Bill Russell: 'Racial Injustice Is Rampant Throughout Every Sector Of' America

Boston Celtics legend Bill Russell wrote a first-person article for The Players' Tribune that published Monday, discussing his experiences with racism and calling on America to reckon with its past to improve its future.

Russell's piece touches on several topics, most notably the divide between white and Black people in acknowledging racism in the country. 

"I find that white people are often surprised that racial injustice still exists outside of a few 'bad apples,'" Russell wrote. "This surprise is particularly dangerous because racial injustice is rampant throughout every sector of American society, from education to health care to sports, and the fact that this remains surprising to many reveals exactly how different Black and white people's experiences of life in America are."

Russell made a direct comparison of Lester Maddox, the racist former Georgia governor he interviewed in the 1960s during segregation, and President Donald Trump. Maddox was a restauranteur until closing down his businesses in protest of having to serve Black people. Russell says Trump's rhetoric, particularly his comments on preserving suburbs, strike the same tone:

"Maddox had nothing against Black people, as long as they were subservient to white people and stayed in their neighborhood. This sentiment is alive and well today. In July 2020, for example, Donald Trump, a New York businessman turned politician tweeted about ending a government program put in place to combat racial segregation in suburban housing: 'I am happy to inform all of the people living their Suburban Lifestyle Dream that you will no longer have to be bothered or financially hurt by having low income housing built in your neighborhood….' Of course, when he said 'low income housing' would be built in 'your neighborhood' he meant 'Black and Brown people' will move to the suburbs, which are still mostly white due to redlining and economic disparities. Despite being separated by 53 years, the only substantial difference between the two men's statements is their accents."

Trump's career as a politician has been rife with racial unrest, beginning with him being a leader of the "birther" movement during Barack Obama's presidency, continuing with his racist comments about Mexicans during his campaign and becoming even more enflamed during his presidency. He has consistently insulted protesters, who have taken to the street for months following the police killings of Breonna Taylor and George Floyd, among others.

Russell, who told stories of how his grandfather and father had to run from murderous Ku Klux Klansmen in their youth, said Black Americans now fear police in the same way.

"Black kids today don't grow up worried the Klan will kill them in the middle of the night—they worry the police will," the 86-year-old wrote. "The effects of racial terror perpetrated over hundreds of years don't disappear simply because America wills them to."

Russell finished his piece by saying America will not be the "land of the free" until people like Taylor, Floyd and others no longer have to fear for their lives in every police encounter. 

"America is not the land of the free when Black people's murderers always go free," Russell wrote. "Without justice for all, none of us are free."