George Floyd Death: Former Ravens Wide Receiver Donté Stallworth Among Those To Protest In Washington D.C.
WASHINGTON (WJZ) -- Much of the nation and the world watched as demonstrators in front of the White House were dispersed using tear gas, flash bombs and pepper spray Monday.
Among the protesters, former NFL wide receiver Donté Stallworth. Stallworth, who played with the Ravens and the Saints, now lives in Washington D.C.
He said he has been part of massive, peaceful protests in front of the White House for three days, but that everything changed Monday afternoon.
"People were gathering by the thousands protesting," he said. "That's when the police came out aggressively out of the White House grounds and started moving onto the street and swinging their batons at people and pushing them back," Stallworth recalled.
"People kept texting me, hey, the President's about to speak, and it took me a minute to put two and two together because I just saw a guy get hit in the head with a baton, and he's like bleeding out of his head right in front of me," Stallworth added. "Then it hit me, once the police came out with the horses, it became very aggressive, and they started throwing flash bangs and other chemical agents."
WJZ's Denise Koch: "Were the protestors, had they gotten aggressive? Were they becoming a problem? Was there any reason for the escalation in police activity?
Stallworth: "No, not at all. Well I'll say the reason was that the President was speaking so they had to."
WJZ's Denise Koch: That's clear to you?
Stallworth: "Oh, yeah. For sure."
Stallworth's father and late grandfather were both veterans. So, this week, Stallworth said it hit home when his friend and former teammate Drew Brees posted that he would never take a knee in disrespect.
"Unfortunately it took all this backlash [for Brees] to say, hey, maybe I need to listen. Maybe I need to sit back and listen instead of making this about me and my grandfather," Stallworth said.
Brees has since issued a statement. He said he "missed the mark on issues facing this country"
WJZ's Denise Koch: "I understand there's another protest planned for tomorrow. Will you be there?"
Stallworth: "Yeah, I'll be there."
Stallworth isn't alone. Several NFL players have released a video calling on the league to take a stand against racism and support black players.
The video is called "Stronger Together." The players want the league to release a statement condemning racism and police brutality.
In response, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell issued a video statement on Friday saying "we were wrong for not listening to NFL players earlier" who were protesting police brutality.