Richmond Senior defenders Jaleek Gates, left, C.J. Tillman and DeAndre Bethea fight Myers Park’s Moose Muhammed during the second half of a home playoff win in December.
                                 Donnell Coley | Daily Journal file photo

Richmond Senior defenders Jaleek Gates, left, C.J. Tillman and DeAndre Bethea fight Myers Park’s Moose Muhammed during the second half of a home playoff win in December.

Donnell Coley | Daily Journal file photo

<p>Bryan Till</p>

Bryan Till

<p>Richmond’s C.J. Tillman (24) and Divine Nicholson (56) look over to the sideline to get the play late in the fourth quarter of a 2018 win at Butler.</p>
                                 <p>Leon Hargrove Jr. | Daily Journal file photo</p>

Richmond’s C.J. Tillman (24) and Divine Nicholson (56) look over to the sideline to get the play late in the fourth quarter of a 2018 win at Butler.

Leon Hargrove Jr. | Daily Journal file photo

ROCKINGHAM – It started out like any normal football gameday for Amir Webb.

He had just got out of his morning classes at Richmond Community College and had a little bit of time before his classes at Richmond Senior High School were set to start. He and a couple teammates decided to go to a local store to pass the time.

Webb said a store employee followed them around the store and asked them, “What are y’all doing here? Y’all can’t be here.”

So Webb and his teammates went to another part of the store. The group chatted about their game that evening, and ultimately, decided to leave because Webb said they didn’t like the “vibe” they were getting from the employee.

While waiting for one of their teammates to use the bathroom, Webb said the woman asked them, “So who’s the ringleader?”

Looking at each other in confusion, Webb said the employee had called their school and had someone from the front office on the phone who told them to come back to school to talk about what had happened.

Upon their arrival back at school, one of the secretaries in the school office told the boys what the employee said on the phone.

“She was saying that ‘we don’t want them here because the black boys always come in here stealing,’” Webb said.

Webb said head coach Bryan Till called the store to defend his players and spoke with the employee.

“In sports, we as coaches work so hard at teaching people how to work together and to see so much division makes me sad,” Till said.

“Ever since then, I’ve been really passionate about [racial equality and social justice issues] because I witnessed it with my own eyes, how it is in the world,” Webb said.

Fast forward to this summer and racial equality and social justice issues have been at the forefront of the national consciousness in the wake of the deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and Ahmaud Arbery.

Black Lives Matter protests and marches have occurred throughout the country, around North Carolina and in Richmond County in recent months.

Webb said he and Raider teammates Jakolbe Baldwin, Jarod Morrison and Dalton Stroman participated in the protest march down East Broad Avenue on May 31.

Till said Webb and teammate CJ Tillman have been two of the more outspoken players on the team about the movements and marches going on around the country.

“It’s important because even though this has been going on since the beginning, I don’t want it to get to where I have to be afraid to tell my kids to be careful to go out in public,” Tillman said. “I don’t want them to have to be scared or anything like that.”

Till, Webb and Tillman all said the team has been openly discussing and addressing these issues and their feelings about everything that has been happening in virtual Zoom meetings.

“We are addressing it by trying to be open about the way we feel on the issues and letting our guys know that our love for them is what makes our decisions,” Till said. “I definitely feel like, with such a diverse group of young men, that we can be an example of how all people can work together toward common goals.”

Till also said other players have come to him and told him and other coaches about racism they’ve encountered in their daily lives.

“I have asked our guys what they thought and then tried to listen,” Till said. “It is not my place to tell people how to feel but rather I hope to work with what feelings they have and make a positive future while addressing their concerns.”

Tillman said it’s important to go through life with other people who don’t believe the same thing that you believe in. He recalled hearing people say “Blue lives matter” and “All lives matter.”

“We’re losing black lives, so we’re trying to make it seem like black lives matter,” he said. “All lives matter, we get that. But at the moment black lives need it the most right now because that’s what we’re losing the most.”

Reach Neel Madhavan at 910-817-2671 ext. 2751 or [email protected]. Follow on Twitter at @NeelMadhavan.