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Syracuse athletes will hold a Black Athletes Lives Matter march on campus Wednesday to highlight the experience of Black athletes at SU.

The march is in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement, and the hope is that non-Black athletes will leave educated and that Black athletes will leave empowered, said A.J. Walker, a senior cheerleader and president of the Diversity and Inclusion Student-Athlete Board, in a release.

“Being a Black student-athlete comes with many challenges,” Walker said. “These include all the basic challenges of a student-athlete (balancing school and sport), plus the racial systems and stereotypes that come with being Black in America.”

The march takes place in light of nationwide protests against systemic racism and police brutality held throughout the last year. The event will also show solidarity with the Asian American and Pacific Islander community, which has been the target of rising hate crimes over the last year, the release said.

Athletes from multiple sports will speak during the event. Men’s track alumnus Chevis Armstead will also perform “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” which is often referred to as the Black national anthem due to its empowering language and adoption by the NAACP.

The speakers will be livestreamed on cuse.com during the event. Athletes will walk in separate designated groups, times and routes from South Campus to Coyne Stadium to maintain social distancing.