LeBron James Called on by Black Lives Matter to Sit Out NBA Games Over Tamir Rice Decision
Cleveland Cavaliers star LeBron James is being called on by Black Lives Matter activists to sit out of NBA games to protest a recent decision not to criminally charge officers involved in the death of 12-year-old Tamir Rice.
Earlier this week, authorities in Cleveland formally announced that a grand jury had decided none of the officers involved in the shooting death of the boy in James' hometown will face charges.
Rice was killed while playing with a toy revolver outside a recreation center not far from his home. Police were summoned to the scene following reports of a man with a gun, and within seconds of arriving, opened fire on the defenseless youth.
Following Tuesday night's 93-87 victory over the Denver Nuggets, Global Grind reports James was asked his thoughts in the wake of the grand jury's decision and why he has been publicly slow in reacting.
"For me, I've always been a guy who's took pride in knowledge of every situation that I've ever spoke on," he told ESPN. "And to be honest, I haven't really been on top of this issue. So it's hard for me to comment."
In recent days, James has lent his voice to various social issues and causes, including donning a hoodie in support of Trayvon Martin and openly commenting on the police killings of both Michael Brown and Eric Garner.
"I caught a little bit of it from my folks on the side saying that you guys might ask me about it, but I have no knowledge," James said of a mini-movement on Twitter now calling on him to respond by refusing to take the court. "I'm not much of a social media guy. I'm on it, for sure, but I'm not always looking at what's going on in it."
As for the public stance some are asked of him, James hinted he plans to continue speaking out on the issues he believes in, but added he's convinced righting all the world's social evils is bigger than LeBron James.
"The most important thing that we all need to understand, the most important thing, this issue is bigger than LeBron," he said. "This issue is bigger than me; it's about everyone. And gun violence and tragedies and kids losing lives at a young age, some way, somehow we need to understand that that matters more than just an individual."