After NBA players sat out playoff games on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, the league’s most famous player received a note of support from a fellow athlete activist. LeBron James shared a handwritten note he received from Colin Kaepernick, whose protests during the national anthem against systemic racism began four years ago.
James posted the note on Instagram on Friday, in which Kaepernick thanks him for showing solidarity with the cause of social justice:
The note references Kaepernick’s first protests against systemic racism and social injustice:
Four years ago on August 14, 2016, I began protesting against systemic racism and social injustice. TK is what I sought. Solidarity is what you showed me. Love is what moves us forward. Thank you for staying true.
Colin Kaepernick
As USA Today reports, it’s not clear when exactly the letter was sent, and whether that was before or after the players decided to return to action over the weekend.
Though the NBA returned to action on Saturday, the act of sitting out three days’ worth of games has re-ignited the conversation around athlete activism in the wake of the shooting of Jacob Blake. James had previously helped spearhead the drive to kneel during the national anthem in the NBA’s Orlando bubble.
James was also critical of the league’s decision to only allow pre-approved messages on the back of jerseys in the bubble, opting to go with his name instead of one of the corporate slogans. According to The Athletic, the Lakers star supported the strike this week, but wanted players to have a plan for action after they returned to play, if that was the result of the meetings in the wake of the Milwaukee Bucks’ decision to sit out Wednesday’s game against the Orlando Magic.
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