Jemele Hill of The Undefeated recently sat down for an interview with retired Lakers star Kobe Bryant. During the talk, Hill brought up the #TakeAKnee movement, and asked if the basketball player would have opted to participate if her were still on the court.
Kobe Bryant on national anthem protests. #DearBlackAthlete pic.twitter.com/zHNrAuTRW3— The Undefeated (@TheUndefeated) February 12, 2018
“Yeah, I would have participated in it, for sure," Bryant said. "I’m sure I would have gotten some flak for it. That’s fine. I think that Colin’s message was a very simple one. It was police brutality needs to stop; we need to take a look at that … I think we understand this is a free country."
From the moment Colin Kaepernick spearheaded the #TakeAKnee national anthem protest movement, debates got heated. Conservative commentators, and even the president and vice president of the United States criticized the protest, calling Kaep's actions disrespectful to the country's legacy and disrespectful to the troops.
Bryant disagrees.
"I think we have the right to peaceful protest," the former Laker said. "And by the way, from my point of view, that’s what the flag represents as well: the ability to speak. The ability to voice your opinion. And everybody is entitled to that. So everybody getting up in arms about it, they’re certainly in their right to do that, as we’re certainly in our right to protest — peacefully at that.”
NBA commissioner Nate Silver encouraged members of the league to speak out on social issues not long ago, telling players that they possess "real power."
"The NBA is of course about much more than a game," Silver wrote in a letter said. "Let's continue to use this incredible platform to help and engage with people everywhere — what we say and do together matters more than ever."
On that, Bryant agrees, and said that he believes his teammates, at least, would have been open to his participation in the #TakeAKnee movement.
“From my experience in the locker room, it doesn’t seem like any of the players that I played with certainly would have had an issue with that," he said.
