The Baltimore Ravens, along with the Steve and Renee Bisciotti Foundation, announced on Monday a $1 million joint-donation will be going to 28 local charities promoting racial equality.
Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti pledged to make this donation a week after George Floyd was killed by a police officer in Minnesota.
The Ravens formed a committee with five players -- Justin Tucker, Morgan Cox, Marlon Humphrey, Matthew Judon and Ronnie Stanley -- and former wide receiver Torrey Smith in order to decide which Baltimore-area organizations would receive funding.
"When you talk about social justice, there are many different issues -- from education, to criminal justice reform, to health," Smith said through a Ravens release. "There are so many avenues the players could have chosen, so they really spread it out among a lot of different grassroots organizations. This is just the beginning of trying to figure out as many ways to collaborate with the people in the city who are doing great things to help change Baltimore for the better."
For Stanley, his status as a professional athlete in America's biggest sporting league makes him
"I'm passionate about this, knowing the position I'm in and how blessed I am to be in a position to help people. I'm not going to forget about the people who are dealing with things that aren't fair. We have an opportunity to help make the world a better place, and I want to take advantage of that," Stanley said in the Ravens statement.
"There are so many places in society that racism has affected. It really starts with people's mentalities and how they've been raised and taught," continued Stanley. "The biggest thing for me is educating people about their own misconceptions and stereotypes, helping them understand the root behind these stereotypes and why the black community is where it is today. It has everything to do with American history."
For a full list of the 28 organizations receiving money, click here.
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Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti makes $1 million donation to local social justice reform programs originally appeared on NBC Sports Washington
