Staley Da Bear
Well-known member
- Mar 16, 2019
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In 2018, Trevathan was one of five Bears players who formed a social justice committee to use their platform and financial resources to support local nonprofit organizations. Through framework provided by the NFL, the social justice committee divides its mission into three components: education and economic advancement, police and community relations, and criminal justice reform. The players' social justice initiative has invested and raised $957,450 through donations and matching grants from the team, Bears Care and NFL Foundation for 10 different organizations.
After Floyd's death, Trevathan is vowing to become even more active, saying: "I feel like I will be more outspoken, I will be more into politics."
"I feel like I have a voice and I have to use it," Trevathan said. "I have a platform for a reason. We all have a platform for a reason. Football, I've been playing it all of my life. I've been dealing with these situations like this all of my life, although I don't speak on that stuff all of the time. Now I have a platform to speak on it, I will speak on it. I'm not afraid of any of the repercussions or none of that."
The protests sparked by Floyd's death have thrust racial injustice and police brutality into a national spotlight. The next step, according to Trevathan, is effecting and creating change.
"That's where we have to be on board," Trevathan said. "Rent a bus, rent a daggone big old subway if you have to [and] bring as many people as you can to vote and to put something forward, not just talk about this stuff.
"I'm not a person who just likes to talk. If anybody knows me, I don't just talk about stuff. I'm one of those guys, if I say something, I'm going to do it. By the day that Danny leaves this earth, you're going to know Danny did what he said he was going to do. So I feel like I'm interested in getting this resolved.
"I'm going to make sure I do my part, whatever it is. I've got two little ones I've got to grow up and teach what's going on in the world. I don't want to give them a broken world that's confused and [full of] hatred. I don't want them to deal with that. But the reality is, I'm not doing this for me. I'm doing this for them. I'm doing it for people after me. I might not reach my goal, but I will get close to it. I will help and do my part. That's what I'm here for as a man."
Trevathan is urging others to actively support the cause as well.
"I feel like if we're going to talk about it, we have to be about it first of all," he said. "We have to change the whole system. We have to be more educated about this whole thing. This is not just something you win overnight. This is something you have to take steps. You have to vote and put the right people in offices.
"People can't just ignore this stuff. We're all going to be judged one day. I feel like what you do in the presence of fear and the presence of danger and evil is what you will be judged on. I don't know about y'all, but I don't want to have to get to the gate and have to turn back around. I'm trying to have everybody come with me. And it's just like being a leader on the team— you want as many people as you can to come with you."