, understanding our issues and doing something about it.”
Texans coach and general manager Bill O’Brien has stated he will kneel alongside his players at games this fall and has been supportive of Stills.
Stills said that means something to him, but he is primarily motivated by wanting to be an agent for change.
“I’ve been studying a bunch on reparations,” Stills said. “It just starts with that conversation around our country of being able to admit our wrongdoing.”
The Texans have committed a lot of resources, including donations to social justice causes. They’ve held several conversations among chairman and chief operating officer Cal McNair, owner and cofounder Janice McNair and Hannah McNair, Cal McNair’s wife with and
Black coaches, including associate head coach Romeo Crennel, former defensive tackle Travis Johnson and Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner.
“I think it’s a nice gesture by coach, but it’s about talking to Cal and talking to the other owners all across the league to see what they can do to really impact some type of change, whether that’s regarding our law enforcement and police or whether that’s regarding the conversation around reparations and what that looks like,” Stills said. “There’s real things that we can be doing, tangible things that we can be doing here in Texas, in Houston. Yeah, I appreciate the gesture by coach, but we need to be able to follow up with some action that is going impact our communities.”
Stills wants to see real change, not more talk. Social media campaigns aren’t what he’s seeking. He wants justice.
“Obviously it’s great to have more people listening, more people paying attention, but there’s got to be action behind that,” Stills said. “Yes, it’s great that we’re opening up and having a conversation and listening to each other, but what are we going to do about it? Taking a knee, raising a fist and making T-shirts, putting people’s names on our helmets, (is) not going to bring somebody back to life.
“That’s not going to stop somebody from getting shot. I’m really focused on the things that I can do outside of just taking a knee. It’s great that we’ve got more people involved in the movement. In a way, a lot of the leagues are just figuring out ways to market it and then make money off it and then move forward.”
“I feel like there’s other things that are way more important than playing football or playing sports at the moment. ” Texans WR Kenny Stills, on Wisconsin police shooting of Jacob Blake