Basketball icon, and someone who is widely regarded as the greatest player in the history of the sport, Michael Jordan has joined other celebrities donating to fight for equality in America, after the horrible George Floyd incident.
The NBA legend who expressed his pain and sadness to the news of the death of George Floyd, reportedly announced that he will be donating $100m over the next decade to help projects and organisations in the battle for racial equality and social justice.
Michael Jordan who released a statement to make this pledge also touched on the controversy surrounding the ‘Black Lives Matter’ which has been the major call from protesters in the United States after George Floyd, an unarmed black man, died when a white police officer knelt on his neck for over eight minutes in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Michael Jordan in his statement said: ‘Black lives matter. This isn’t a controversial statement’ he said.
He continued by adding that:
‘Until the ingrained racism that allows our country’s institutions to fail is completely eradicated, we will remain committed to protecting and improving the lives of Black people.
‘Today, we are announcing that Michael Jordan and the Jordan Brand will be donating $100m over the next 10 years to organisations dedicated to ensuring racial equality, social justice and greater access to education.’
‘I am deeply saddened, truly pained and plain angry,’ Jordan said earlier this week. ‘I see and feel everyone’s pain, outrage and frustration. I stand with those who are calling out the ingrained racism and violence toward people of colour in our country. We have had enough.
‘I don’t have the answers, but our collective voices show strength and the inability to be divided by others.
‘We must listen to each other, show compassion and empathy and never turn our backs on senseless brutality. We need to continue peaceful expressions against injustice and demand accountability.
‘Our unified voice needs to put pressure on our leaders to change our laws, or else we need to use our vote to create systemic change.
‘Every one of us needs to be part of the solution, and we must work together to ensure justice for all.
‘My heart goes out to the family of George Floyd and to the countless others whose lives have been brutally and senselessly taken through acts of racism and injustice,’ Michael Jordan
Derek Chauvin, the fired Minneapolis police officer who knelt on Floyd’s neck, has been charged with second-degree murder, while colleagues Thomas Lane, Tou Thao and J Alexander Kueng have been charged with aiding and abetting second-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. More than 10,000 people across the US have been arrested in connection with unrest following Floyd’s death.
NBA players Steph Curry and Klay Thompson marched with protesters at a demonstration organised by fellow basketball star Juan Toscano-Anderson in Oakland on Wednesday. Asked about the significance of their presence at the protest, Toscano-Anderson said:
‘It meant a lot just because I know someone in my work profession has my back.
‘I know it’s tough when you in a position like Steph’s, I don’t want to say it’s hard but it’s a thin line you have to watch where you walk. ‘It made me feel good to see somebody of his calibre and his notoriety here. It’s a pretty cool feeling.