LeBron James and his colleagues at the Los Angeles Lakers were already upset after a Wisconsin prosecutor decided on Tuesday not to accuse a police officer who shot a black man last year.
Then came Wednesday when a violent crowd loyal to U.S. President Donald Trump invaded the U.S. Capitol to delay Congress from certifying the results of the November election.
What James watched on television with his family continued to reinforce his view of the wide divide in the country.
“We live in two Americas and that was an excellent example of that yesterday. If you don’t understand or see this, you need to take a step back. Not just one step, but four, five or even ten steps back, ”said James on Thursday night, after finishing with 27 points in the Lakers’ 118-109 defeat by the San Antonio Spurs. “How do you want your children or grandchildren to live in this beautiful country? Because it wasn’t that yesterday.
“I couldn’t help wondering if those were my species attacking the Capitol, what the result would have been. We all know what would have happened if someone had come close, let alone a storm or entered the offices. “
James wore a shirt when entering the Staples Center before the game that said ‘DO YOU UNDERSTAND NOW?’ in large block letters. He also had the message written on his sneakers during the game. In smaller letters, the shirt also contained a slogan invoked by James in the past: “In memoriam of the countless black lives lost to police brutality and racial injustice.”