Thursday prior to the Seattle Seahawks vs. Oakland Raiders pre-season game, fans from both teams joined FAV in the first March Against Violence. The NW Raiders Booster club and the Seahawkers rallied their members and came out in full force to show that we can come together, be respectful to each other and have a great time while still cheering for our respective teams.
Purely by coincidence, the Seattle Police Department announced on Thursday morning that this season, Undercover officers would be On the Lookout For Bad Behavior Outside Seahawks Games.
According to the SPD :
“Officers are not looking to throw the flag on respectful and competitive banter between rival fanbases. They will, however, be looking for fans outside the stadium who are taking those team rivalries too far”
The two initiatives together proved to be the PERFECT mix! According to Det. Mark Jamieson of the SPD, there were approximately 67,000 fans in attendance at Thursday nights game. When asked how things “went”, Jamieson gave us news we were in no way expecting, but always hope to hear, “There were no arrests at last nights game”!!
Yes you heard it right! NO ARRESTS, NOT EVEN ONE!
The rivalry between these two fan bases can often be a heated one, so much so that the SPD decided this game would be the game to start this program. Was it the undercover police presence? Was it because it was a preseason game? We cannot really know, but we would like to think we play a part in keeping the officers bored, with nothing to do. To say we are proud of the Seahawk and Raider fans would be an understatement! This game should be an example to rival fans across the league and in all sport!
When we make the effort to be welcoming hosts and respectful visitors , the battle stays on the field!
Thank you to all the fans, NW Raiders Booster Club, the Seahawkers, Raiders and Seahawks for making this such a great event! We are looking forward to doing more events like this across the country!
To see more pictures of the event visit the FAV March Against Violence – Seattle Photo Gallery
chosen to be the featured article in “Inside Tailgating“magazine. We’re so grateful for their interest in our cause, and for providing the attention needed to help put an end to fan violence. Kindly pick up your copy of the Winter 2013-2014 to read the whole story, and help spread our message to fans of all sports and teams!