BleedGopher
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per Marcus:
During the unrest that followed the tragic death of George Floyd in police custody in Minneapolis last week, Damian Johnson hatched an idea that he hopes could help Minnesota's youth understand racial issues.
The former Gophers standout wants to create a program where kids from the inner city and rural Minnesota connect at a young age. The goal is they “build relationships they wouldn’t normally have," Johnson said.
The idea already gained an abundance of positive feedback across the state.
When it comes to speaking his mind on racial issues, Johnson doesn’t shy away from tough conversations on social media. He posed a serious question on Twitter last week: “If you are white and from Minnesota but not from the Twin Cities, how old were you when you had your first conversation with a black person?
Johnson said he was surprised by how many people he met that hadn’t talked to a black person until college or later in life when stereotypes were already formed, often negative. That was a reason for him wanting to encourage earlier conversations with people from different backgrounds.
“If you look at it, America has progressed a lot,” Johnson said. “But right now, it’s a period of so much uncertainty because we have got so many different messages being put out that cause divisiveness. It feels like everything had been progressing great. Then we kind of got to a point where we got stuck. The police brutality part is where I don’t think enough people understand. We’re not saying all cops want to kill black people. We’re seeing a lot of times, we’re targeted or people are afraid of you. And you don’t know what’s going to happen in situations of fear.”
www.startribune.com
Go Damian Johnson!!
During the unrest that followed the tragic death of George Floyd in police custody in Minneapolis last week, Damian Johnson hatched an idea that he hopes could help Minnesota's youth understand racial issues.
The former Gophers standout wants to create a program where kids from the inner city and rural Minnesota connect at a young age. The goal is they “build relationships they wouldn’t normally have," Johnson said.
The idea already gained an abundance of positive feedback across the state.
When it comes to speaking his mind on racial issues, Johnson doesn’t shy away from tough conversations on social media. He posed a serious question on Twitter last week: “If you are white and from Minnesota but not from the Twin Cities, how old were you when you had your first conversation with a black person?
Johnson said he was surprised by how many people he met that hadn’t talked to a black person until college or later in life when stereotypes were already formed, often negative. That was a reason for him wanting to encourage earlier conversations with people from different backgrounds.
“If you look at it, America has progressed a lot,” Johnson said. “But right now, it’s a period of so much uncertainty because we have got so many different messages being put out that cause divisiveness. It feels like everything had been progressing great. Then we kind of got to a point where we got stuck. The police brutality part is where I don’t think enough people understand. We’re not saying all cops want to kill black people. We’re seeing a lot of times, we’re targeted or people are afraid of you. And you don’t know what’s going to happen in situations of fear.”
Ex-Gopher Damian Johnson hopes to connect inner city and rural Minnesota youth to talk about race
New Benilde-St. Margaret's coach Damian Johnson wants to bring inner city and rural Minnesota kids together to talk about race and build future relationships.
www.startribune.com
Go Damian Johnson!!
