Statues of Limitation

When they ask you how big can your voice really be, point them to the flag of Mississippi. When they ask you how strong can your posts and your signs really be, point them to the NFL. When they ask you how fast can you really expect things to change, point them to NASCAR. And when they ask you about rewriting history by toppling statues, tell them it was never accurately written in the first place.

Kylin Hill plays college football. He plays for Mississippi State. His statistics show that he is talented. Mississippi House Bill 1796 shows that his voice transcends sports. He declared in June that he would not represent the state again until the state flag was changed, as it includes the Confederate battle emblem as part of its design. His tweet kicked off a series of responses in support of the change from around the world of not only college sports, but the country as a whole. It culminated in a swift drafting and passage of the bill, something that was a long time coming. To call Kylin Hill a talented college athlete is too reductive.

There is no longer a conversation to be had about symbols of the Confederacy, from statues to the flag, but rather there is only action. Statues are falling--something a long time coming--and bills are being passed that recognize the oppressive nature of those symbols. The fact that NASCAR was swift to prohibit the flag from its events is telling of the power of voice.

The world of professional sports is reckoning with its own ugly present as well--mascots. Long before 2020, social justice advocates have decried the NFL for allowing Washington (D.C.) to be represented by a name and image that are extremely offensive to the indigenous people of America. For decades, that cry has gone ignored (rather than unheard). Now, it seems, change is coming. It is long overdue.

So, when people ask you how loud can you possibly scream, how effective can your cardboard sign possibly be, point them to a flag; point them to a sport, point them to a place where a symbol of hate and oppression used to be. Because in doing so, you will be pointing them in the right direction.