On May 25, 2020, George Floyd was murdered by a police officer in Minneapolis. The death sparked a ton of outrage not just throughout the country, but the entire world. Protests raged on everywhere as many called for sweeping police reform.
Social justice has been one of the calling cards of Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James and his off-court projects and this was no different. James has always been outspoken on what he thinks is wrong in the world and has pushed hard to make changes.
One thing that has gained a lot of traction is the George Floyd Bill which seeks to change policing across the board. Following the Lakers’ win in Game 2 against the Suns, James voiced his support of the bill that would give more training to police officers.
“First of all, I’m in full support of the George Floyd bill. I think it just changed the landscape of how policing is modified, on how policing is looked at,” James said. “It holds a lot of accountability. I think it will make our community and make this great nation a better place, so I’m all for that.
“Thank the NBA, the NBPA, the WNBA and anyone that has any involvement in this. I know my initiative obviously More Than A Vote, we’re going to continue to hit home and we’re going to push anything we can to better change and that’s to answer the second half of your question.”
James would then reflect on Floyd himself and the impact his unfortunate death had on the world. “The first half of your question, the man literally changed the world,” James added. “It’s unfortunate obviously that his family has to grieve and still ask questions of why, but he’s literally changed the world. The conversation has not stopped even though a year has went by and I seen a lot today throughout social.
“Throughout the TV. Watched a little bit of TV before the game and his name continues to ring home and ring bells and that’s very key. Anytime you talk about change, it’s very key that you continue to have these conversations. Much respect to him. He’s an angel looking over all of us, looking over all these Black kids in the Black community and his family I continue my well wishes to them.”
James proud of More Than a Vote initiative
In the time since Floyd’s death, James put in a lot of work in order to enact some of the change he is talking about. His More Than A Vote initiative did a lot during the recent election and the success of that has given James more confidence in his ability to make even more changes going forward.
“I got so much confidence in what we were able to do at More Than A Vote, David [Aldridge]. Obviously, the proof is in the pudding since we set this initiative up being able to go after things that we just don’t feel is right,” LeBron added. “Go after things like voter suppression, which was going on in Georgia and all other states as well. Michigan, Florida and some of the big swing states, obviously, during the election in November.
“Then any little thing that we feel like is just not right, not humane. We’re very educated. We have a great support system, we have a great staff. We got so many people that wants to be a part of change and the greater good not just for individuals, but for everyone. For every community that they don’t see that fits a livelihood. So to be able to be a founding father of More Than A Vote along with a lot of other people, it means a lot to be able to create change and just create a better environment for people not only in the present but in the future.”
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