LeBron James—one of the NBA’s most social-justice-oriented players—decided to weigh in on the officer-involved shooting that took place over the weekend in Kenosha, Wisconsin, and the riots that followed, telling reporters on Monday that the incidents have managed to steal away his joy in playing basketball, the Daily Wire reported.
As the story of the shooting broke on Sunday, James tweeted that black men are being “targeted,” and that the incident in Kenosha, which was captured in a viral video, has resulted in three nights of unrest across the state of Wisconsin. He tweeted that the event was “so wrong.”
And y’all wonder why we say what we say about the Police!! Someone please tell me WTF is this???!!! Exactly another black man being targeted. This shit is so wrong and so sad!! Feel so sorry for him, his family and OUR PEOPLE!! We want JUSTICE https://t.co/cJxOj1EZ3H
— LeBron James (@KingJames) August 24, 2020
“And y’all wonder why we say what we say about the Police!! Someone please tell me WTF is this???!!! Exactly another black man being targeted,” James wrote. “This sh*t is so wrong and so sad!! Feel so sorry for him, his family and OUR PEOPLE!! We want JUSTICE.”
James has attempted to make himself culturally and politically relevant by consistently tweeting in support of the Black Lives Matter movement. He tweeted that the death of Ahmaud Arbery—a black man who was attacked by white men while walking through a neighborhood in Georgia—was the product of black men being “hunted.”
“We’re literally hunted EVERYDAY/EVERYTIME we step foot outside the comfort of our homes!” James tweeted, according to a report by the Daily Wire.
“Can’t even go for a damn jog man!” continued the NBA star. “Like [what the f***] man are you kidding me?!?!?!?!?!? No man fr ARE YOU KIDDING ME!!!!! I’m sorry Ahmaud (Rest In Paradise) and my prayers and blessings sent to the […] heavens above to your family!!”
We’re literally hunted EVERYDAY/EVERYTIME we step foot outside the comfort of our homes! Can’t even go for a damn jog man! Like WTF man are you kidding me?!?!?!?!?!? No man fr ARE YOU KIDDING ME!!!!! I’m sorry Ahmaud(Rest In Paradise) and my prayers and blessings sent to the….. pic.twitter.com/r1PNxs8Vgn
— LeBron James (@KingJames) May 6, 2020
James did not stop there. He continued by expressing his thoughts following the death of George Floyd—a man who, according to evidence, may have overdosed on fentanyl: “Do you understand NOW!!??!!??” James captioned the post. “Or is it still blurred to you?? #StayWoke.”
The Daily Wire reported that journalists asked James about the Kenosha incident following the Los Angeles Lakers victory over the Portland Trail Blazers Tuesday night, and LeBron noted that he was having a hard time concentrating on basketball in the midst of all that has been happening.
“I can’t even enjoy a playoff win right now, which is the sad part,” James said. “We are scared as Black people in America. … Black men, Black women, Black kids. We are, we are terrified.”
New footage has been released on the Jacob Blake case, which shows that Blake was allegedly involved in a brawl with members of law enforcement leading up to the shooting incident. Based on available evidence, Blake was not a law-abiding citizen who was randomly “hunted,” as James would have his audience and fans believe.
One of the numerous issues with social media is perfectly demonstrated with the Jacob Blake case. We initially get a snippet of information, and that informs ALL public perception. Any evidence that surfaces afterward is meaningless since people have already made up their minds.
— Collin (@TheLastSisyphus) August 25, 2020
James has unfortunately shown his hand in how deficient he is on cultural and political matters, with a lot of “uhhs” when asked what his thoughts were on the Malcolm X book he said he was reading during a press conference last week. The question by the reporter and the response by James had all the trimmings of someone who had not read the material he touts as being “very smart,” but it also appeared that he was unable to even comment intelligently on someone supposedly at the center of his political belief system.
Lebron is reading ‘The Autobiography of Malcolm X’ – I asked him for his biggest takeaway from the book. pic.twitter.com/s2OzUww3XD
— Taylor Rooks (@TaylorRooks) August 21, 2020
The video went viral on social media, confirming what many already believed about James—just because you get paid millions of dollars to dribble a ball does not mean you have anything meaningful to say about politics or the plight of culture.
James is not the only one to hate-monger or spread falsehoods amid the death of someone who was breaking the law. Shaun King also took to Twitter following the Kenosha incident, tweeting that peace is no longer an option and that the complete “dismantling of American policing” needs to take place. This drew attention from other Twitterites, who suggested that the tweet was glorifying violence.
If you are not calling for peace, Mr. King, then what are you calling for? Violence perhaps? Political violence? Unrest? Assault? Murder? Vandalism? Arson? Tell us: What are you calling for when you say “dismantling of American policing?” pic.twitter.com/KuC2XbwTbV
— Collin (@TheLastSisyphus) August 24, 2020