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NBA Players Respond with Outrage to the Fascist Storming of the Capitol

January 11, 2021 | revcom.us

 

Many NBA (National Basketball Association) players responded forcefully to the storming of the Capitol by a fascist mob on January 6. Many remarks centered on the disparity of how Black and white people are treated in this country.

Players from the Boston Celtics, Miami Heat, Golden State Warriors, Los Angeles Clippers, Milwaukee Bucks, and Detroit Pistons took a knee during the playing of the national anthem or at the beginning of their game.

The Celtics and Heat players issued a joint statement, referring to the decision by the DA in Kenosha, Wisconsin, to not issue any indictments against the cop who shot Jacob Blake seven times in the back this summer:

2021 is a new year, but some things have not changed. We play tonight’s game with a heavy heart after yesterday’s decision in Kenosha, and knowing that protesters in our nation’s capitol are treated differently by political leaders depending on what side of certain issues they are on. The drastic difference between the way protesters this past spring and summer were treated and the encouragement given to today’s protesters who acted illegally just shows how much work we have to do.

Several players spoke out at press conferences or on Twitter.

Jaylen Brown of the Boston Celtics, who has been in the streets protesting the murder of Black people by the cops, evoked MLK’s “Two Americas” speech. He said, “In one America, you get killed by sleeping in your car, selling cigarettes or playing in your backyard. In another America, you get to storm the Capitol, and no tear gas, no massive arrests, none of that.”

Draymond Green of the Golden State Warriors called the mob “fucking terrorists” and said, “stop calling those people protestors. They’re terrorists.” In speaking about how the cops treat Black people versus how the fascist mob was treated, Green said, “It’s almost like they (the cops) want to show you they have power and want to show you I can say ‘fuck you and there is nothing you can do about it.’ And so that’s just what this country is and what this country’s been and probably where this country will stay.”

Chicago Bulls’ Garrett Temple tweeted out, “They allocate [policing] and use it to keep black people in line. It works for the people it was built to work for... It wasn’t meant to be used against these [white] people.”

LeBron James released a video that said in part, “We will never shut up and dribble. Because there remains far too much at stake for our people and our future.”

Some NBA coaches also spoke out. One was Steve Kerr, head coach of the Golden State Warriors. Kerr pointed to the non-indictment of the cop who shot Jacob Blake and went on to say, “Thousands of people can storm the Capitol and not face any sort of obstruction from the police. But heaven forbid, a 12-year-old Black boy carries a toy gun or a 15-year-old Black boy walks home from a store with a bag of Skittles or a young Black male runs through the neighborhood on a jog. Heaven forbid, any of those things happen. But it’s OK for thousands of traitors, basically, storming the Capitol, and we’re not going to put up any resistance? We’re just gonna allow it. A blatant, blatant, display of inequity in our country.”

IT WAS NEVER ABOUT WHAT WE DID, IT’S ABOUT WHO WE ARE! @morethanavote 🙏🏾✊🏾🖤👑 pic.twitter.com/LGsGXmvZKE

— LeBron James (@KingJames) January 8, 2021

Boston Celtics

Cleveland Cavaliers and Memphis Grizzlies

Denver Nuggets and Dallas Mavericks

Miami Heat

All photos: AP