Page 24 - Florida Sentinel 6-5-20

Sports
Michael Jordan Joins Call For Change Following George Floyd's Death
Jemele Hill Blasts NFL And Roger Goodell’s Phony George Floyd Statement Perfectly
ROGER GOODELL AND JEMELE HILL
The NFL has issued a state- ment on behalf of commis- sioner Roger Goodell about the nationwide protests sparked by the deaths of Ah- maud Arbery, Breonna Taylor and George Floyd, purporting to empathize with protestors.
"The NFL family is greatly saddened by the tragic events across our country. The pro- testers' reactions to these inci- dents reflect the pain, anger and frustration that so many of us feel," the statement begins. "Our deepest condolences go out to the family of Mr. George Floyd and to those who have lost loved ones, in- cluding the families of Ms. Breonna Taylor in Louisville, and Mr. Ahmaud Abrery, the cousin of Tracy Walker of the Detroit Lions."
The league was immedi- ately called out by journalist Jemele Hill for its blatant hypocrisy:
@jemelehill ‘The NFL tweeting about what happened with George Floyd is the equivalent of when the CIA rec- ognizes Dr. Martin Luther King. Jr.’s birthday. Loved him so much y’all helped to kill him. Get outta here with the bullshit.’
The NFL's record on race relations is far from admirable, and the league is being particu- larly called out for making a statement supporting protest- ers after its treatment of former player Colin Kaepernick, whose peaceful protesting got him fired from the NFL.
After parting ways with the 49ers after the 2016 season, Kaepernick hasn’t been able to get his foot back in the door of the NFL, yet he still remains a major topic of conversation.
LeBron James Takes
Charlotte Hornets owner and Chicago Bulls legend Michael Jordan joined the chorus of athletes, coaches and executives expressing their grief and outrage over the death of George Floyd.
"I am deeply saddened, truly pained and plain angry," Jordan said in a statement Sunday. "... I stand with those who are calling out the in- grained racism and violence toward people of color in our country. We have had enough."
Floyd's death has sparked protests in cities across the United States.
"I don't have the answers, but our collective voices show strength and the inability to be divided by others," Jor-
dan said. "We must listen to each other, show com- passion and empathy and never turn our
MICHAEL backs on JORDAN senseless brutality. We need to continue peaceful expressions against injustice and demand ac- countability. Our unified voice needs to put pressure on our leaders to change our laws, or else we need to use our vote to create systemic change. Every one of us needs to be part of the solution, and we must work together to ensure jus-
tice for all."
Protests: 'Why Doesn't
To Twitter Amid
America Love Us'
LeBron James contin- ued to speak about the death of George Floyd and the protests that have sprung up around the world over the weekend.
James took to Twitter in the early Sunday morning hours as protests continued in cities large and small across the United States.
“Why Doesn’t America Love US!!!!!????TOO,” James wrote with two hash- tags and emojis.
The Los Angeles Lakers superstar has been using his platform over the last week to draw attention to the death of Floyd and its aftermath.
Floyd, a black man, died while in police custody in Minneapolis. Video shows Derek Chauvin, a white po- lice officer, holding him down for more than eight minutes
LEBRON JAMES
by putting his knee on Floyd’s neck. Chauvin was released from the department and later charged with third- degree murder and manslaughter.
James initially shared on Instagram a photo of the inci- dent next to a photo of Colin Kaepernick kneeling during the national anthem.
“Do you understand NOW!!??!!??” he wrote.
Video Shows JR Smith Beating Man Who Smashed His Car During Protests
JR SMITH
JR Smith had his car damaged during one of the police brutality protests over the weekend, and the man who was allegedly responsible paid a price for the act.
A video that was obtained by TMZ showed Smith pum- meling and unleashing several kicks on the person who he says broke his car window.
Smith posted a video on social media and explained that his truck was parked in a residential neighborhood that was nowhere near where stores were being looted. He
proudly said of the person re- sponsible that he “chased him down and whooped his a–.”
“One of these motherf— ing white boys didn’t know where he was going and broke my f—ing window in my truck, broke my s—” Smith ex- plained. “I chased him down and whooped his a–. So if the footage comes out and y’all see it, I chased him down and whooped his a–. This ain’t no hate crime. I ain’t got no prob- lem with nobody. ... He didn’t know whose window he broke and he got his a– whooped.”
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