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NWSL Challenge Cup Weekend Recap
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When the NWSL Challenge Cup got underway this past weekend, some of the lasting images was once an emotional embrace between Chicago Red Stars teammates Julie Ertz and Casey Short. The moment came as the players took a knee right through the national anthem.
On Tuesday, Ertz and Short released a joint observation in which they touched on the concept that of unity and the thoughts that they have had in recent days.
“What has followed have been tough conversations,” Ertz and Short said. “These conversations have been emotional, they have got been sincere, and they have got allowed us to be vulnerable with each and every other right through this time. And honestly, we still want to have many, many more.
“The two of us have all the time set out to be our sincere and true selves but we have struggled to find the ‘correct’ object to do with the intention to show our truth. We understand people are entitled to their opinions. Incessantly these opinions are presented through the individuals lens and don’t appropriately painting how the two of us really feel.”
Players on both teams wore “Black Lives Matter” shirts as a show of strengthen the movement. This comes after the homicide of George Floyd by a Minnesota police officer in May.
After many players took a knee right through the national anthem, the NSWL released a observation in which the league expressed how “proud” it was once of its players. Moreover, the league announced that it as revising a policy for the national anthem all through the 2020 Challenge Cup. Players now have the option of remaining in the locker room right through the national anthem whether they select.
Ertz and Short went on to say that players want to have “empathy” for one another in the wake of recent events:
“For the past few weeks, we have shared our stories, we have shared a deep empathy towards one another and in the end, a common sense of hopelessness,” Ertz and Short added. “This moment of hopelessness was once overwhelming for plenty of reasons including, frustration in not having a lucid answer for change, the hurt in each and every other’s voices, and our black teammates and friends who have emotionally poured out each and every ounce of their hearts to us. All of these intense and emotional moments have been difficult but in the end very essential.
“Our thought process is evolving day by day. Where the pain is, our empathy goes. The emotion we feel is responsibility and we wish to find our place in the cure together. We can be the change. PERIOD.”