NBA star LeBron James is partnering with fellow basketball players to form a voting rights group aimed at motivating Black folks to vote in the upcoming general election, The New York Times reported.
The organization, More Than A Vote, will also assist in educating voters on the importance of voting.
“Yes, we want you to go out and vote, but we’re also going to give you the tutorial,” James told The Times. “We’re going to give you the background of how to vote and what they’re trying to do, the other side, to stop you from voting.”
The father of three said the recent protests surrounding the killing of George Floyd sparked his interest in forming the group.
“Because of everything that’s going on, people are finally starting to listen to us — we feel like we’re finally getting a foot in the door,” James said. “How long is up to us. We don’t know. But we feel like we’re getting some ears and some attention, and this is the time for us to finally make a difference.”
Basketball players Trae Young, Skylar Diggins-Smith and Jalen Rose will be partnering with James in his voting rights efforts, The Hill reported.
Diggins-Smith shared similar sentiments about the killing of Floyd as her inspiration to get involved.
“I’m sick of seeing unarmed Black men killed by the police,” Diggins-Smith, a guard for the Phoenix Mercury, said.
Diggins-Smith added that she wanted “to put some action behind my frustrations, behind my anger, behind the helplessness that I’ve been feeling.”
Young, 21, said he hopes his involvement will encourage young people to go out and cast their ballots.
"If people my age see that I’m going out and I’m voting and I’m talking, maybe the next 21-year-old will," Young said.
According to The Times, James has also reached out to Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green and Miami Heat forward Udonis Haslem to help execute his vision.
Comedian Kevin Hart has committed to working with the organization as well.
James, who will also use his social media platforms to tackle voter suppression, said he hopes to leave behind a legacy that inspires those who come after him.
“I’m inspired by the likes of Muhammad Ali, I’m inspired by the Bill Russells and the Kareem Abdul-Jabbars, the Oscar Robertsons — those guys who stood when the times were even way worse than they are today,” he said. “Hopefully, someday down the line, people will recognize me not only for the way I approached the game of basketball, but the way I approached life as an African American man.”
“There’s a lot of people that want change in the Black community [but] if you actually don’t put in the work or if you don’t have the mindset, there’s never going to be change,” he added.
More Than A Vote is expected to work alongside Stacey Abrams' organization, Fair Fight, in addition to other voting rights groups. The organization will be advised by Addisu Demissie, who helped run Sen. Cory Booker's 2020 presidential campaign.
Although the organization will not be backing a presidential candidate, James said he won't rule out appearing on the campaign trail for presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden.
