Around the world of sports, professional athletes have been taking a stand and making their opinions known about the recent Ferguson and Garner decisions.

Recently, players of the St. Louis Rams were standing on the field in the “hands up, don’t shoot” position, the position Michael Brown was supposedly in when he was shot, during team introductions.

Big names in the NBA, LeBron James and Kyle Irving of the Cleveland Cavaliers wore shirts during warm-ups on Monday that read “I can’t breathe” to show their support for Eric Garner.

From a fan’s perspective, it’s very refreshing to see that professional athletes are in tune with the world outside of their sport. Especially for the family of the victims, but also the fans of the games, it’s tremendous to see and to feel the support from the athletes.

LeBron James commented on his t-shirt to ESPN saying “It’s more of a shout out to the family more than anything, because they’re the ones that should be getting all the energy and effort.”

Some people may say that athletes shouldn’t mix personal feelings with their job, but in a sense these efforts make it feel as if the world has become more connected. It’s as if sports professionals have stepped out of their own world on the court or field and proved that they have a grasp on reality.

But, again, going against the grain, sports are supposed to offer both players and fans a temporary escape from reality. Instead it was a constant reminder to the fans, and overall a distraction to the players.

Kevin Love of the Cavaliers described to ESPN news how he could see people pulling out their phones documenting this night, and he said “yeah, it was a little bit more of a distraction than people waving towels.”

This isn’t the first time that athletes have made their opinions known about social issues throughout America. Back in 1968, at the Olympic Games in Mexico City, two sprinters by the name of Tommie Smith and John Carlos made an iconic statement on the winners’ platform. Together, Smith and Carlos held their hands up in the black power salute.

“We were just human beings who saw a need to bring attention to the inequality in our country,” reported Smith in an HBO documentary highlighting the event.

Carlos and Smith just like James, Irving, and the Rams players, were attempting to bring awareness to the seemingly unjust issues in the country. These events made all sorts of headlines, so it’s safe to say that these athletes were successful in accomplishing their goal. Because of the success, it would not be surprising to see more professional athletes expressing their opinions on all sorts of issues in the future.