James White believes the New England Patriots will stage some sort of protest against social injustice during the 2020 season.
"I'm sure we'll figure something out as a team," the running back said Thursday, according to Mike Reiss of ESPN. "I'm not sure exactly what that will be, but I'm sure guys will peacefully protest in some type of form or fashion."
White was one of 17 Patriots players who took a knee for the U.S. national anthem before a game in September 2017 to protest police brutality and systemic racism. Racial injustice has garnered renewed attention in the U.S. and around the world after the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis police custody in May.
Floyd, an African-American man, died after Derek Chauvin, a white officer, kneeled on his neck for nearly nine minutes while Floyd was handcuffed on the ground.
"I think everybody is trying to speak out a little bit more, a lot more people being more comfortable letting everybody know how they feel," said White, who's been with the Patriots since 2014 and has served as a team captain in each of the last two seasons.
"I think that's important because some people might not understand that racism and things of that nature still exist, but it does. The color of your skin, unfortunately, comes with different things in America.
He added: "It's sad that things like that - the George Floyd situation - have been going on for year after year and time after time. People have to be held accountable for things like that. Some laws need to be changed. It all starts with a conversation. All these people speaking up is only going to help."
Players across the league knelt during the national anthem in 2017, following in the footsteps of Colin Kaepernick, who was the first player to protest systemic racism in 2016 as a member of the San Francisco 49ers.
