The Kansas City Chiefs hosted the Houston Texans Thursday evening for the NFL’s opening game of the 2020 season, and intended to provide a show of unity by locking arms with their teammates and opponents before the game — but the solemnity of the moment was ruined by fans booing in the stands.

The pregame activities at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri included players from both teams lining up down the center of the field with their arms locked together in a moment of silence for racial equality. NBC’s televised video feed caught audible booing coming from the fans.

The booing was loudly condemned on social media, with many feeling that the players had chosen a way to express their support for racial equality in a respectful and thoughtful way, and not anything that deserved to be booed. Sports journalists in particular were highly critical of the booing.

are…people actually booing this?! #HOUvsKC pic.twitter.com/XiUrcZp582

— stephanie suarez (@southbndsuarez) September 11, 2020

Absolutely disgusting. Moment of unity wasn’t even during the anthem so they can’t point to that as a reason.

— Eric (@EricLeeUltimate) September 11, 2020

Booing a moment of unity is Grade A shamful behavior. What an embarassment. https://t.co/wx3E1ck94p

— Chris Biderman (@ChrisBiderman) September 11, 2020

My hometown's got no love for unity? They're booing unity now?pic.twitter.com/fAN92iqHJv

— Michael Lee (@MrMichaelLee) September 11, 2020

Yeah, so that booing during the “show of unity” is a real good example of why players feel so strongly about these causes in the first place.

— Terez A. Paylor (@TerezPaylor) September 11, 2020

Pathetic! Some #ChiefsKingdom fans are booing the teams for their moment of unity during the National Anthem | #HOUvsKC

I thought y’all weren’t watching anymore NFL games!? #WeAreTexans | #NFL pic.twitter.com/OKvAyIGY4b

— Mike Dixon (@MikeDixon_VSD) September 11, 2020

People booing a moment of unity are part of the problem in America. #MomentOfUnity #HOUvsKC

— ((ProperGander News)) (@BamaStephen) September 11, 2020

What’s worse than a milquetoast, inoffensive “moment of unity”? People booing that milquetoast, inoffensive “moment of unity.”

— Dave Zirin (@EdgeofSports) September 11, 2020

fans are really booing right now during the moment of silence… actual trash #HOUvsKC

— regina (@_reginamd) September 11, 2020

There were at least two possible counter-theories regarding the booing, however. There were reports that someone yelled “Trump 2020!” in the stands and people booed in response to that, and another theory that the booing was in response to the Texans’ late entry onto the field.

I have headphones on so I heard everything more clearly. They started booing because someone yelled “Trump 2020”. They were booing at him, not the moment of silence.

— Jordan Throgmartin (@JThrogmartin) September 11, 2020

The booing heard at KC (from what I heard live) was sparked because someone in the crowd yelled “Donald Trump”. To my knowledge, that is what they were booing at, not the #MomentOfUnity. #HOUvsKC #NFLKickoff

— Jordan Throgmartin (@JThrogmartin) September 11, 2020

They weren’t booing “unity” you dolts. They were booing the fact that the Texans didn’t show up on the field until after the national anthem—on the eve of 9/11 no less. #HOUvsKC https://t.co/Yc8IXVP3YX

— Erik Brooks (@ChipBrooks17) September 11, 2020

from Mediaite https://ift.tt/33ooUjM