May’s Letter From Denise
May 2025
Well, hello there. It’s May– can you believe it? We are five months into 2025, and spring is here. Flowers are blooming, we’ve rolled back our clocks, and plans for long weekends and vacation getaways are underway. But while spring presents a time of renewal for some, for others, it shines a light on the struggles we may have been carrying but were able to hide during the winter, when the cold weather kept us indoors.
This brings us to our focus for this month: mental health awareness. Mental Health Awareness Month has been observed in May in the United States since 1949. It is celebrated with media campaigns, local events, and film screenings.
Several weeks ago, millions of people across the country watched the 2025 NFL draft. Several high-profile recruits were involved, and it was thrilling to see their reactions when their names were called and to hear their stories about the journey to this magical day. However, there was one name that followers expected to hear but didn’t: Shedeur Sanders. I won’t go into Sanders’ stats as a player; you can look them up and see for yourself. What I want to discuss is the ensuing speculation, gossip, and covert racism that swirled around this student athlete in pursuit of his childhood dream.
Sanders faced multiple instances of unfair treatment driven by personal opinions rather than objective evaluation. An anonymous coach criticized his playing ability, combine performance, and interviewing skills, without offering Sanders a chance to respond or even identifying themselves. In another incident, he was the target of a cruel prank when the son of an Atlanta Falcons staff member impersonated the New Orleans Saints’ GM, further highlighting the lack of professionalism and respect he's been shown.
To add more fuel to the fire, there was the ongoing debate about his talent, arrogance, and the need to bring him down a peg or two. Many felt that he didn’t compare to his father, the legendary Deon Sanders, and that he, too, needed to be “put in his place”. Interestingly, the strategy Deon Sanders employed to elevate his sons to the NFL mirrored that of Archie Manning and his sons Peyton and Eli. The difference – Manning was praised, and Sanders was hazed.
What I find fascinating about this situation is Shedeur's calm and the support exhibited by his father and their entire village. When did it become acceptable to bully students applying for their first job out of college? Did it ever occur to anyone who made a social media post, wrote a blog, created an unsolicited media story, spoke on a podcast, or used any other medium to express their opinion that this running commentary had the potential to develop a mental health crisis for Shedeur?
As each draft round came and went, his name wasn’t called. Can you even begin to imagine how that felt? Think about the last time you didn’t get something that you expected to receive. A new job, a raise, or a promotion. That piece of new business, that contract. Remember that sense of defeat or sense of unworthiness that you felt? Now imagine if what you experienced was magnified through social media and local and national news outlets, with no pathway to express your feelings.
Regarding mental health, we often discuss self-preservation, but I challenge you to consider how your actions impact others. While Shedeur’s story has a happy ending, think about how many stories do not. I encourage us to think before speaking and consider whether our commentary could cause more harm than good. While we may believe our comment is “no big deal,” the cumulative impact of commentary from faceless social media handles can weaken even the strongest shoulders.
Think before you speak, type, like, or swipe. One day, it could be your mental health in need of protection.
Signing off,
Denise
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