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Current, Former Steelers Sign Players Coalition Petition to End Qualified Immunity for Police

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Rookie guard Kevin Dotson, cornerback Steven Nelson and several former Pittsburgh Steelers players are among the over 1,400 members of the Players Coalition to sign a petition calling for the end to qualified immunity for police officers.

The petition, on the heels of national protests following the death of George Floyd at the hands of a Minneapolis police officer, calls for the passage of a U.S. House Bill sponsored by representatives Justin Amash and Ayanna Pressley that would end protections from liability for police officers found negligent in their duties.

“We are tired of conversations around police accountability that go nowhere, and we have engaged in too many ‘listening sessions’ where we discuss whether there is a problem of police violence in this country,” the petition reads. “There is a problem. The world witnessed it when Officer Chauvin murdered George Floyd, and the world is watching it now, as officers deploy enormous force on peaceful protestors like those who were standing outside of the White House last week. The time for debate about the unchecked authority of the police is over; it is now time for change.”

https://twitter.com/playercoalition/status/1270702267809714176/photo/1

Dotson and Nelson were joined in signing the petition by former Steelers Kelvin Beachum, Marcelis Branch, Josh Dobbs, James Farrior, Chris Hubbard, Arthur Moats, Roosevelt Nix, Will Wolford and Al Woods.

The Players Coalition is a group of current and former NFL, NBA and MLB players and coaches that was founded in 2017 by Anquan Boldin and Malcom Jenkins with the goal of “making an impact on social justice and racial equality at the federal, state and local levels.”