One-by-one, they told their stories. Bears linebacker Danny Trevathan said his mother used to kiss him on the forehead every day when he went to school, fearful he’d never make it back to her. He didn’t understand why until he had kids of his own.
Defensive lineman Akiem Hicks talked about coping skills he learned early in life: feeling he was viewed as a threat as a “larger black kid,” he insisted on putting people at ease.
They were frustrated and angry, nuanced and vulnerable. And they wondered what would happen if they — like those around the country have done in the wake of the George Floyd killing — would protest.