It was almost four weeks ago when Matthew Abdullah, Michael Lynn III, Kabbash Richards, and Roje Williams knelt down for the first time during the national anthem at their Lansing Catholic homecoming game.
They faced a lot of adversity after their decision to kneel.
Michael says it was clear who was upset by it:
"We got to see really everyone who was against us in all this," he says. "The people that smiled in our faces and wished us good luck, 'please play well Friday so we can win.'"
Now, almost a month later, the school has taken some action, by creating a diversity club of sorts. Roje and Matthew were able to make it to the meetings on Thursday and say they're excited for what it will mean:
"We want to make it so that we can have meetings all together as a group to make decisions and stuff," Matthew Abdullah explains. "We're going to help like plan what we're going to do for Martin Luther King Day and see if we can get other events going and started."
A letter principal Doug Moore sent to students mentioned the club will work towards building a safe place for students to discuss race and ethnicity.
"Racism is real," the letter said in part. "It affects all of us but in different ways. And how do we respond to it — ignore it, fight it, change it?"
"We want to create a safe space for students to talk about issues of race and ethnicity, to build bridges of unity and respect, and to help our school and broader community uphold the life and dignity of all human persons. The intent is that this group will be student-driven, open to all students and there are several teachers and parents who are willing to help."
This isn't the end of the line for the four players. They'll still kneel during the anthem before every game to try and continue to bring change.
They say this club is only a small part of a bigger picture of fighting against racism in the US.
"Instead of inching the door, we kicked it open," says Michael, "and that's kind of how I do things, you know we're going to kick the door open and figure it out. It's not going to get swept under the rug."
