Franklin Leading Colts on Improving Community

Former Syracuse linebacker Zaire Franklin outlined a five point plan for the Indianapolis Colts to impact the community.

It takes a special kind of leadership to be a captain of a power five football team. It takes even more leadership to do so for three seasons, starting when you are a sophomore. That is exactly what Zaire Franklin was during his time at Syracuse. That kind of leadership is exactly what he continues to show at the professional level. 

In the wake of the Jacob Blake shooting, athletes across different sports all around the country are using their platform to spark change. Players on the Indianapolis Colts are no different. Franklin spoke to the media on Friday about a five point plan the players came up with to impact the Indianapolis community in a positive way. 

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"We didn't use yesterday as a day off, we used yesterday as a day of action," Franklin said. "We understand our role in our country as professional athletes. And understand that it is our responsibility and our duty to inspire and encourage change, not only in our community but also throughout our country. By mapping out our plan for 2020 yesterday, we want to focus on five key areas. 

"First being voting. We want to focus on not only getting as many people registered as possible, getting to the point where they can get to the places they can vote, encouragement and awareness of voting centers throughout Indianapolis. We also want to make sure that it's accessible for everybody. The second area we want to focus on is community and police engagement. We want to help try to mend that relationship in our community, Indianapolis, between minorities in Indianapolis as well as the police force. 

"The third area we're going to focus on deals with food for low income and less fortunate areas in Indianapolis by trying to have food drives and help them anyway possible. Lastly, we want to have a major impact in supporting IPS, the Indianapolis Public School System by trying to work closely with Commissioner Aleesia Johnson and try to support her anyway possible. 

"Like Jacoby (Brissett) said, these are actions. These are demands. These are things we know we're going to accomplish. We look forward to our journey this year."