The NFL is known for a lot of things. Sensitivity is not one of them.
DeAngelo Williams, running back for the Pittsburg Steelers, lost his mother to breast cancer last year. Four of his aunts battled the illness. Pink is his daughter's favorite color because it reminds her of her Nana. In an NFL promo video, Williams said, "Pink is not a color, it's a culture to me." Pink represents the courage to fight.
But as ESPN originally reported, the NFL told Williams that after the month of October, he would no longer be permitted to wear pink on the field, citing a strict uniform policy.
The NFL does try, really. October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and since the launch of its "A Crucial Catch" campaign in 2009, the NFL has covered its players, fields, and merchandise shelves with pink to raise awareness and money.
But the Pink campaign was controversial from the start. Many viewed it as a cheap publicity stunt and a disingenuous way to pander to women, especially considering the NFL's track record of poorly handled domestic violence cases. In 2013, Business Insider reported that only 8.01 percent of money fans spent on pink merchandise went towards cancer research, and last year, Vice Sports found that the money donated to the American Cancer Society didn't go towards cancer research at all. Instead, it funded "awareness, education, and screenings for women over 40," which have been found to be largely ineffective in the fight to save lives. Essentially, "A Crucial Catch" is not helping women.
Which leads us to wonder: if the pink campaign is under fire for appearing insincere and misguided, why is the NFL regulating the one player, Williams, whose very public support of the campaign comes from a most sincere and heartfelt place?
The NFL isn't done. After Monday's game, Williams' teammate, Cameron Heyward, was heavily fined for writing "Iron Head" on his eye black—yes, just a few square inches of face paint—in honor of his late father, Craig "Ironhead" Heyward, Deadspin reported. His father died from cancer in 2006.
The NFL doesn't need more bad press, and it doesn't need to target female fans; almost half of professional football fans are already women. It does need to convince people that it has a reason for existing beyond making money; that there is some semblance of a soul left in the sport. Unfortunately, preventing Williams and Heyward from honoring their family members on the field is just the latest in the NFL's long history of soul-sucking moves.
Sarah Rense is the Lifestyle Editor at Esquire, where she covers tech, food, drinks, home, and more.
