Lakers star LeBron James was blasted last month for tweeting and deleting a photo of a Columbus police officer with the caption “YOU’RE NEXT.” Now, two weeks later, James has still not apologized for potentially putting the officer in harm’s way.
After an avalanche of criticism, James deleted his tweet from mid-April, claiming that his tweet was being “used” to “create more hate.”
The NBA star posted his original April 21 tweet in the wake of the shooting of Columbus teenager Ma’Khia Bryant after a police officer shot the teen while she was in the act of trying to stab a woman during an argument.
On Monday, two weeks after his initial tweet about Miss Bryant’s death, James issued a half-apology, not to the officer, but to say that he “fueled the wrong conversation” about Bryant.
James re-tweeted a post about a story from Vox that added more detail about the shooting incident and the girl’s life.
I fueled the wrong conversation about Ma’Khia Bryant and I owe it to her and this movement to change it. Thank you @fabiolacineas for educating us about Ma’Khia and her story and why this needs to be about her. https://t.co/Owh1vDJWXi #sayhername #Blacklivesmatter
— LeBron James (@KingJames) May 3, 2021
James followed that tweet with another saying, “Protect our Young Black Women & Men!”
Protect our Young Black Women & Men! 🙏🏾✊🏾👑
— LeBron James (@KingJames) May 3, 2021
The last comment is especially grating because the officer who shot Bryant was trying to do just that; protect a black woman. After all, if the officer had not shot Bryant, she would have stabbed and perhaps killed the black woman with whom she was arguing.
It’s two weeks and counting, and LeBron James has still not apologized for targeting a police officer who acted to protect the life of a black woman.
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