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NBA legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar delivers powerful defence of protesters

One of the greatest NBA players of all-time has penned an emotional and heartfelt essay in the midst of the fallout and protests from George Floyd’s death.

2 min read
June 1, 2020 - 6:33PM
Since his NBA career, Abdul-Jabbar has continued his social activism.
Since his NBA career, Abdul-Jabbar has continued his social activism.

Kareem Adbul-Jabbar may be one of the greatest players ever to play in the NBA but it’s in activism that he has found a true voice.

Currently the NBA’s all-time leader in points scored, field goals made and career wins, Abdul-Jabbar was also voted the league’s most valuable player six times, 19 times an all-star and six-time champion.

But longer than his NBA career has been his time as a political and social activist who know first hand what it’s like to feel like a target.

In the wake of George Floyd’s and the subsequent protests which have spread throughout the US and around the world, Abdul-Jabbar wrote an emotional opinion piece for the Los Angeles Times where he gave an impassioned defence of the protesters.

Abdul-Jabbar began the death of Ahmaud Arbery as he jogged through his neighbourhood in February is still fresh in the memory, acts of “institutional racism” happen every day in many walks of life, including education, justice and jobs.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is a recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian honour.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is a recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian honour.

He adds that many white people may see the protests, looting and destruction as “putting the cause backwards”, he said it’s a sign the black community has had enough as when the conventional strategies to change hearts and minds are attempted, “the needle hardly budges”.

“But COVID-19 has been slamming the consequences of all that home as we die at a significantly higher rate than whites, are the first to lose our jobs, and watch helplessly as Republicans try to keep us from voting,” he wrote. “Just as the slimy underbelly of institutional racism is being exposed, it feels like hunting season is open on blacks. If there was any doubt, President Trump’s recent tweets confirm the national Zeitgeist as he calls protesters ‘thugs’ and looters fair game to be shot.

“Yes, protests often are used as an excuse for some to take advantage, just as when fans celebrating a hometown sports team championship burn cars and destroy storefronts. I don’t want to see stores looted or even buildings burn. But African-Americans have been living in a burning building for many years, choking on the smoke as the flames burn closer and closer. Racism in America is like dust in the air. It seems invisible — even if you’re choking on it — until you let the sun in. Then you see it’s everywhere. As long as we keep shining that light, we have a chance of cleaning it wherever it lands. But we have to stay vigilant, because it’s always still in the air.”

Adbul-Jabber added that the protesters don’t “want bars and nail salons open, but because they want to live. To breathe”.

It comes as protests occur around the US and the world.
It comes as protests occur around the US and the world.

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The powerful message has been widely spread with his post getting over 31,000 likes and 13,000 retweets.

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Original URL: https://www.news.com.au/sport/sports-life/nba-legend-kareem-abduljabbar-delivers-powerful-defence-of-protesters/news-story/552bbf20afa886f361dc312b10b2bcee