KILLEEN, TX — Sports across the world are united in protest for 29-year-old Jacob Blake, a Wisconsin man who was shot multiple times in the back by police, leaving him paralyzed.
The incident put police brutality back in the spotlight and even became a threat, financially to the sports world.
”We keep loving this country, and this country does not love us back,” The LA Clippers Head Coach Doc Rivers said.
Rivers is among the many who gave emotional speeches regarding equality on Wednesday. Voices that fuel the Black Lives Matter movement.
“Athletes see this at the opportune time to speak up, to protest, to say I'm tired of this happening,” Dr. Mia Moody-Ramirez a professor and chair at Baylor University said.
The demonstrations were unique as multiple professional leagues joined as a collective force. They hoped their conversation would lead to change.
“They are aware that this is going on,” Moody Ramirez said. “Whether they watch sports or not.
And as sports took another breather, the marketing realm had to adapt.
“It’s our job as marketers to make sure that we’re listening to what’s taking place,” Dalila Salazar, an assistant professor of marketing at A&M Central Texas said. “That we’re really understanding what is happening.”
However, there’s more than just the money involved.
“Making sure that we’re paying attention to every stakeholder within the industry and not just our consumer base and not just our bottom line,” Salazar said. “Is going to be incredibly important.”
As we watch society evolve, advertisers are doing the same.
”Businesses are no longer just business,” Salazar said. “It really is a personality they take on and understanding that business's personality and understanding those key players that form part of those business and communicating honestly through that understanding is incredibly important”
