The common narrative of the 2016 United States presidential election between Donald Trump (Republican nominee) and Hillary Clinton (Democratic nominee) coupled with the subsequent victory of the former was that the election was the most toxic in the country’s history.
I have only been alive since 1972 but I would be hard-pressed to argue differently. The US has become exceedingly divided for much of the past decade and Trump being elected the 45th president has only widened the gap. The divide likely would have occurred as well had Clinton been elected but that’s another story for another day.
In the professional sporting world, NBA head coaches Gregg Popovich (San Antonio Spurs) and Steve Kerr (Golden State Warriors) have been among the most outspoken critics against Trump coupled with leading the two best NBA teams. Their message undeniably carries much clout. Popovich has led the Spurs to five NBA titles and also served five years of active duty for the US Air Force. Kerr has six NBA championship rings (five as a player, one as a coach). Kerr’s father (Malcolm) was murdered by the Islamic Jihad in 1984. Given what these two have endured away from the basketball court, they have earned the right to speak out and I would say that even if they supported Trump.
Popovich and Kerr’s open stances against Trump have sparked the question of “should athletes and/or celebrities speak out on political and social issues?” Do they have an obligation to do so? To the latter, I say no. They don’t owe it to anyone to express their views if they are not comfortable doing so. They can do it on their own terms. However, since the First Amendment protects their right to express their views, their actions are fair game. Given their background, I will listen to them long before I listen to Colin Kaepernick, who gets on his soapbox about bringing change yet, by his own admission, has never been registered to vote.
The argument against them expressing their views is that while athletes/celebrities are citizens, they are more than just everyday people in that what they say and do has a far reaching impact on those who admire them. Like everyday people, there are athletes/celebrities who do not take the time to think about whether or not what they say makes sense.
While I believe athletes/celebrities should be educated on what they say and avoid belittling those with dissenting points of view, I see nothing wrong with them speaking out on their beliefs if the issue means something to them. Given the toxicity that has taken place with Trump’s election, as Americans, we cannot afford not to stay engaged. If you don’t engage on some level, you are a Trump enabler.
I get the narrative that people watch sports to get away from hard news but the “athletes should stick to sports” argument is like saying a politician shouldn’t talk about sports. So does that mean Barack Obama shouldn’t talk about his affinity for the Chicago White Sox?
Discussing politics has become an aggressive format. We live a world where people don’t just “agree to disagree.” We live in a world where people call someone every four-letter name in the book when encountering a dissenting view.
Given the aggressive format of political discussion, I can understand the reluctance to engage but avoiding political and social discourse entirely is not good either. The fact is, athletes are people with powerful voices that resonate. They should have a voice in what they think is right or wrong.
While I do not know the exact figures, I know that a vast number of professional athletes came from below middle class backgrounds. While they make insane amounts of money now, they know the struggle to become the people they are at the present time. Therefore, their voices can have a strong influence.
I also think their engagement in such issues should be a reminder to us to stay active, instead of just closing our eyes. As a former Republican turned Independent and now Libertarian, I’m as big of a political cynic as you’ll find. I initially became Independent because I felt both Republicans and Democrats have become too much into the group think mentality. I have no desire to align myself with either. My conscious got to me and I decided I did not want to be lumped into a political pocket. Then, I read about the Libertarian Party, which in a nutshell is fiscally conservative but socially inclusive. That mindset speaks to me, so I joined. That’s as far as I will go in discussing my affiliation.
While I’m not remotely the public figure of Kerr and Popovich, I have seen the importance of engaging in political discussions but I’m selective in whom I engage with and on which platform. Translation, my approach is “read the room.”
If I know I’m dealing with a person that turns political discussions into shouting match/name-calling nonsense, I’m done with them. I may still like them personally but politics will be an off-limits discussion with these people. I’m not going to convince them of my views, they’re not going to convince me of theirs. As for social media, I don’t post anything political on my page, not because I can’t take the heat for my views but because responses from others led to far too much toxicity for my taste. With my job as a route sales representative, I don’t have time or energy to police vicious responses that ensue. I’ve saved a lot of headaches that way. However, I’ll respond to political posts on other people’s pages to satisfy a need to stay engaged.
To that end, I think we should thank Kerr and Popovich for reminding us to stay engaged as they try leading their respective teams to an NBA Title.
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