(Reuters) – Every member of the Washington Nationals and New York Yankees took a knee to protest racial inequality prior to the playing of the U.S. national anthem on Thursday at the first game of the Major League Baseball season in the nation’s capital.
All of the players then stood during the playing of the anthem. Players and coaches from both clubs also held a 200-yard band of black fabric to support the ‘Black Lives Matter’ movement.
Athletes from around the world have united in solidarity behind anti-racism protests sparked by the death of George Floyd in police custody in Minneapolis.
MLB said it would allow players to wear ‘Black Lives Matter’ batting practice t-shirts, patches that say ‘Black Lives Matter’ or ‘United For Change’ on their sleeves, and a wristband featuring an inverted MLB logo where the silhouetted batter is black.
The league has also lifted its restrictions on cleats for the 2020 season, giving players the freedom to express opinions related to social justice on their footwear.
(Reporting by Rory Carroll in Los Angeles and Frank Pingue in Toronto; Editing by Peter Rutherford)
