About 400 athletes, coaches and parents gathered on the steps of the state Capitol for their voices to be heard.
Now they wait to see if their words found the right ears.
The Let Them Play movement took to Lansing on Friday afternoon, hosting a rally to support the return to action for high school athletes across Michigan whose season was put on pause. Organizers left the event feeling like they made their point but uncertain if they made a difference.
“The speakers were incredible,” said Jayme McElvany, head of the Let Them Play group that is asking Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to exempt high school sports from the latest shutdown brought on by the coronavirus pandemic.
“Their speeches were spot-on, all about the mental health of these kids and the fact that the MHSAA proved we could do it and do it safely. If she would listen, the messages were amazing.
“Unfortunately, I don’t think she cares enough to listen.”
The Let Them Play group hosted a similar rally in August after it was announced that the football season would be canceled in the fall and moved to spring. Shortly after that rally, the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services green-lighted a return-to-play that saved the fall sports season.
But with three weeks left in the football season – and one week remaining in the volleyball and swimming seasons – all sports were put on pause. When the shutdown was extended to Dec. 20, it put the completion of those seasons in jeopardy.
The Let Them Play group, which has nearly 19,000 members on Facebook, organized a second rally and sounded off on Friday in Lansing.
“Oh, man, it was so cold, but it was so great,” said McElvany after the nearly two-hour event that took place on a windy, 40-degree day. “I was surprised that so many were there, because it was last-minute and it was frigid.
“This rally showed the kids we’re fighting for them. They are not alone. They are not invisible. And we’re not going to stop fighting for them.”
Athletes, coaches, administrators and parents were among the 22 speakers who shared their thoughts at a podium set up on the steps of the Capitol building. Most of them stressed the importance keeping kids involved in school activities for the sake of their physical and mental health in the face of a pandemic and their belief that the protocols put in place by the Michigan High School Athletic Association make athletics a safe venture.
