US sports teams rally against guns
A country where weapons are freely available, the United States has been hit by two horrific shootings in recent weeks: in Buffalo (New York State) where 10 people were killed on May 14, then in Uvalde (Texas), where 21 people, including 19 children, were shot dead on May 24. The emotion has been enormous in the United States and beyond and a national debate on gun control is launched in the United States.
75 teams involved in the »Wear Orange Weekend »
Several American sports teams (NFL, MLB, NBA, NHL, MLS, WNBA) have decided to take a stand. 75 of them are expected to participate in « Wear Orange Weekend », an annual event, which began on Friday to advocate for an end to gun violence, according to the NGO Everytown for Gun Safety. Last year, 29 professional teams participated in this event. Players usually wear a small orange ribbon on their uniforms on this occasion.
Everytown for Gun Safety did not wish to communicate the list of US sports franchises involved in the movement. However, the Houston Texans (NFL), Washington Nationals (MLB) and San Antonio Spurs (NBA) are known to be among these teams. On Friday, warming up before facing the Cincinnati Reds, the Nationals players wore a T-shirt with the word « Enough » (« Enough »), for » call for increased commitment to reduce gun violence « . The WNBA said Friday it was partnering with Everytown for Gun Safety for the fourth straight year.
News about gun violence rather than matches
A week earlier, the New York Yankees and Tampa Bay Rays, both MLB teams, used their social media to post about gun violence instead of covering the game they were playing. The Toronto Raptors (NBA) launched a petition on Friday, asking Canadian lawmakers to join the United States in observing the first Friday in June as National Gun Violence Awareness Day.
Steve Kerr, coach of the Golden State Warriors, who are currently playing in the NBA Finals, refused to talk about basketball during a postgame press conference on May 24, the day of the Uvalde shooting. . He had preferred to call for stricter gun control.
