“I can’t breathe” in place of his name on Stephen Curry’s jersey. “Black lives matter” on that of LeBron James. Or a team whose all players were called “George Floyd”. While the world of sports sees the political subjects arriving with as much happiness as a butcher welcomes a battalion of vegans in his shop, the NBA could create a first. The American basketball league could accede to a pressing request from players: to allow them to wear jerseys flocked with slogans supporting causes of social justice or charitable works instead of their name, when the matches resume next month in Orlando, ESPN revealed on Sunday.
Oklahoma City Thunder leader Chris Paul and president of the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA), the players’ union, said on ESPN’s minorities website The Undefeated that the players were in talks with the league on the subject. “We are just trying to keep shedding light on the various social justice issues that the guys in our league keep talking about day after daysaid Chris Paul. People say that social justice will no longer be on everyone’s mind in Orlando. With these jerseys, she will not disappear ”, he assured. Basketball players would also be able to use this initiative to show their support for causes unrelated to racial injustice and police brutality, said “CP3”, adding that no player would be required to display a message.
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NBA players, like their union leader, have been strong supporters of the protests that swept through all 50 states after Floyd’s death during his May 25 police arrest. “The reason I am passionate and excited about this idea is that it gives voice to the voiceless. It also gives the guys a chance to highlight something they are passionate about. ”, s’enthousiame Chris Paul.
This announcement comes at a time when the death of George Floyd has sparked an increase in activism among American athletes. An awakening of consciousnesses widely appreciated by the Leagues. Among them, the NBA is considered to be the most progressive in terms of freedom of expression for players and ahead in the fight against racist injustices. In the aftermath of the George Floyd affair, the American football league (NFL) reacted surprisingly quickly in light of its catastrophic management of the Colin Kaepernick affair, the first to kneel on the ground in 2016 to protest against police violence. Tricard since in NFL, but spotted by Nike marketing gurus who smelled its potential by making it a face of the brand, Kaepernick could find a franchise.
Since then, his genuflection during the national anthem has been widely emulated. As recently as this weekend, the Portland Thorns and North Carolina Courage soccer players knelt to the ground on Saturday during the national anthem (followed by a minute’s silence) “to protest racial injustice, police brutality and systemic racism toward blacks and people of color in America “. A gesture whose ban was lifted earlier this month by the American Football Federation.
Julie Ertz and Casey Short shared an emotional moment during the national anthem before their @NWSL Challenge Cup game. pic.twitter.com/PllenKoF4H
— ESPN (@espn) June 28, 2020
If the American leagues gradually let go of the ballast, there remains a wall much more solid to knock down. That drawn up by the International Olympic Committee which formally prohibits, in article 50 of its Charter, any political, racial or religious manifestation of the athletes during the Games. A regularly contested position. The latest attack came from the United States. The Athletes’ Commission of the American Olympic Committee (USOPC) has just published a letter calling for a relaxation of the rule. She obtained the symbolically strong support of John Carlos, who has gone down in history for raising his fist, with his compatriot Tommie Smith, on the podium of the 200m at the Mexico Games in 1968. “Athletes will no longer be silenced, can we read in this forum. We are now at a crossroads. The IOC and the IPC cannot continue to punish or eliminate athletes who defend their convictions, especially when these convictions illustrate the objectives of Olympism. “The Olympic and Paralympic movement simultaneously honors athletes like John Carlos and Tommie Smith, while prohibiting current athletes from following in their footsteps.”
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