Human rights and civil liberties
FILE - In this Sept. 1, 2018, file photo, Iowa strength and conditioning coach Chris Doyle walks on the field before an NCAA college football game between Iowa and Northern Illinois in Iowa City, Iowa. Jacksonville Jaguars coach Urban Meyer defended the hiring of former Iowa assistant Chris Doyle on Thursday, Feb. 11, 20201, by saying he “vetted him thoroughly along with our general manager and owner.” Iowa agreed to pay Doyle $1.1 million in a resignation agreement last June after scores of former players said he bullied and discriminated against them. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall, File)
Column: Meyer should know by now he's not in college anymore

By Tim Dahlberg Feb. 15, 2021 03:06 AM EST

FILE - In this Sept. 1, 2018, file photo, Iowa strength and conditioning coach Chris Doyle walks on the field before an NCAA college football game between Iowa and Northern Illinois in Iowa City, Iowa. Jacksonville Jaguars coach Urban Meyer defended the hiring of former Iowa assistant Chris Doyle on Thursday, Feb. 11, 20201, by saying he “vetted him thoroughly along with our general manager and owner.” Iowa agreed to pay Doyle $1.1 million in a resignation agreement last June after scores of former players said he bullied and discriminated against them. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall, File)
Jaguars split with accused racist strength coach Chris Doyle

Feb. 12, 2021 05:17 PM EST

FILE - Ohio State NCAA college football head coach Urban Meyer answers questions during a news conference announcing his retirement in Columbus, Ohio, in this Tuesday, Dec. 4, 2018, file photo. A person familiar with the search says Urban Meyer and the Jacksonville Jaguars are working toward finalizing a deal to make him the team's next head coach. The person spoke to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity Thursday, Jan. 14, 2021, because a formal agreement was not yet in place. (AP Photo/Jay LaPrete, File)
Jags' Meyer defends hiring ex-Iowa coach accused of racism

By Mark Long Feb. 11, 2021 12:11 PM EST

This undated photo provided by the United States Coast Guard shows a U.S. Coast Guard cutter named for Emlen Tunnell, docked in Bollinger Shipyard, in Lockport, La. Tunnell, the first Black player inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, served in the Coast Guard during and after World War II, where he was credited with saving the lives of two shipmates in separate incidents. Now, a Coast Guard cutter and an athletic building on the Coast Guard Academy campus are being named in honor of the former New York Giants defensive back. (United States Coast Guard via AP)
Coast Guard honors Black veteran, NFL great Emlen Tunnell

By Pat Eaton-Robb Feb. 06, 2021 08:26 AM EST

NFL football commissioner Roger Goodell speaks at a press conference ahead of Super Bowl 55, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2021, in Tampa, Fla. (Perry Knotts/NFL via AP)
Goodell: Many lessons NFL learned in 2020 will carry forward

By Rob Maaddi And Barry Wilner Feb. 04, 2021 03:44 PM EST

NFL football commissioner Roger Goodell speaks at a press conference ahead of Super Bowl 55, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2021, in Tampa, Fla. (Perry Knotts/NFL via AP)
The Latest: Goodell: NFL will look at rules for coach hiring

By The Associated Press Feb. 04, 2021 02:14 PM EST

Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank, left, hugs head coach Raheem Morris before an NFL football game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers Sunday, Jan. 3, 2021, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Jason Behnken)
Atlanta Falcons owner donating $17M to civil rights museum

Feb. 04, 2021 11:27 AM EST

Blue skies and favorable weather greets the thousands of fans attending the festivities at Curtis Hixon Park during the NFL's Super Bowl 55 Experience on Saturday, Jan. 30, 2021 in Tampa. (Luis Santana/Tampa Bay Times via AP)
Officials: no Super Bowl threat amid rise of white supremacy

By Curt Anderson Feb. 03, 2021 03:30 PM EST

Hank Aaron of the Atlanta Braves reacts Saturday, July 21, 1973, in Atlanta after hitting 700th career home run against the Philadelphia Phillies. (AP Photo)
Aaron's death prompts call to change name: Braves to Hammers

By Paul Newberry Jan. 23, 2021 02:29 PM EST

FILE - In this Sunday, Nov. 22, 2020 file photo, Minnesota Vikings middle linebacker Eric Kendricks (54) readies for the play in the second quarter during an NFL football game against the Dallas Cowboys in Minneapolis. Eric Kendricks and the Minnesota Vikings have had a rough year between the lines, but the 2019 All-Pro linebacker, whose 2020 season has been shortened by a calf injury, has made quite an impact off the field. He’s the team’s nominee for the Walter Payton Man of the Year award, for his community work focused on criminal justice reform. (AP Photo/David Berding, File)
Vikings LB Kendricks has done vital work on and off field

By Dave Campbell Dec. 31, 2020 02:46 PM EST

FILE - Driver Bubba Wallace wears a Black Lives Matter shirt as he prepares for a NASCAR Cup Series auto race in Martinsville, Va., in this Wednesday, June 10, 2020, file photo. In a most unusual year already thrown into chaos by the coronavirus pandemic, many athletes took unprecedented steps when a nationwide reckoning on race spilled into the streets of American cities after the killing of George Floyd, a Black man, while in Minneapolis police custody. (AP Photo/Steve Helber, File)
Athletes act: Stars rise up against racial injustice in 2020

By Cliff Brunt Dec. 29, 2020 01:41 PM EST

NFL stars joined students in virtual chats about racism

By Rob Maaddi Dec. 25, 2020 01:52 AM EST
For several NFL stars, speaking out against social injustice meant speaking to youngsters about racism. Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce,...

FILE - In this Monday, Dec. 16, 2019, file photo, Curtis Flowers flanked by sister Priscilla Ward, right, exits the Winston Choctaw Regional Correctional Facility in Louisville, Miss. The NFL says it is honoring Flowers, a Black man from Mississippi who was imprisoned more than 22 years. He was freed in late 2019, months after the U.S. Supreme Court threw out the last of his several convictions in a quadruple murder case. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis, File)
NFL honors Mississippi man freed after 22 years in prison

By Emily Wagster Pettus Dec. 24, 2020 03:06 PM EST

Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) throws a pass before an NFL football game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers Sunday, Nov. 29, 2020, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Mark LoMoglio)
Kansas City Chiefs at Tampa Bay Buccaneers 11/29/2020

Nov. 29, 2020 04:16 PM EST

FILE - In this Nov. 19, 2017, file photo, then-Philadelphia Eagles tight end Trey Burton (88) has a photo taken with former Eagles linebacker Emmanuel Acho prior to an NFL football game against the Dallas Cowboys in Arlington, Texas. Acho has enjoyed a spectacular rise off the field, beginning with his desire to take on racism. Acho celebrated his 30th birthday this week with the official release of his book: “Uncomfortable Conversations with a Black Man.” His YouTube series with the same name has already amassed over 65 million views in five months.(AP Photo/Michael Ainsworth, File)
Former NFL player Emmanuel Acho tackles racism in new book

By Rob Maaddi Nov. 12, 2020 04:23 PM EST

FILE - In this Nov. 19, 2017, file photo, then-Philadelphia Eagles tight end Trey Burton (88) has a photo taken with former Eagles linebacker Emmanuel Acho prior to an NFL football game against the Dallas Cowboys in Arlington, Texas. Acho has enjoyed a spectacular rise off the field, beginning with his desire to take on racism. Acho celebrated his 30th birthday this week with the official release of his book: “Uncomfortable Conversations with a Black Man.” His YouTube series with the same name has already amassed over 65 million views in five months.(AP Photo/Michael Ainsworth, File)
Philadelphia Eagles at Dallas Cowboys 11/19/2017

Nov. 12, 2020 11:04 AM EST

The Michael Jordan statue stands in front of an I Voted banner on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2020, in the atrium of the United Center, transformed for the first time into a super voting site in Chicago. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)
Voting, activism replace practice, games in US sports world

By Howard Fendrich Nov. 03, 2020 06:43 PM EST

Baltimore Ravens' Lamar Jackson (8) tries to pass against Philadelphia Eagles' Rodney McLeod (23) during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Oct. 18, 2020, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Derik Hamilton)
Rodney McLeod's voting initiative includes fun events

By Rob Maaddi Oct. 29, 2020 12:52 PM EDT

FILE - In this Sept. 27, 2016, file photo, Vivek Ranadive, the majority owner of the Sacramento Kings, poses in the new Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, Calif. Golden 1 Center will be among the places Californians in the area can vote from Saturday until the polls close on the evening of Nov. 3. “There’s no better way to make the world a better place than by making it easy for people to vote," Ranadive said in a telephone interview with The Associated Press. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli, File)
Arenas, stadiums find new life as safer options for voting

By Kate Brumback And Larry Lage Oct. 22, 2020 08:47 AM EDT

FILE - In this Jan. 29, 2018, file photo, Philadelphia Eagles' Malcolm Jenkins (27) and New England Patriots' Devin McCourty answer questions in St. Paul, Minn. Jenkins has teamed with fellow NFL players to launch a venture capital fund, Broad Street Ventures on Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2020. The fund focuses on late stage and growth stage technology and consumer products. Jenkins and co-founder Ralonda Johnson recruited additional NFL players and industry leaders to represent the fund. Among them are defensive backs Devin and Jason McCourty of the Patriots. (AP Photo/Eric Gay, File)
Malcolm Jenkins says therapy helps him cope with stress

By Rob Maaddi Oct. 14, 2020 04:43 PM EDT