At long last, the National Football League (NFL) has (temporarily) given up the ghost on one of its most ridiculous initiatives in recent memory.
Super Bowl LIX between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Kansas City Chiefs will take place on Sunday in New Orleans, Louisiana. Usually, fans see the message “End Racism” painted on the back boundary of each endzone because we all know that nothing eradicates racism as effectively as a slogan on a football field.
However, that will not be the case for the title bought on Sunday. The Athletic’s Mike Silver broke the news that that slogan will not appear on the field of the Caesars Superdome.
According to two league sources, Sunday’s game between the Chiefs and Eagles will mark the first time since February 2021 that “End Racism” is not included as a message in the back of a Super Bowl end zone.
— The Athletic (@TheAthletic) February 4, 2025
More from @MikeSilver: https://t.co/ka2uYrt60J pic.twitter.com/3qoGiJ0YyN
Instead, the NFL will paint the logo “Choose Love” on the back boundaries. NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy confirmed that the league felt it was a more appropriate message given all that has happened in our country in recent memory.
"The Super Bowl is often a snapshot in time and the NFL is in a unique position to capture and lift the imagination of the country," McCarthy said in a statement. "'Choose Love' is appropriate to use as our country has endured in recent weeks wildfires in southern California, the terrorist attack here in New Orleans, the plane and helicopter crash near our nation’s capital, and the plane crash in Philadelphia."
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Personally, I think this message doesn’t quite convey exactly the right message, but it's close enough, and the reasoning is solid. Furthermore, it's a massive win that “End Racism” won’t be there because it sets a goal that could never be accomplished.
The NFL deemed that unequal outcomes between members of society were proof of racism (which isn’t true). Not only did it incorrectly define the problem, the NFL assumed racism could be eradicated - which, of course, it can’t.
Racism is thinking that you are superior to another ethnic group because of some unimportant characteristic (like their skin color), and or acting on that belief. People have struggled with this since the beginning of time, and will until the end of time. It’s not something you can completely get rid of, you can only do your part to fight it where you see it.
It’s good to know that I’ll be able to watch the refs hand the Chiefs the Super Bowl without getting wokeness shoved down my throat.
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