Thousands have taken to the streets across the United States in recent days to protest the killing of George Floyd, a black man in Minneapolis who died after a police officer dug their knee into his neck for nearly nine minutes. In addition to the amount of time that it took for the officer at the center of this to be arrested — video of the incident went viral earlier this week, and it was not until Friday afternoon that he was charged with third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter — these protestors looked to speak out against the years-long trend of killings of black individuals at the hands of police officers.
This included demonstrations in Atlanta on Friday night that garnered considerable attention, in part due to the images of looting and destruction of property that included the CNN Center. As a result, Atlanta native, rapper, and activist Killer Mike spoke to the individuals of his city and expressed both his anger regarding Floyd’s death and pleaded with Atlantans to not “burn your own house down for anger with an enemy,” hoping that they would instead “fortify your own house, so that you may be a house of refuge in times of organization.”
The clip went viral, including catching the eye of LeBron James. The Los Angeles Lakers star posted the clip of Killer Mike’s remarks, calling them a “mandatory listen” amid the current situation in the United States.
MANDATORY LISTEN!!!! @KillerMike always on point! So passionate and smart(knowledgeable) as hell!! Man I love you G! Salute
— LeBron James (@KingJames) May 30, 2020
Beyond James, members of the NBA family such as Trae Young, Jerry Stackhouse, and Detlef Schrempf have also shared Killer Mike’s address. It’s not the only message James has amplified in recent days. Earlier in the evening on Friday, he shared a clip from Ava DuVernay about the longtime oppression the black community has experienced at the hands of law enforcement in America and praised Jalen Rose’s remarks on Get Up about his experience as a black man in America.
Source: https://uproxx.com/dimemag/lebron-james-killer-mike-atlanta-mandatory-listen-video/