LA Skippers Raised Silent Protest after Racist Comment from Team Owner
The LA Skippers players made a silent protest after the racist remarks from team owner Davis Sterling. The team preferred to shred their usual jersey and wore black apparels during an NBA playoff on Sunday.
The team gathered at the center court in the warm-up session and pulled off their warm-up shirts to put them off the floor. They wore the shirts in a way to hide the team logo and name.
While some have raised the protest to boycott the game, the players rather insisted to play by wearing all black dress.
"I wasn't thrilled about it but if that's what they want to do, that's what they want to do," Clippers coach Glenn Rivers said about the protest.
President Barack Obama, a basketball fan was also not happy with the comment made by Sterling and stated the remarks as "incredibly offensive" and "ignorant."
"I don't think I have to interpret those statements for you. They kind of speak for themselves ... When ignorant folks want to advertise their ignorance, you don't really have to do anything, you just let them talk ... We just have to be clear and steady in denouncing it, teaching our children differently but also (remain) hopeful that part of why some statements like this stand out so much is because there has been a shift in how we view ourselves," Mr Obama said.
Gossip Web site TMZ released one 10-minute audio recording on Saturday where a male voice was accusing V. Stiviano not to bring black guests in the game.
"It bothers me a lot that you want to broadcast that you are associating with black people. Do you have to?" as recorded on the tape.
"You can sleep with (black people). You can bring them in. You can do whatever you want. The little I ask is not to promote it on that ... and not to bring them to my games ... In your lousy ... Instagrams you don't have to have yourself walking with black people," he further commented.
The outrage of the NBA was loud and clear. Magic Johnson and his friend vowed on Twitter that they will never attend any Clippers game as long as Sterling is the owner.
"LA Clippers owner Donald Sterling's comments about African Americans are a black eye for the NBA," Johnson wrote.
Miami Heat guru LeBron James was equally perturbed with Sterling's comment.
"No room for Donald Sterling in our league ... I can't imagine what's going on in his head," Bryant said.
Jesse Jackson, the African American rights activist also denounced the remarks and insisted to boycott the game.
"If we are just going from picking cotton balls to picking basketballs, then we are not making progress ...I t's about dignity," Jackson said to ESPN.