Draymond Green Explains The Importance Of Athletes Using Their Platform To “Speak For OUR PEOPLE”

On Wednesday, the Milwaukee Bucks spearheaded a sports boycott to protest the officer-involved shooting of Jacob Blake.

The shooting occurred on August 23, in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Blake, 29, who was initially breaking up a fight between women, was shot in the back seven times by Kenosha Officer Rusten Sheskey, during an attempted arrest.

Frustrated by the incident, which occurred just 40 miles away from the team’s home base, the Bucks refused to attend Game 5 of their playoff series against the Orlando Magic, sparking a ripple effect of cancellations and postponements across several sports leagues. But, after two days of boycott, players agreed to resume the season, which in turn, angered onlookers, who believed “Sports can wait” in light of the fight for social justice.

But, according to Draymond Green, as athletes, the platform IS how they fight for social justice.

“This is my response/many questions to a guy that said sports can wait,” Green said, highlighting his response.

This is my response/many questions to a guy that said sports can wait. pic.twitter.com/OShzslHnwI

— Draymond Green (@Money23Green) August 27, 2020

“But why can sports wait?” He asked, under a post that confirmed that most teams agreed to resume the season after the boycott. “Because it’s a sport? It to is a business, like the many other businesses in the world. Why is it that sports can wait, but other businesses should not? If that is the case, why shouldn’t the CEO of Youtube boycott Alphabet? Or the President of Apple boycott the company? But you say basketball can wait… is it because sports (the platform) has afforded the athletes involved such huge platforms? Or maybe the athletes involved past and present actually afforded sports those platforms, that the many athletes currently have today (that’s neither here nor there).”

“The notion that athletes should just stop working but no one else in the world should stop is baffling to me,” he continued. “Why stop doing the very thing that offers you the biggest platform to speak for those that look like me/ a lot of us. To do that is to actually give up the platform to speak for them because without us using our platforms, which is afforded by the influence of the sport, it actually stops us from echoing what those in the back are saying. Those people then will never be truly heard. Athletes stand with the people, no secret there, but to actually tell athletes to stop doing what provides that platform to speak for the people is actually counterproductive, in my opinion.”

Green even elaborated in a series of tweets, making it clear that he stands with his fellow players, but adding “I do hope that they understand that we too have a job to do, which is continue building that very platform that we are using to speak for OUR PEOPLE!”

I stand with my brothers in the bubble continuing to stand for what’s right and fight the oppression of Black People. But I do hope that they understand, that we too have a job to do, which is continue building that very platform that we are using to speak for OUR PEOPLE!

— Draymond Green (@Money23Green) August 27, 2020

Making headlines is great. The attention has been grabbed. Now the next steps are more important now than ever. But it’s not just athletes, the next steps from the black community as an entirety. The next steps from the White community that supports being apart of the change…

— Draymond Green (@Money23Green) August 27, 2020

As he continued, he focused on next steps, the importance of moving in unity and trusting and supporting each other.

“Pushing those narratives and putting in action all that we can for those people that can’t put it in action,” he said. “Use the platform for them. Be very tactical and super specific of everything we want and desperately need.”

that blacks has been suffering from for hundreds of years! Now is that time. Platforms has been used to get the attention that we all has so desperately wanted for a long time. Now the way we move as a unit is critical!

— Draymond Green (@Money23Green) August 27, 2020

Trusting each other, supporting each other! Pushing those narratives and putting in action all that we can for those people that can’t put it in action. Use the platform for them. Be very tactical and super specific of everything we want and desperately need!

— Draymond Green (@Money23Green) August 27, 2020