American professional basketball player for the Brooklyn Nets of the National Basketball Association Kyrie Irving doubled down and dug in, defending not only his recent social media posts promoting a movie largely viewed as anti-Semitic, but also older ones amplifying conspiracy theorist Alex Jones.
Irving’s posts from late this past week drew a statement from the NBA and a public rebuke from Nets owner Joe Tsai. Neither the league nor the team, however, convinced Irving to take down his initial post or back down in the slightest. And after the Nets’ latest loss, a 125-116 drubbing by the Pacers at Barclays Center, he vowed not to.
“Out of all the judgment that people got out of me posting — without talking to me — I respect what Joe said, but there has a lot to do with not ego or pride with how proud I am be African heritage but also to be living as a free black man here in America knowing the historical complexities for me to get here,” Irving said. “So I’m not going to stand down on anything I believe in. I’m only going to get stronger because I’m not alone. I have a whole army around me.”
Irving does indeed have a huge fan base, with 17.5 million followers on Instagram and another 4.5 million on Twitter. And on Thursday he took to both platforms to promote a 2018 movie called “Hebrews to Negroes: Wake Up Black America.” Both the film and the 2014 book it is based on are filled with anti-Semitic disinformation, including accusations of large numbers of Jewish people worshipping Satan, according to the New York Post.
The NBA released a statement denouncing "hate speech of any kind" in the wake of Brooklyn Nets point guard Kyrie Irving recently promoting an antisemitic film on Twitter.
The NBA statement did not mention Irving by name, but it appeared to be in response to his tweet after it set off a wide-ranging critical backlash.
Those retorts also included a denouncement from Nets governor Joe Tsai, who expressed his disappointment and desire to speak with Irving further.
The organization also released official comments, per The Athletic's Alex Schiffer:
"The Brooklyn Nets strongly condemn and have no tolerance for the promotion of any form of hate speech. We believe that in these situations, our first action must be open, honest dialogue. We thank those, including the ADL, who have been supportive during this time."
Nets head coach Steve Nash said Saturday that the organization spoke with Irving but did not go into much further detail.
As of Saturday evening, there hasn't been any announcement of a potential punishment for Irving following the tweet promotion. For now, he'll look to lead the 1-4 Nets back into the win column after a date with the Indiana Pacers.
Sources: New York Post, The Bleacher Report, The Athletic
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