(Jewish Group) Zach Banner and other Black athletes hold online panel about fighting anti-Semitism
Prominent Black athletes Zach Banner, Josh Bell and Alysha Clark came together with the rabbi of Pittsburgh’s Tree of Life synagogue for a panel about fighting anti-Semitism on Wednesday night.
Banner, an offensive lineman for the Pittsburgh Steelers, has been outspoken about anti-Semitism spread by athletes, including fellow NFLer DeSean Jackson last year.
“We preach to identify to the Black and brown people in the city of Pittsburgh. But you can’t do that by turning off the light on Squirrel Hill, Shady Side and other Jewish communities that we have,” Banner said at the panel.
Banner said that Bell, formerly a first baseman for the Pittsburgh Pirates and now a member of the Washington Nationals, first inspired him to become more involved in social issues. Bell said at the panel that the 2018 Tree of Life shooting, which killed 11 worshippers, “opened up my eyes to what’s really going [on].”
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