Sacramento Kings and Boston Celtics players made a statement last night at their game against each other. Players from both teams came out during the pre-game warm-up with shirts supporting the wrongful shooting of Stephon Clark.
On the front of players’ shirts, read “Accountability we are one.” And on the back it simply, read “#StephonClark”, paying homage to the 22-year-old who was killed by Sacramento police.
The idea stemmed from Kings staff member, Akachi Okugo, and player, Garrett Temple, two activists for the cause. Temple commented,
“It’s probably the toughest job in America and I applaud them for putting their lives on the line every night, every day, but with that comes responsibility. That’s the mantle that they carry and the burden they bear.”
The shirt sightings were a small part of their demonstration. The other part transpired when the players issued PSA demonstration videos via each team’s Twitter. Having to get approval for that from the association was huge in itself. Both teams expressed how grateful they are to be apart of an organization like the NBA that would allow them to express their concerns about causes as such.
https://twitter.com/SacramentoKings/status/978033647868461056
