Nick Saban Leads Alabama Football Players in Black Lives Matter March

Alabama football coach Nick Saban led his players and other athletes on a march to protest racial and social injustice this week. This demonstration comes one week after Jacob Blake, a Black man from Wisconsin, was shot seven times by police officers. Saban and the athletes marched on the University of Alabama campus from the Mal M. Moore Athletic Facility to Foster Auditorium, which is the same place where Gov. George Wallace stood at the door in 1963, trying to prevent two Black students entering the school.

“Today I’m like a proud parent,” Saban said after the march via AL.com. “I’m proud of our team, I’m proud of our messengers over here and I’m very proud of the message. I’m very proud of the’ All lives can’t matter until Black lives matter’ video that we did early on that I think had a very positive impact. That was something we did together as a team.” Saban also said the team “decided to do together as a team, so I’m very proud and supportive of what they are trying to say, and in a peaceful and intelligent way. I’m very pleased to be here today.”

Saban also spoke in from the door where Wallace attempted to prevent the Black students from entering. He said he “learned a lot from our players. I don’t get to see the world through the same lens that a lot of our players do.” Saban then added his role as a leader is to “listen to the players, to learn from the players and to give them the opportunity to do things that could impact social change today.”

Saban has been very supportive of his players speaking out against racism. Back in June, Saban and his players were seen in a video talking about the Black Lives Matter movement. “In this moment in history, we can’t be silent,” the players and Saban said together in the video. “We are a team. Black, white brown. Together we are a family. We are brothers. …On the field we are relentless. We are strong. We are conquerors. But we are human beings first. And in this moment in history, we can’t be silent. We must speak up for our brothers and sisters, for our sons and daughters.”