Football talks took place back this week, when new head coach Joe Judge on Friday used his virtual team meeting with the Giants to discuss the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis and subsequent protests across the country against racial inequality and police brutality against African Americans.
The meeting did not only involve the Judge and his players. Joint owners John Mara and Steve Tisch participated, The Post has learned, for the purpose of listening and understanding the issues being discussed, and the thoughts and emotions of those who enter the meeting remotely from all countries.
This is not the first time the Judge and his players have discussed this issue. The judge discussed with the players throughout the week and held a Friday meeting to specifically share his thoughts and hear what the players were thinking and feeling. Mara and Tisch listen.
Having ownership is very important, given the events of the last few years, when Colin Kaepernick was effectively blacked out of the NFL after he knelt before the game, during the anthem, to protest racial inequality and police brutality against black people.
The Giants, in a statement released last week, said, “George Floyd’s absurd death is the kind of tragedy that we have witnessed too often for too long. Over the past week, our players and coaches have talked about pain, pain, frustration and anger. “
The statement went on to say, “We continue to talk about what we can do to help unite and heal and, more importantly, create real opportunities and meaningful change. We have a responsibility as citizens to work constructively. What we do to make a difference is what matters most. We have the ability to advocate for social justice and sustainable change. “
Floyd, a 46-year-old black man, died last Monday due to Derek Chauvin, a Minneapolis police officer, kneeling on his neck for more than eight minutes. Chauvin was eventually charged with second-degree murder, and three other officers were accused of aiding and abetting Floyd’s murder.
The Giants players did not remain silent amid protests. Saquon Barkley and Sterling Shepard were part of a group of NFL players who made and posted strong videos on Thursday, demanding action by the NFL. A day later, commissioner Roger Goodell, in the response video, admitted, “we were wrong for not listening to NFL players before.”
Barkley last week posted photos of herself on Instagram wearing a soccer jersey that said, “I can’t breathe,” a reminder of what Floyd said over and over as he was dying. Wednesday, Barkley took to Twitter to post “His protest was extraordinary and inspiring. But please in 2 or 3 weeks when protests no longer occur. We still need change, we need to unite as a community and we need action! Racism and injustice cannot exist! “
The former Giants defender, Michael Strahan, a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, in a video last week, expressed his sadness over the deaths of Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, and Breonna Taylor.
“I don’t understand. I don’t understand,” Strahan said. “It’s crazy about that. Because we continue to have the same conversation, and in the end, there seems to be no resolution. There is no justice. Not finished. I think that’s a frustrating thing.
“It’s very difficult like black people that the color of your skin makes people afraid of you.”
