Following the Kyrie Irving tweet of a link to the controversial movie Hebrews to Negroes: Wake Up Black America, he was heavily criticized for his antisemitic views. The backlash led to the Brooklyn Nets player’s suspension of at least five games.
As of right now, Irving is suspended until he fulfills the six conditions set by the Nets’ organization:
1. Issue an apology for posting a link to the movie on Oct. 27, condemn the harmful and false content and make clear that he does not have anti-Jewish beliefs.
2. Complete the anti-hate causes that Irving, the Nets and the Anti-Defamation League agreed upon in their joint release on Nov. 2 — including a $500,000 donation toward causes and organizations that work to eradicate hate and intolerance in communities.
3. Complete sensitivity training created by the Nets.
4. Complete antisemitic/anti-hate training designed by the Nets
5. Meet with representatives from the Anti-Defamation League, as well as Jewish community leaders in Brooklyn
6. After completing 1 to 5, meet with owner Joe Tsai and lead franchise officials and demonstrate the lessons learned and that the gravity of the harm caused in the situation is understood, and provide assurances that this type of behavior will not be repeated.
So far, Irving has only apologized about posting the film and it has not yet been reported how many of these steps he has fulfilled. Marc Stein reports that the “list was crafted with the knowledge” that Irving is unlikely to complete all six conditions which could possibly lead to a release by the franchise,
“There is a feeling among some close to the process, I’m told, that the list was crafted with the knowledge that Irving would be unlikely to complete all six and thus could conceivably subject himself to potential outright release.”
Many incidents have indicated that the Nets’ franchise and owner Joe Tsai have been disappointed with Irving and are fed up with his antics. In a tweet, Tsai wrote, “I’m disappointed that Kyrie appears to support a film based on a book full of anti-semitic disinformation. I want to sit down and make sure he understands this is hurtful to all of us, and as a man of faith, it is wrong to promote hate based on race, ethnicity or religion.” He also added that “this is bigger than basketball.”
The Athletic also spoke to many NBA GMs on whether or not they would take the opportunity to sign Irving, should the option be available. Many appear to be opposed to the idea stating that “he’s the opposite of a commodity, which is what you want a player who’s getting paid that much to be.” Another manager went as far as saying that his actions will cause Irving to “not play in the NBA again.” They noted that Nike pulling away from their deal with Irving makes it tougher for the player.
Stay tuned for how Irving’s basketball career can unfold.
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Tagged: Sports