Adrian Peterson Getting Support From Minneapolis Church Community
Adrian Peterson seems to have the support of many in the Minnesota black church community who are speaking out for the NFL star who is appealing an NFL ruling against him.
Peterson, the 29-year-old Minnesota Vikings running back recently pled no-contest stemming from charges of abusing his four-year-old son whom the football star struck with a stripped tree branch, resulting in severe lacerations. Although his plea left him with the ability to continue with the 2014-2015 NFL season, the league officially decided he would remain suspended without pay without eligibility to return until April.
While Peterson and his agent Ben Dogra have spoken about appealing the NFL ruling made against him, the Stairstep Foundation has spoken in favor of the Christian football star. The foundation is a network of churches and community members whose website describes the organization as a "God-inspired response to a set of awesome challenges that confronted society at large and African-Americans, in particular."
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Rev. Alfred Babington-Johnson, head of the Stairstep Foundation, spoke to the Minnesota Star Tribune about his network looking into the situation for "fairness and clarity" since the black community may have different ideas of discipline compared to other cultures.
While Babington-Johnson insisted that he does not condone child abuse, he did suggest that he wanted Peterson's incident to be examined further by the NFL.
"Much of the public discussion dominated by European American talking heads has not demonstrated any sense of legitimate cultural difference," he said. "Our community is not monolithic. We have different points of view, but we believe that our broader views are not being reflected."
The Star Tribune reported that Babington-Johnson's statement was signed by community leaders that included Rev. Jerry McAfee, president of the Minneapolis branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). A press conference about the incident took place at New Salem Baptist Church in Minneapolis.
The NFL released a statement last week, making it clear that Peterson could not be considered to be reinstated back into the league before April, after he violated the league's personal conduct policy. A portion of the letter NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell wrote to the RB was included in the NFL's public statement about Peterson's suspension where he questioned the NFL player's remorse.
While Peterson is consulting his pastor for counseling along with a therapist outside of Washington D.C., he does insist he is remorseful for his actions.
"Ultimately, I know I'll have my opportunity to sit down with Roger face-to-face, and I'll be able to say a lot of the same things that I've said to you," Peterson told USA Today. "Don't say that I'm not remorseful, because in my statement, I showed that I was remorseful. I regretted everything that took place."
