Jason Whitlock was already not a fan of LeBron James, and what he posted on Wednesday only made things worse.
At the same time a jury was deliberating Tuesday on the fate of ex-Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, another police-involved shooting was taking place in Columbus, Ohio. 16-year-old Ma’Khia Bryant tragically lost her life after she was shown on body-cam attacking two girls with a knife in her hand.
An officer shot Bryant four times before she collapsed to the ground. She died at the hospital after being taken there in critical condition. Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James reacted to the news by sharing an image of the officer involved in the fatal shooting of Bryant, and wrote “YOU’RE NEXT” while hashtagging “ACCOUNTABILITY”.
Jason Whitlock decided to call him out on Twitter in several posted tweets.
“LeBron James, like other elites, is using racial division as a distraction as elites reshape America to be more like communist China. Elites prefer communism. Millionaire elites are protected by communism. They’re the “Talented Tenth” W.E.B. Du Bois promoted. You’re being played.”
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Whitlock continued:
“Black teenage girl tried to stab a black teenage girl. 7-year-old black girl gunned down at McDonald’s drive-thru. Silence. No tweets. You’re not tired of young black people killing each other. Silence. No desperation. How come?”
In a series of tweets later Wednesday, James explained why he deleted the tweet.
“ANGER does any of us any good and that includes myself! Gathering all the facts and educating does though! My anger still is here for what happened that lil girl. My sympathy for her family and may justice prevail!, James wrote in one tweet.
“I’m so damn tired of seeing Black people killed by police,” James continued in a second tweet. “I took the tweet down because its being used to create more hate -This isn’t about one officer. it’s about the entire system and they always use our words to create more racism. I am so desperate for more ACCOUNTABILITY.”
Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther described the whole situation as a tragedy.
“It’s a tragic day in the city of Columbus. It’s a horrible, heartbreaking situation,” Ginther said Tuesday night. “The city of Columbus lost a [16-year-old] girl today. We know based on this footage, the officer took action to protect another young girl in our community. But a family is grieving tonight. And this young [16-year-old] girl will never be coming home.”
