Following the game, Jeff Folmer, the head of the Cleveland Police Patrolman Association, condemned Hawkins’ display, claiming that athletes should stick to sports.
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On Monday, Hawkins employers backed their wide receiver’s right to support his beliefs.
It’s refreshing to see an organization support their player when it comes to a sensitive cultural topic. Here’s a link to his full transcript.
Far too often organizations want their players to stay away from hot-button political and cultural issues, but just because a professional athlete gets paid millions of dollars to play a specific sport doesn’t mean that they have to give up their voice.
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Following the support of his organization, Hawkins reiterated that he would not be apologizing for the statement he made.