Houston Texans linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair was put under the microscope on Sunday as his second-quarter hit on Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence knocked the player out of the game.
Lawrence was trying to slide when Al-Shaair hit the Jaguars star in the head and neck area. The hit sparked a brawl and led to the ejections of Al-Shaair and Jaguars cornerback Jarrian Jones. Al-Shaair was in the midst of a brawl that occurred after the play.
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The Jaguars ruled Lawrence out for the rest of the game as he was diagnosed with a concussion.
The hit wasn’t the only thing Al-Shaair was criticized for.
The linebacker took part in the NFL’s My Cause My Cleats campaign. Players who partake in the campaign are allowed to pick a cause that’s important to them and represent the organization on their cleats. Al-Shaair chose the Palestine Children's Relief Fund – as he did last year.
Al-Shaair had "Free" written on one side of his shoes in the colors of the Palestinian flag. On one shoe, "Surely to Allah we belong and to him we will all return," was written. On the side of his other shoe, it had the number of Palestinians reportedly killed and wounded in its war with Israel.
"Palestine Children's Relief Fund (PCRF), founded in 1991 by concerned humanitarians in the USA, provides free medical care to thousands of injured and ill children yearly who lack local access to care within the local health care system," the PCRF’s description said on its website.
"Over the years, we've sent over 2,000 affected children abroad for free medical care, sent thousands of international doctors and nurses to provide tens of thousands of children free medical care in local hospitals, and provided tens of thousands of children humanitarian aid and support they otherwise would not get."
A ton of scrutiny poured in on social media.
Al-Shaair talked about his decision to wear the cleats last month.
"I feel like it's something that's trying to be almost silenced," he told the Houston Chronicle. "On either side, people losing their life is not right. In no way, shape or form am I validating anything that happened, but to consistently say that because of [Oct. 7] innocent people [in Gaza] should now die, it's crazy.
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[Other people] try to make a disconnect and dehumanize people over there. And it's like, they're human beings. Being a Muslim, we see everybody the same; Black, White, Spanish, whatever you are; you can be orange, like, we're all human beings."
Al-Shaair is also a part of the Athletes For Ceasefire organization, along with several other athletes.
The group has called on President Biden to call for "an immediate cease-fire" in the war in Gaza following Hamas’ Oct. 7 terrorist attacks on Israel.
"We call on President Joe Biden to call for an immediate cease-fire. And to redirect those resources to address pressing domestic needs such as education, health care and helping the unhoused," the group stated on its website.
"We are unable to turn a blind eye to the devastation being inflicted on civilians, especially children, in the Gaza Strip, through bombing campaigns funded in part by the U.S."
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