Many people often say, «keep politics out of sports» or «shut up and play». But sometimes there are events that happen that make the sports world seem like an afterthought. In May of 2020 when George Floyd was murdered by a police officer from the Saint Paul Minnesota Police Department, it felt like everything had turned upside down. Everyone was suddenly talking about race relations and police reform in some way.
After the George Floyd murder, Minnesota Wild player Matt Dumba helped form the Hockey Diversity Alliance in June of 2020. The HDA is a group of players of colour who are trying to work with the NHL and other hockey organizations to «Eradicate systemic racism and intolerance in hockey.» The NHL seemed like they were a willing partner with the HDA when the NHL returned to finish the 2020 in the bubble in Edmonton. They even let Matt Dumba give an impassioned speech before the start of one of the qualifying round games.
There seemed to be real momentum building in the NHL to try and stop some of the systemic issues that have been plaguing the league. But with the ever changing population in Canada and the USA, the slogan «Hockey is for Everyone» that the NHL created should ring true. But like everything the NHL does, if it takes one step forward, it takes two steps backwards.
