Kyle Long's hometown of Charlottesville, Virginia has been in the news for all the wrong reasons of late.
The normally quiet city was where white nationalists and neo-Nazis descended on over the weekend, spewing hate that ultimately led to the death of Heather Heyer, a 32-year-old woman protesting against white supremacy.
The Bears offensive lineman spoke on the injustices and violence happening in his hometown after training camp on Sunday.
Regardless of where it’s happening, injustice in the world we live in, in any place, is injustice to humanity. And it’s a threat to the freedoms we have. Obviously, it’s a small percentage of people involved who are blatantly in the wrong, and we need to do our best as good folks and continue to outnumber and express our opinions and act accordingly when given the opportunity to.
We’ve been here at camp, so we haven't really been able to watch all the coverage. But being from Charlottesville, I’ve kinda had the inside ear. Prayers to the families that lost folks. Just thinking about all the people there going through it right now.
Kyle's brother, Chris, also spoke on the incident, noting that he felt compelled to speak on the blatant bigotry.
Although Long's childhood home's name has now been unforgettably linked with the hate-filled rally, he firmly believes that Charlottesville shouldn't be painted with a broad brush.
Obviously, people ask, ‘You’re from Charlottesville?’ it kinda leaves a bad taste in their mouths thinking that one of their guys is from Charlottesville, where they see all these rallies and stuff happening. Like I said, don’t let a few bad apples ruin what is really true about Charlottesville and that area — there’s good folks there. I grew up with really good people. I got buddies who are in the police department. I got a lot of family and friends out there. It’s rough. It’s a strange time. Like I said, the more we can do right to each other and act accordingly when presented with the situation, then the better off we’ll be.
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