Azeez Al-Shaair kept the message on his eye black during the Houston Texans’ Week 2 game, but the NFL quickly made clear it would not let it stay there.
According to a league source cited by The Athletic, an official approached the Texans linebacker during the game against the Cincinnati Bengals and told him he would have to remove the name written on his eye black or he would not be allowed to keep playing. The name was Wafaa Akila, an 8-year-old Palestinian girl who was killed earlier this month in Gaza.
“Al-Shaair began the Texans’ Week 2 game against the Cincinnati Bengals with the name Wafaa Akila written on his eyeblack. After it was spotted by a league official, Al-Shaair was informed he would have to remove it or he would not be permitted to continue playing in the game, according to a league source who spoke on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to discuss the matter publicly,” Jonathan Jones wrote.
The episode is the latest in a string of discipline involving Al-Shaair and the league. He was fined in the playoffs for writing “stop the genocide” and then fined again in Week 1 of this season for displaying the name Hind Rajab. All of it ran afoul of the NFL’s rule against unauthorized personal statements on equipment.
When asked about the fine last week, Al-Shaair didn’t sound interested in backing off.
“What’s a life worth?” Al-Shaair told reporters last week when asked about the fine.
“Is a life worth $11,000? I think it’s priceless.
So, to sit there and say that, ‘Oh man, the money’ and whatever, that wasn’t relevant to me.”
The league’s uniform policy bars personal or political messages without prior approval, and that rule applies from pregame warmups through postgame interviews. Fines are the usual punishment, but the warning Al-Shaair received in Week 2 went further, with the possibility of being taken out of the game entirely.
He has dealt with similar situations before, including times when he wore messages during warmups and then removed them before kickoff after being warned. He has also used the My Cause My Cleats program in past seasons to spotlight related causes.
Even with the penalties stacking up, Al-Shaair has kept returning to the same form of tribute, placing the names of children killed in Gaza on his eye black.
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