NFL superstar Michael Bennett wrote about being detained and cuffed by Las Vegas police on the night of the Mayweather-McGregor fight/spectacle, after gunshots were heard in his proximity. Bennett’s story both terrified and resonated, as he described a situation painfully familiar to many minorities. Bennett wrote: “I felt helpless as I lay there on the ground handcuffed facing the real-life threat of being killed. All I could think of was ‘I’m going to die for no other reason than I am black and my skin color is somehow a threat.'”
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell issued a statement that said the NFL supports “promoting mutual respect between law enforcement and the communities they loyally serve.” Goodell said Bennett “represents the best of the NFL” and conceded that the “issues Michael has been raising deserve serious consideration.” For his part, Bennett wasn’t so much raising an issue as telling a harrowing tale of how he was treated. But only the LVPD knows why Bennett was targated for that treatment — whether it was based on his race, or his unfortunate whereabouts at the time. Unlike the police’s motivation, the courageous Bennett’s real fear, which he described plainly, is not in doubt.
.@nflcommish statement on Michael Bennett pic.twitter.com/OZkF18g079
— Brian McCarthy (@NFLprguy) September 6, 2017
