Nassib did the
design as part of the My Cause My Cleats campaign, in which players wear cleats
that spotlight nonprofit organizations and then auction the shoes off to
benefit the groups, NBC News reports.
Nassib, a
defensive end with the Las Vegas Raiders, came out in June in a video post on Instagram. He made
a $100,000 donation to the Trevor Project at the time, and the NFL matched it.
Players wore
their My Cause cleats in games played December 3, but Nassib was out injured.
His cleats were featured in a Raiders tweet, though, sporting the Trevor
Project’s name and the number of its suicide prevention hotline, (866)
488-7386.
One other
player, Cleveland Browns fullback Johnny Stanton, chose to benefit an LGBTQ+
organization with his cleats — Athlete Ally, which works for LGBTQ+ inclusion
in sports. Stanton told Outsports he had a gay uncle, Patrick Stanton,
who was an elite-level swimmer and never felt comfortable coming out in the
sports environment. “I don’t want the athletes coming out today to feel like
they can’t be themselves,” Johnny Stanton said.
Before this
year, only one player had supported an LGBTQ+ cause through the cleats
campaign, that being Miami Dolphins wide receiver Preston Williams, who
promoted Miami LGBTQ+ group Pridelines in 2019.
The NFL has
held the campaign since 2016. Cyd Zeigler, cofounder of Outsports, expressed
disappointment that so few players have chosen LGBTQ+ causes. “People talk
about the importance of allies and I say all the time, that we can't wait for
allies to show up, that LGBTQ people have to push for our own visibility and
our own equality,” he told NBC News.
SOURCE: ADVOCATE
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