NBPA's Michele Roberts Discusses Double Standard in Treatment of Pro-Trump Mob
After a pro-Donald Trump mob stormed the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, National Basketball Players Association executive director Michele Roberts contrasted the treatment it received by police to the treatment Black people have received in the United States.
She specifically cited the police shooting of Jacob Blake and Kenosha County District Attorney Michael Graveley's decision Tuesday not to charge any of the officers involved.
Roberts explained her perspective on the racial double standard to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN:
"Today started yesterday, when the Jacob Blake shooting was being justified, although I'm not sure there was a single human surprised at that finding. Every single player that contacted me—or that I contacted—saw the same connection to the Blake shooting being justified. We were watching these people essentially committing treason at the Capitol and I have yet to hear about a single shot being fired.
"We saw a Black police officer being chased and players said to me, 'So this is what they can do?' And people don't get this privilege stuff? I know how they're feeling. I am so angry and pained -- and refusing to cry. It reminded me of something that James Baldwin said, when asked what it was like to be a Negro in the United States of America. He said that if you're conscious of what's going on in the country, and you're a Negro, you're in a constant state of rage.
"On a day like this, it's the first thing that comes to mind. And all I can say is that I'm grateful knowing that hopefully nobody who looks like me is going to Capitol Hill to respond to this, because if they do, you'll see a different response by law enforcement. You know it—and I know it."
According to CNN, one woman was killed after being shot during Wednesday's riot at the U.S. Capitol, but videos have circulated on social media showing officers either overwhelmed by the mob or providing little resistance.
Several current and former NBA players made the comparison to the police response during protests against racial injustice.
The Milwaukee Bucks had decided against playing a playoff game after officer Rusten Sheskey shot Blake in August, spurring a leaguewide protest. Many players around the league had also taken part in protests following the police killings of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor.
It appears the outrage has only grown after the latest events in Washington D.C.
