Apparently retired basketball great Michael Jordan is giving a million dollars to the NAACP Legal Defense Fund and another million to the Institute for Community-Police Relations. At the same time, current basketball star Carmelo Anthony gathered other Olympic athletes for a conversation with young people about respect, community, and safety.
I love the fact that famous Black men are using their bully pulpit to speak to Black and White people about racial justice and ways to improve the strained relations between the police and the Black community. Moving forward will surely require a lot of honest conversations. Black people need to talk together. White people need to do the same. The Police—Black and White—too. And, of course, we all need to be talking to each other.
Conversations like that will be difficult. But it is wonderful that famous Black men are doing what they can to get the process started and to keep it going. Articles like these two keep my hope alive. I am just sorry they are on the sports page rather the front page!
As it turns out, I particularly needed good news this morning. The Braves lost their last game, and still have the worst record in baseball….