I like it when Chiefs players make personal statements because it reminds us all that they are real humans with real feelings. I don’t always like writing about that because the comments section often turns into a cesspool when anything remotely political is involved.
So I guess I’m just gonna burn it all down here. Alex Smith wore a safety pin in his postgame press conference last weekend. I didn’t know what it meant but then read that it was a sign of support for others. It’s doesn’t affect me and he’s pushing something positive so I can get behind that.
Alex was asked about the safety pin again on Wednesday and he had some time to explain his thoughts on it.
“I didn’t even think it got noticed at the time,” Alex said via quotes from the Chiefs. “I’ll tell you what it wasn’t -- it wasn’t anything political and it didn’t have anything to do with the presidential election. For me, it had everything to do with tolerance and understanding. It’s something I found out about at my kid’s school where they were trying to teach about diversity and intolerance. I don’t totally know why [I wore it], it just felt like it was pertinent at the time. I feel like there’s a lot going on right now, a lot of crazy stuff and a lack of understanding across the spectrum with different beliefs. It just felt pertinent. It had nothing to do with the presidential election or the outcome. It had everything to do with tolerance of diversity and different people.”
I don’t normally think our sports stars are who we should look to for stuff like this but Alex’s message of tolerating everyone is a good one.