On the evening of August 23, Jacob Blake, a 29-year-old Black man, was shot at least
seven times in the back by police in Kenosha, Wisconsin. The brutal shooting was caught on video and was yet another case of police brutality against a Black man (though in this case, Blake survived with extensive and likely permanent injuries). Coming amid widespread protests and ongoing movements to end systemic anti-Black racism and police violence after the killing of George Floyd in May, reaction to the video has been swift.It only took a couple days for NBA and WNBA players to
float the idea of a boycott (known as a work stoppage or “wildcat strike”) and then execute it by cancelling all games on August 26. News broke mere moments before
Black-ish star Tracee Ellis Ross chatted with James Corden on
The Late Late Show, and she had some stirring thoughts about the players' form of protest.
“I say, 'Bravo!' This is a moment for the collective voice of all of us saying it’s enough,” she explained via video-chat to Corden. “That change requires all of us collectively to use our voices, our hands.
Voting is a part of it; protesting is a part of it; being clear about the systemic change that we want to occur is part of it, we all have a part in this and it can't just be one person or the other,” she continued.[video_embed id='2022969']RELATED: Jacob Blake shooting spurs historic NBA boycott [/video_embed]“Jacob is your brother as he is my brother, we cannot keep the disregard for human life, or Black humanity, Black bodies, Black life to be brutalized and violently disregarded in that way and if we all don't stand up, it won't change,” Tracee added.Many players and execs across the sports world agreed with Ross, as the player-described "boycott" will continue August 27, making the
Game 1 match between the Toronto Raptors and the Boston Celtics unlikely. The WNBA players are also striking, and showed up wearing
t-shirts with seven bloody bullet holes on the back. Tennis star Naomi Osaka
released a statement announcing her intention to withdraw from the Western and Southern Open semi-finals. "Before I am an athlete, I am a Black woman. And as a Black woman I feel as though there are much more important matters at hand that need immediate attention, rather than watching me play tennis."Major League Baseball released
a statement supporting any athletes who choose to strike, with
several teams cancelling games. The Toronto Blue Jays played their scheduled Boston Red Sox game Wednesday, but
the team will discuss boycotting their Thursday game. The NHL has been
criticized for not addressing the issue beyond projecting “End Racism" in an arena.The NBA and WNBA strikes come
four years to the day since NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick first took a knee during the American national anthem to protest racial injustice and police brutality. While some players, like
LeBron James, as well as some
news outlets, have been calling the protest a “boycott,” some have also
pointed out that referring to the work stoppage in that way reduces the collective action being taken by workers.
The L.A. Times noted that a boycott is a consumer-led refusal to purchase a product to hurt the company financially, calling the NBA's action a "wildcat strike"—a spontaneous action which has not been voted on or approved by the union, unlike a true strike. Additionally, NBA player contracts
prohibit any strikes, so it's possible the athletes use of "boycott" is a way to side-step the terminology of "strike" while still having the same effect.
Semantics aside, what truly matters is that many sports pros are taking a stand against racially-motivated police brutality that disproportionately affects Black communities and demanding real change.“The only way that this changes is if we, each of us, understand that we shape our future,” Ross told Corden. “We are stronger together, and if we don’t get involved, none of it changes. If we’re not appalled by what’s happening, what does that say about who we are?”“Even if someone is a criminal, you do not deserve to die! That’s not how this works!”
UPDATE: As of the evening of August 27, NHL players moved to postpone the Thursday games after members of the
Hockey Diversity Alliance encouraged the collective action. In the NBA, Thursday games have been cancelled, but
players agreed on a phone call with NBA execs to resume playoffs with details pending. The WNBA
announced the postponement of their Thursday games while "players continue discussions and reflections on recent events." At the time of publication, the Toronto Blue Jays vs. Boston Red Sox, Oakland Athletics vs. Texas Rangers, and Philadelphia Phillies vs. Washington Nationals MLB games were all cancelled with others moving forward.[video_embed id='2021846']RELATED: LeBron James responds to Jacob Blake's shooting: 'We are scared as Black people in America.' [/video_embed]
