Eagles’ Chris Long to Donate First Six Paychecks to Fund Charlottesville Scholarships

Defensive end, son of Hall of Famer Howie Long, looks to fight 'hatred and bigotry' with donations.

Eagles' Chris Long Donating First Six Game Checks to Fund Scholarships in Charlottesville
Defensive end Chris Long #56 of the Philadelphia Eagles looks on against the Washington Redskins at FedExField on September 10, 2017 in Landover, Maryland. (Rob Carr/Getty Images)

One NFL star is making a statement about the deadly Charlottesville protests with his checkbook.

Philadelphia Eagles’ defensive end Chris Long, the son of Pro Football Hall of Famer and Fox Sports football analyst Howie Long, will be donating his first six game checks to fund scholarships in his Virginia home town, which was the site of a rally by violent hate groups, per ESPN.

In a statement, Long said: “In August, we watched people fill our hometown streets with hatred and bigotry. …Megan and I decided to try to combat those actions with our own positive investment in our community.”

As ESPN reports, the scholarships will provide two students with a seven-year, all-expenses-paid school program, and are meant to “promote equality through education.”

Long followed the statement up with a tweet, in which he says “promoting educational opportunity is a great way to improve a community,” and that this is just the first phase of a “broader reaching investment” that his foundation will be making “in the space of educational equity and opportunity.”

For more on Long’s foundation, click here.

Back in August, just days after the Charlottesville protests, Long put his arm around fellow Eagles teammate Malcolm Jenkins, while Jenkins silently protested during the national anthem with a raised fist.

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