Together they patrolled the aisles, grabbing item after item and placing them in cart after cart. The time — 3 a.m. Central — was of no concern to Josh Norman as he gathered as many toys as he could possibly fit in both arms.
The Washington Redskins cornerback and New Orleans Saints linebacker Demario Davis made a trip to a San Antonio Walmart to purchase toys, book bags and other items that they personally handed out on Tuesday to immigrant children who were separated at the border from their parents and later released from family detention centers.
Norman and Davis, who both have been outspoken on social-justice issues in the past, chronicled their volunteerism on social media.
“We’re here to save the world,” said Davis, as Norman recorded the Walmart shopping spree.
“One little kid at a time,” the cornerback added, smiling at the camera.
Worlds colliding...#Redskins CB @J_No24 teamed up with former #Jets LB @demario__davis to make a 3a Walmart run in San Antonio to buy & donate book bags, toys, etc. to kids who were released from family detention pic.twitter.com/L7koKA37Kh
— KimberlEY A. Martin (@ByKimberleyA) June 27, 2018
The NFL players teamed up with Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services (RAICES), a nonprofit agency that provides free and low-cost legal services to underserved immigrant children, families and refugees in Texas. Earlier this month, President Trump touted a “zero-tolerance” immigration policy, which resulted in more than 2,500 migrant children being separated from their parents at the border. Since then the president has issued an executive order to end family separations, but roughly 2,000 children reportedly have not been reunited with their parents.
After filling up several shopping carts at Walmart, the Norman and Davis sifted through the items and put together care packages for the children. Then they set off to put some smiles on some young faces.
Norman and Davis, who were introduced to the families through a translator upon their arrival, handed out dozens of backpacks as well as 20 boxes of pizza.
“I don’t care how much the world hates,” Davis later tweeted, “I will always choose love. #BorderChildren”