Above Front row: Bill Russell, Muhammad Ali, Jim Brown, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (formerly Lew Alcindor). Back row: Mayor Carl Stokes, Walter Beach, Bobby Mitchell, Sid Williams, Curtis McClinton, Willie Davis, Jim Shorter and John Wooten. This photo was taken in Cleveland, Ohio in 1967 and was a group of athletes that met to support Muhammad Ali’s decision to not go fight in the Vietnam War after being drafted.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, the NBA’s all-time leading scorer, is praising his fellow athlete for bravely expressing his constitutional rights.
In an op-ed for the Washington Post, Abdul-Jabbar pointed out that San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick’s decision to not stand for the national anthem is an expression of the First Amendment’s right to free speech, and that anyone criticizing him for his statement is misunderstanding the entire point of the U.S. Constitution:
“What should horrify Americans is not Kaepernick’s choice to remain seated during the national anthem, but that nearly 50 years after [Muhammad] Ali was banned from boxing for his stance and Tommie Smith and John Carlos’s raised fists caused public ostracization and numerous death threats, we still need to call attention to the same racial inequities,” Abdul-Jabbar wrote, pointing out how Olympians John Carlos and Tommie Smith raised “Black Power” fists while accepting medals.
In fact, Muhammad Ali — the celebrated boxer who died earlier this year — was criticized for his ardent anti-war position at the height of the Vietnam War protests. Abdul-Jabbar was one of several prominent African American athletes to show solidarity with Ali and defend his right to speak out on important issues of the time.
In 1967, I joined with football great Jim Brown, basketball legend Bill Russell, Muhammad Ali and other prominent athletes for what was dubbed “The Cleveland Summit.” Together we tried to find ways to help Ali fight for his right of political expression. I don’t know how much we were able to accomplish on a practical level, but seeing black athletes in support of Ali inspired others to speak out.
Abdul-Jabbar also reminded readers that NBA legends LeBron James, Kyrie Irving, Deron Williams, Kevin Garnett, and others wore “I Can’t Breathe” t-shirts during their pre-game warmups to honor Eric Garner, who wNYPD officer Daniel Pantaleo killed with an illegal chokehold in 2014, all because Garner was selling loose cigarettes. Like Ali in his day and Colin Kaepernick today, those players were ostracized for daring to speak out on police violence.
In his op-ed, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar pointed out that true courageous expression of free speech often involves personal sacrifice, and that those who are willing to risk their careers to speak out are deserving of the highest praise.
“Kaepernick’s choice not to stand during the national anthem could create a public backlash that might cost him millions in future endorsements and affect his value as a player on his team, reducing salary earnings or even jeopardizing his job. If team ticket sales seriously dipped as a result, he would pay for his stance,” Abdul-Jabbar wrote. “We should admire those who risk personal gain in the service of promoting the values of their country.”
Zach Cartwright is an activist and author from Richmond, Virginia. He enjoys writing about politics, government, and the media. Send him an email at zachcartwright88@gmail.com, and follow his work on the Public Banking Institute blog.