Malcolm Jenkins tackles protest questions at Urban Youth forum
PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- They may come from separate worlds, but on Tuesday night, pro athletes and business professionals came together for a common goal: combatting the high school dropout rate.
But the forum wasn't limited to one topic as Philadelphia Eagles players Malcolm Jenkins and Jordan Matthews were a part of the discussion.
Students at the "What it Takes" forum, an Urban Youth event aimed to motivate minority boys to stay in school, questioned the panel about attaining life goals.
"At some point, we've all been sitting in these kids' shoes and to give them the blue print of how we got to where we at, that's just knowledge we want to pass to this generation," Jenkins said.
24 hours earlier, the Eagles safety and two other teammates joined another conversation by protesting police violence against minorities with fists raised during the national anthem.
"What I wanted to get across, people of minorities and especially African Americans in this country get the short end of the stick when it comes to social justice and the criminal justice system. That's just the history of our country. Although we've come a long way, there's still some things that still need to be changed and still need to be addressed," Jenkins said.
Panelists say it's about keeping urban youth engaged and in school.
"Find that one thing and put all your time and effort into it. I promise that when you look back, you'll be so glad you did it," wide receiver Jordan Matthews said.
Since 2009, Urban Youth has reached about 3,000 city students with this annual forum.
As for Jenkins, he says he's prepared to continue his protest all season.
