We Don't Really Care About Damar Hamlin
Updated January 4, 2023
We care about Football, the game, and the players… but until Monday Night, Damar Hamlin was just another player.
In the middle of the opening quarter, Damar took center stage in the story that has dominated the news today. After a routine tackle, things took a turn for the worse when Damar Hamlin collapsed on the field and went into cardiac arrest. It was a terrifying sight to see, and my heart sank as the world watched.
The medical team frantically performed CPR on his lifeless body and used a defibrillator on the field to get his heart started again.
As the news of Damar's collapse spread, I couldn't help but feel a sense of insensitivity from myself and others. We all seek out and find videos of the event, we conjecture what happened, and we Google search things like “Damar Hamlin Bills Death,” justifying it as a concern when it's really voyeurism. If you think I’m lying, here’s the traffic spike on Google for that exact term. It's easy to get caught up in the drama and excitement of the situation, but we need to remember that a real person is involved here.
I can't even imagine what it must have been like for Damar's family to watch from the stands as CPR was performed on their loved one. His mom watched this happen before her eyes, with millions of others watching too.
The fear and trauma they must have felt in that moment is unimaginable. And yet, as I stood in my kitchen, I could watch the whole thing unfold in front of me on my TV. It's a stark reminder of the power of technology and how it can both bring us together and distance us from reality.
I'm grateful that Damar made it to the hospital and, at the time of this writing, is in critical condition but alive.
This experience has made me think about how we consume news and entertainment. We, myself included, need to be more mindful of the impact our actions have on others and work to be less voyeuristic in our approach to life, it is too precious to waste.
January 4, 2023 Update:
Since Damar’s injury on Monday night, fans worldwide, players, team owners, and brands have contributed over $6,000,000 to his Chasing M’s Foundation Community Toy Drive GoFundMe page. People are doing more than Google searching what happened, they are taking positive action to help this young man’s dreams of giving back to the community. A member of his family write the following:
We're simply awestruck by the level of support and generosity we've seen over the past two days. With over $6 million raised, this fundraiser has become an overnight reminder of the incredible nature of humankind. Your actions directly reflect the type of human Damar is himself.
As representatives of Damar, the team at Jaster Athletes posted the fundraiser updates and will work with the Hamlin family, The Chasing M's Foundation, and the GoFundMe team to ensure the safe delivery of funds.
Because the situation is evolving, we'll continue to communicate any updates on the fundraiser. We will also work with GoFundMe to email all donors with more specifics regarding the use of funds as those details are available. As you can imagine, this has been a challenging time for the family. We appreciate your understanding as we give them the time and space they need to focus on Damar's health first.
We're hopeful about Damar's future involvement in disbursing the incredibly generous contributions. We thank you again for your support and look forward to updating you along the way.