Barack Obama Slammed For Reportedly Convincing LeBron James To Save NBA Season
Former President Barack Obama is facing criticism for his alleged role in convincing LeBron James and his fellow NBA players to resume the season after a strike sparked by the shooting of Jacob Blake, an African American man, as reported by The New York Post.
“Wow so when Black men took a stand by boycotting, Barack Obama behind the scenes undermined those brothers using his position to make Black men stand down. This is so sick,” one user wrote.
“Obama just hides in one of his mansions until he senses structural change in the air and immediately gets on the phone to make sure it doesn’t happen,” wrote another.
“Barack Obama will be one of our biggest obstacles for positive change for DECADES to come,” another user chimed in.
Striking could put pressure on Joe Biden to stop saying that he's going give *more* money to the police right now. By telling the NBA to play ball, Obama is taking the pressure off of Biden at the expense of poor, Black people vulnerable to police violence. Its disgusting
— derecka (@dereckapurnell) August 28, 2020
I just can’t believe he ended the nba strike. I mean I can but he literally just stopped what could have been the most impactful protest yet. Thanks Obama!
— Dary (Globally Recognized Shitposter) (@Daryrezvani) August 29, 2020
"The only strike Obama likes is a drone strike." – @unionguy216
— Peter Pattakos (@peterpattakos) August 29, 2020
According to CNN, a person familiar with the call between the NBA player and former president claimed that National Basketball Players Association President Chris Paul, who was involved in the conversation, asked Obama to speak to the NBA players.
Obama spokeswoman Katie Hill said he spoke to the players to advise them on how to best leverage their platforms.
“They discussed establishing a social justice committee to ensure that the players’ and league’s actions this week led to sustained, meaningful engagement on criminal justice and police reform.”
As noted by The Hill, NBA players have long supported the Black Lives Matter movement, as well as police and criminal justice reform.
A day after the players announced they would return to the court, the NBA announced that it would work with them in the fight against social injustice and racial inequality, advocate for police betterment, and work to promote voting access.
Before Obama spoke to the NBA players, he praised those who organized the strike and NBA figures who supported it, including Los Angeles Clippers coach Doc Rivers and the NBA and WNBA organizations. As reported by HuffPost, the former U.S. leader stressed that standing up for American values will take the cooperation of all the country’s institutions.
Obama has faced criticism from the progressive wing of the Democratic Party for his reported work behind the scenes in opposition to former presidential candidate Bernie Sanders. In a previous podcast, late political commentator Michael Brooks pointed to reports of Obama pushing former Democratic presidential nominees to rally around current nominee Joe Biden. Brooks also claimed that one significant part of Obama’s legacy is preventing the reform of the Democratic Party.
