1:34
We the @TheOfficialHDA have formally requested the @NHL to suspend all playoff games today. We strongly feel this sends a clear message that human rights take priority over sports.
— Evander Kane (@evanderkane_9) August 27, 2020
Protests anticipated in Tokyo
Gwen Berry, a track and field athlete who turned away from the American flag at the U.S. Olympic Trials as the national anthem was played, already has received backlash for her silent protest on the podium.
\"I never said that I hated the country,\" Berry told Black News Channel in an interview. \"All I said was, I respect my people enough to not stand or acknowledge something that disrespects them.\"
Berry considers herself an \"activist athlete\" and has made several peaceful demonstrations against systemic racism at competitions.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki spoke on President Joe Biden's behalf, in support of her actions:
\"I know [Biden] is incredibly proud to be an American and has great respect for the anthem and all that it represents,\" Psaki said. \"He would also say that part of that pride in our country means recognizing there are moments where we, as a country, haven't lived up to our highest ideals, and means respecting the right of people granted in the Constitution to peacefully protest.\"
![\"PHOTO:](\"http://a.abcnews.com/images/US/gwen-berry-gty-jt-210709_1625858152190_hpMain_4x3t_384.jpg\")
Several Republicans, including Rep. Dan Crenshaw, R-Texas, have spoken out against Berry and other athletes who may protest at the Olympics.
\"We don't need any more activist athletes,\" Crenshaw said on \"Fox and Friends.\" \"She should be removed from the team. The entire point of the Olympic team is to represent the United States of America.\"
Moore said that Black athletes have long been criticized and suppressed when it came to expressing their beliefs, and that he believes efforts to silence Berry just show how powerful her message is.
\"She is officially the voice of this moment,\" Moore said. \"That's the most powerful part about that is that a Black woman is holding court -- she has the world's attention.\"
However, historians and sports analysts say that sports can be a tool for dialogue, and that athletes have been great forces in calling attention to issues of injustice and inequality.
\"A lot of sports fans consider themselves apolitical and so they have to confront certain elements of society that they might not otherwise confront through sports,\" Boykoff said. \"Sports can be an important entry point for people to have conversations about politics that they'd otherwise never have.\"
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