October is National Breast Cancer Awareness month, which means that individuals, organizations, and companies all over the country are avidly showing their support for the cause. The NFL is no exception. If you’ve turned on a football game in the past couple of weeks, you probably noticed players wearing pink shoes and accessories, a pink ribbon painted on the field, and cheerleaders waving around pink pom poms, all in an effort to raise awareness about the disease and honor breast cancer survivors as well as those who lost the battle. However, while it might seem like the NFL is down for the cause, they have also made it quite clear that this is purely a month-long event. Come November 1st, the players gotta put their pink away and put their regular uniforms back on.
For those of you who are familiar with Steelers running back (and former Panthers running back) DeAngelo Williams, you know that his pink dreads have become part of his signature look. He dyed them pink at the start of last season in honor of his mother, who passed away from breast cancer in May 2014, as well as for his four aunts who he also lost to breast cancer. Since his mother’s death, he has become the most outspoken player in the league when it comes to breast cancer and he makes it his personal mission to raise awareness about the issue. While people knew that losing his mother to breast cancer was the reason Williams dyed his hair pink, most didn’t find out about the other half of the story until last night.
According to ESPN’s Lisa Salters, Williams decided to dye his hair pink only after the NFL refused to let him wear pink gear throughout the season to honor his family members and to raise awareness about breast cancer. When he reached out to the NFL’s vice president of football operations, he was quickly shut down and told that there are no exceptions to the uniform policy. So Williams creatively thought of another way he could express himself without breaking league rules, and he’s been rocking pink hair ever since.
In an article Williams wrote for The MMQB, he talks about how important it is to him to raise awareness about breast cancer to the world:
“Breast cancer, whether I like it or not, is part of my family’s story. That’s why I am so passionate about raising awareness, because I have seen firsthand how it can impact others. One time, a lady came up to me and said she was going to get examined just because she saw me wearing pink cleats during a game. I walked away thinking, Wow, pink is really so much more than just a color. It’s a lifesaver. It’s awareness. If we reach one, we reach millions. If we reach millions, we’re doing our job and getting closer to finding a cure.”
You can read the entire touching essay here.
As for the NFL, they have yet to comment on the story.
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