Prior to Tuesday night’s 98-95 win against the Sacramento Kings, Kobe Bryant and his Los Angeles Lakers teammates rocked the now-familiar “I Can’t Breathe” t-shirts, in support of the former Eric Garner’s family.
Derrick Rose, LeBron James’ Cleveland Cavaliers and the Brooklyn Nets have also made similar gestures.
Bryant told reporters why he pushed for his squad to take a stand on the issue.
Per the LA Daily News:
“I didn’t have to study or research too much after looking at the video,” Lakers guard Kobe Bryant said. “It’s pretty self explanatory.”
Although black players represent a large portion of the NBA, Bryant argued “it would be a serious disservice to limit this to a race issue.” Bryant argued “it’s a justice issue” and “a global thing.” […] “People are really questioning the justice system and questioning the process of the legal system and whether or not they are abusing authority and what’s the threshold so on and so forth,” Bryant said. “That’s what our nation is found out. We have an ability to have a voice and platform to speak up and effect change.”
“It’s us supporting that movement and supporting each other as well as athletes,” Bryant said. “The beauty of our country lies in its democracy. If we ever lose the courage to speak up in things that we believe in, we really lose the value that our country stands for. It’s important that we have our opinions and it’s important we stand up for who we believe in. We all don’t have to agree with it. That’s completely fine. That’s what makes us a beautiful country.”
