The US president’s racism is so blatant he may be an unwitting catalyst for overdue cultural change all over the worldDear President Trump, I realise this is an extremely busy time for you between games of golf and tweeting but I hope you may be boosted by a rare and welcome thank you letter from a black man at such an inconvenient moment in the history of the United States of America. Related: Brees sorry after LeBron James leads backlash to QB's criticism of anthem protests Related: George Floyd's killing matters too much for corporate sport's on-brand insincerity | Jonathan Liew Continue reading...
Statements barely addressing an unarmed black man’s death are closer to obligation than any commitment to social justiceOn Saturday, five days after the killing of George Floyd by police in Minnesota, the NFL spoke out. It released a short statement by its commissioner, Roger Goodell, offering his condolences to the Floyd family, stating the “urgent need for action” without identifying what that action might be, addressing “systemic issues” without specifying what those issues were. The words “police”, “black” and “racism” were not mentioned. It was a word salad, reading like the cryptic statement of a surly 61-year-old teenager, fed through the yoghurt pot of a corporate communications department, and spat out on to the internet in a shareable meme format.The...
The two young stars’ criticisms of police brutality after George Floyd’s killing were brave in a culture uneasy with black athletes speaking outA couple of weeks ago Naomi Osaka decided that it was time to eradicate her shyness once and for all. It was exhausting, she said, missing out on moments because she was too terrified to speak in the presence of people she admired. Her options for socialising limited in quarantine, she set up a series of interviews with players. Before long, fellow players Frances Tiafoe, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Gaël Monfils and Iga Swiatek were her subjects. “I’m coming for every tennis reporter’s neck,” she said.On Saturday afternoon Osaka’s new reporting skills were put to use on Instagram as a...