EAGAN, Minn. -- The family of George Floyd will be inside U.S. Bank Stadium Sunday for the Minnesota Vikings' season opener against the Green Bay Packers, which will kick off after the playing of "Lift Ev'ry Voice and Sing."
"Lift Ev'ry Voice and Sing," traditionally known as the Black national anthem, is expected to be performed live or played before every Week 1 NFL game, in addition to "The Star-Spangled Banner."
In June, the Vikings created the George Floyd Legacy Scholarship with a $125,000 endowment that will generate about $5,000 annually to benefit African American graduating seniors in Minneapolis-St. Paul who are pursuing post-secondary education. The team announced the inaugural recipient this week in conjunction with a nearly $1 million allotment towards causes championed by the team's social justice committee.
Floyd, a Black man, died in Minneapolis in May while in police custody after a white officer kneeled on Floyd's neck for more than seven minutes.
On Friday, the Vikings announced their pregame plans to bring awareness to social justice issues.
During warm-ups, players will wear custom T-shirts with "Be the Change" verbiage on the front and the names of 200 individuals who have been killed by acts of racism or police brutality on the back. Players may also wear NFLPA-and player-created Nike warm-up T-shirts bearing the phrase "An injustice to one is an injustice to all of US."
The Vikings and Packers also will come together in their respective end zones, which will be marked with the messages "It Takes All of Us" and "End Racism."
