As a note for those reading, I am white. My family came over as refugees and indentured servants, but I have been shielded from discrimination and hardship by two generations. I do not profess to understand the constant struggle people of color face every second of their lives. I am, however, a journalist and want to use my platform to bring awareness to what is happening to people of color in this country and around the world. It is a big undertaking and those of us at Dallas Sports Fanatic are figuring out how to do this through conversations with those on our staff and in our lives who are people of color. With that in mind, if you want to discuss your thoughts with us on the current situation please email us at info@dallassportsfanatic.com.

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The world is watching and the Dallas Mavericks are doing their part. There was a gathering in front of the Dallas Police Headquarters this week in memory of George Floyd, an unarmed black man killed by police in Minneapolis, Minnesota in May of 2020.

“This is our community; our country,” Mark Cuban told The Dallas Morning News. “Both are hurting. I wanted to be here to listen. To understand better the pain the African-American community is going through. And to show that the Mavs organization will be here to help.”

Mark Cuban, Justin Jackson, Dwight Powell, Maxi Kleber and Jalen Brunson protesting in Dallas right now.

(Photo and ID credit: @SmileyPool/@dallasnews) pic.twitter.com/LPJyQGK1Dt

— Callie Caplan (@CallieCaplan) May 31, 2020

In addition to Cuban, Mavericks players Dwight Powell, Justin Jackson, Jalen Brunson and Maxi Kleber were also present at the Dallas gathering.

“I think it’s important for anybody who cares about justice and the things that are going on in this city and the things that have been going on in this country for a long time,” Powell said, when asked why he came. “It’s important to be a part of the conversation,” he added. “I think Mark has done a great job in his leadership of us and showing us that we have a voice. To be able to be here and hear the voice of the community — share their opinions and thoughts and feelings — it was very important for us to be here today.”

Bringing awareness to what is happening is important to allow collective understanding and hopefully, healing and change.

“I want to bring awareness. I want to not just be here, but try to help promote change. Most importantly I’m glad that Mark is the owner that he is and that he’s allowing us to be vocal and be present in these situations. He gave us the confidence to actually come out here,” Brunson told The Dallas Morning News.

An internal memo from NBA Commissioner Silver seems to encompass some of the feelings and emotions happening during this time.

“Like you, I spent the weekend watching the protests around the country over the deaths of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery and Breonna Taylor. As a league, we share the outrage and offer our sincere condolences to their families and friends. Just as we are fighting a pandemic, which is impacting communities and people of color more than anyone else, we are being reminded that there are wounds in our country that have never healed. Racism, police brutality and racial injustice remain part of everyday life in America and cannot be ignored. At the same time, those who serve and protect our communities honorably and heroically are again left to answer for those who don’t.”

While people of color know these emotions and feelings all too well, those who aren’t might never fully understand these ramifications. However, we must try to understand, listen, and help people of color through and out of these situations. We must work to eradicate this systemic racism present not only in our local communities, but in the global community as well.