Five NFL players are set to meet with Congress in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday to discuss race and police brutality.
According to ESPN, wide receiver Anquan Boldin and safety Glover Quin from the Detroit Lions, quarterback Josh McCown and wide receiver Andrew Hawkins from the Cleveland Browns, and Philadelphia Eagles safety Malcolm Jenkins will meet with members the U.S. House.
The players are scheduled to meet with Rep. Keith Ellison, D-Minn., Rep. Daniel Webster, R-Fla., Rep. Patrick Murphy, D-Fla., and members of the Congressional Black Caucus. The NFL’s Players Association has also worked to set up meetings with Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, R-Wis., and members of the White House Staff.
Boldin, who won the NFL’s Walter Payton Man of the Year award in 2015 for his community work off the field, told ESPN that they are going to Capitol Hill to help close the “gap” between the police and the communities they serve.
McCown is the lone white player making the trip to the nation’s capital.
“I don’t believe we, as white people, can understand what African-Americans go through on a daily basis, because it’s different,” McCown said. “For me, first and foremost, I want to be able to acknowledge that, and say that our stories are different and our histories are different, but let’s just try to be a part of making it better moving forward.”
