LeBron James has a few questions for members of the media who have asked him about hot-button, racially-charged topics in recent weeks.
Speaking at a press conference, the Los Angeles Lakers megastar hinted at a possible double standard in press coverage, saying that the media was quick to question him about fellow NBA star (and former teammate) Kyrie Irving sharing an anti-Semitic video, but have yet to ask him about Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones showing up in an old photo of students supporting racial segregation in 1957.
It’s interesting food for thought, and calls into question what topics are deemed “safe” for reporters to ask of star athletes.
Kyrie Has Attracted Controversy In Recent Weeks.
It’s been an eventful year or so for Kyrie Irving. The Brooklyn Nets point guard, who won an NBA championship with LeBron earlier in his career, attracted controversy last season for refusing to get vaccinated.
But more recently, Irving has been labeled an anti-Semite after sharing a link to a conspiratorial film that was full of anti-Semitic tropes. At first, he was unrepentant — but following widespread condemnation and suspension from play, Irving walked back his stance, issuing an apology to everyone he’d offended.
While Irving is a lightning rod for controversy and will likely be in the headlines again soon enough, this story has been quiet for the time being.
How Does Jerry Jones Factor Into This?
Jones is the owner and general manager of the Dallas Cowboys and is generally regarded as the most powerful man in the NFL — which implicitly makes him one of the most powerful people in sports, period.
When Jones was in high school in Arkansas back in the 1950s, an effort was underway to desegregate the city’s schools. In recent days, this photo has surfaced . It shows a 14-year-old Jones attending and apparently participating in a 1957 rally to protest the integration of Central High School in Little Rock.
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For his part, Jones says he didn’t support segregation and only attended the protest because he was “curious.”
LeBron Has A Few Thoughts.
At a press conference, King James drew a link between the stories of Kyrie Irving’s promotion of anti-Semitic material and Jerry Jones attending a pro-segregation protest.
The link is James himself, as he tells it .
“I was wondering why I haven’t gotten a question from [the media] about the Jerry Jones photo,” LeBron asked. “But when the Kyrie thing was going on, you guys were quick to ask us questions about that.”
He went on to explain that he sees Irving as someone who’s simply speaking his mind, even if he is misguided. The Jones photo, on the other hand, is a potent symbol of historical racism.
“I feel like as a Black man, as a Black athlete, as someone with power and a platform, when we do something wrong, or something that people don’t agree with, it’s on every single tabloid, every single news coverage, it’s on the bottom ticker. It’s asked about every single day,” he said.
Is There A Double Standard At Play?
It’s worth noting that LeBron isn’t calling Jones a racist. In fact, he pointedly emphasized the fact that Jones was young at the time and it was likely a mistake on his part. But he’s still frustrated that the media has seemingly held him accountable for the Kyrie Irving drama while ignoring the Jerry Jones photo — a topic that James, as a Black man, would be well-equipped to respond to.
What do you think? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section.
