Kemba Walker on recent tragedies: 'Enough is enough'
Next up on the long list of current and former NBA stars using the professional sports platform to speak out about the importance of social change: Kemba Walker.
Walker, the Charlotte Hornets' 26-year-old starting point guard, made his voice heard Tuesday in the wake of the recent gun and police-related tragedies in America, just a day after his owner, Michael Jordan, did the same.
"Enough is enough," Walker wrote in an article published in The Players' Tribune.
"Basketball is a global game," he continued. "The NBA, in particular, has a lot of influence. As players, we have a chance to voice our opinions, and people will actually listen. That means, in times like these, when people are hurting, we have the ability to give voice to those who don’t have our platform."
"All across the country, there are people working hard to push for change and speaking up. They’re doing their best to make their voices heard. But in so many cases, those voices are silenced, or shut down, or drowned out. It’s not right."
"We can help fix that, though. We can make sure important topics aren’t being pushed aside, that real issues affecting our communities aren’t getting ignored."
"Our voices, together, can become a powerful force."
Carmelo Anthony, Chris Paul, Dwyane Wade and LeBron James delivered a speech at the ESPYs calling for change. Jordan made a powerful statement — that also included a $2 million donation. Some WNBA teams staged a media blackout and refused to answer questions about basketball.
"There is strength in numbers," Walker wrote. "And the more of us who speak up and use this platform we’ve been given to help drive change, the more difficult it will be for these injustices to continue. When you have more and more professional athletes standing for a cause, it gives other athletes, and other people around the globe, more confidence to do the same. You realize you’re not in this alone, and that’s empowering. We all see that. It means something."
Walker also shared his thoughts on the NBA's recent decision to move the 2017 All-Star Game from Charlotte due to North Carolina’s controversial anti-LGBT law, House Bill 2, that reversed a Charlotte ordinance extending rights to the LGBT community.
"I was excited that my basketball hometown was going to host that game, as was the whole city of Charlotte," he wrote. "But more important is inclusiveness for everyone, particularly our fans — of all races, genders and sexual orientations. The same goes for players, those at the league level and every individual who works to grow our game, day in and day out. The NBA took a stand on principle and equality. I support that."
"The NBA acted. My fellow athletes have been making their voices heard. Now I’m speaking up."
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