'Justice needs to happen': P.K. Subban donates $50k to George Floyd's daughter

NHL superstar P.K. Subban has donated $50,000 to a GoFundMe for the daughter of George Floyd, who was killed by police in Minneapolis last week.

Subban announced the donation, that the NHL has matched, in an Instagram video on Wednesday where he also called for justice for African Americans.

"Justice has to happen, change needs to come, but we need everyone," said Subban.

"We need everyone and all people to look at our lives and see where we can help that change and do our part."

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If you can... Please donate to Gianna’s go fund me page. The link is in my Bio. Anything you can give is much appreciated!

A post shared by P.K. Subban (@subbanator) on Jun 3, 2020 at 9:31am PDT

The defenceman urged those who could to join him in donating to the crowdfunding campaign to support Floyd’s six-year-old daughter, Gianna.

The GoFundMe had surpassed $1-million in donations by Wednesday evening.

Subban, who plays for the New Jersey Devils, has a long philanthropic history.

In 2015, the former Montreal Canadiens player pledged $10 million over seven years to the Montreal Children’s Hospital in what was the largest ever donation by a Canadian athlete.

Other NHL players have also spoken out about the protests and injustice throughout the week.

Evander Kane, a Vancouver native and player for the San Jose Sharks, put out a call for white athletes and non-Black athletes of colour to speak up about inequality and racial injustice.

Since then several players have answered the call such as Winnipeg Jets Captain Blake Wheeler, Toronto Maples Leafs superstar Auston Matthews, and Pittsburgh Penguins Captain Sidney Crosby.

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A lot of people may claim these riots and acts of destruction are a terrible response. I’ll be the first to admit that as a white male that was also my first reaction. But who am I to tell someone that their pain is not real? Especially when it is at a boiling point and impossible to hold in anymore. It’s obviously coming from a place of truth. This reaction isn’t coming out of thin air. I’m not condoning or approving the looting, but are we really going to sit here and say that peaceful protesting is the only answer? There has been plenty of time for that, and if it was the answer we would’ve given it our full attention long ago. Listen to these two men debate. They are lost, they are in pain. They strived for a better future but as they get older they realize their efforts may be futile. They don’t know the answer of how to solve this problem for the next generation of black women and men. This breaks my heart. I can’t pretend for a second that I know what it feels like to walk in a black man’s shoes. However, seeing the video of George Floyd’s death and the violent reaction across the country moved me to tears. It has pushed me to think, how much pain are black people and other minorities really feeling? What have Native American people dealt with in both Canada and US? What is it really like to grow up in their world? Where am I ignorant about the privileges that I may have that others don’t? Compassion to me is at least trying to FEEL and UNDERSTAND what someone else is going through. For just a moment maybe I can try to see the world through their eyes. Covid has been rough but it has given us the opportunity to be much less preoccupied with our busy lives. We can no longer distract ourselves from the truth of what is going on. My message isn’t for black people and what they should do going forward. My message is to white people to open our eyes and our hearts. That’s the only choice we have, otherwise this will continue. Let’s choose to fight hate and fear with love and awareness. Ask not what can you do for me, but what can I do for you? Be the one to make the first move. In the end, love conquers all. #blacklivesmatter

A post shared by Jonathan Toews (@jonathantoews) on Jun 1, 2020 at 12:40pm PDT