Kyrie Irving speaks to media, claims he cannot be guilty of antisemitism

Kyrie Irving spoke to reporters on Thursday and called himself “a beacon of light.”

Shortly after NBA commissioner announced in a statement that he was disappointed that Kyrie Irving did not offer a direct apology to the Jewish community, the Nets’ star guard spoke to reporters and claimed he cannot be guilty of antisemitism.

Irving, who posted a link to an antisemitic film on Twitter, released a statement on Wednesday taking responsibility for his post and saying he meant no harm to the Jewish community. It was announced Irving and the Nets will each donate $500k to anti-hate groups.

Irving spoke to the media for the first time since his combative press conference last Saturday, and was asked directly if he had any antisemitic beliefs. Irving did not give a straight answer, and later claimed that “I cannot be antisemitic if I know where I come from.”

Reporter: “Do you have any antisemitic beliefs?”

Irving: “Again, I’m going to repeat. I don’t know how the label becomes justified because you guys ask me the same questions over and over again, but this is not going to turn into a spin around cycle of questions upon questions. I told you guys how I felt. I respect all walks of life and embrace all walks of life. That’s where I sit.”

Reporter: “I think what people want to hear though is just a yes or no on that question.”

Irving: “I cannot be antisemitic if I know where I come from…. I cannot be antisemitic if I know where I come from.”

In the same press scrum, Irving referred to himself as a “beacon of light,” and discussed “growing up in a country that’s told me that I wasn’t worth anything.”

Reporter: Are you surprised at the reaction, some of the things that you did, hurt people?

Irving: Yeah I think I can ask a better question, which is where were you when I, uh, a kid, figuring out that 300 million of my ancestors are buried in America? Where were you guys asking those same questions when I was a kid dealing with learning about the traumatic events of my familial history and what I’m proud to come from? And why I’m proud to stand here, and why when I repeat myself that I’m not going to stand down? It has nothing to do with dismissing any other race or group of people. I’m just proud of my heritage and what we’ve been through.

And the fact that this has pinned me against the Jewish community and I’m here answering questions to whether or not I’m sorry or not, on something I didn’t create, and it was something I shared, and I’m telling everybody I’m taking responsibility, then that’s where I sit. So, these same questions that you guys ask, me dealing with it as being a melanated, pigmented person, all around the world. And dealing with racial biases against my skin color, demeaning me because of my religious beliefs and I’m still sitting in this seat standing. So I take my full responsibility, again I’ll repeat it, for posting something on my Instagram or Twitter that may have had some unfortunate falsehoods in it.

But I also am a human being that’s 30 years old and I’ve been growing up in a country that’s told me that I wasn’t worth anything and I came from a slave class, and that I come from a people that are meant to be treated the way we get treated every day. So… I’m not here to compare anyone’s atrocities or tragic events that their families have dealt with, generations of time. I’m just here to continue to expose things that our world continues to put in darkness.

I’m a light. I’m a beacon of light. It’s what I’m here to do.

You guys ask me questions about basketball, I give my expert opinion. You guys ask me about other things, I give you my opinion and it’s met with whatever you believe the perception or the deception is.

You guys investigate my life every day, and you justify it by serving your own purpose, which I honor. I would like the same respect in return. Figuring out just like anyone else. So please keep that same energy when we’re talking about anti- other things. Because just because I post a documentary doesn’t mean I’m antisemitic and doesn’t mean that I’m automatically standing with everyone that is believing in that.

So, it’s unfortunate timing that we’re in but I’m glad that I can stand on the truth because I’m not afraid of these mics, these cameras. I used to be. Looking everyone in the eye and telling them the truth, that I’m proud of who I am. Any label that you put on me I’m able to dismiss because I study. I know the Oxford dictionary, you look it up, right?

One of the biggest mistakes I had in being a kid was not knowing European or Western language until I started looking it up and understanding the definitions and why they say ‘if you want to trick a Black person, put it in a book.’ I was wondering my whole life why they said that. Now I’m 30 years old and I know reading is a superpower because it helps me understand where I’m going and where I’ve come from. Like a tree with roots.”

[mm-video type=video id=01gggbj4ea7wv98v5hnb playlist_id=01f09kz5ecxq9bp57b player_id=01eqbvq570kgj8vfs7 image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01gggbj4ea7wv98v5hnb/01gggbj4ea7wv98v5hnb-c3bbc143c4f779b300d1e231e2d255b2.jpg]

[listicle id=47742]