Masai Ujiri: “I really question it and I think we generally in sports … we have to really look at this and it comes from all different levels. It’s not just hiring a diversity and inclusion officer now … we also need more minorities and more black people in higher positions, too, and there are many that deserve to be in higher positions if we look the right way.”
Tag: Masai Ujiri
The 49-year-old also touched on the …
The 49-year-old also touched on the topics of police brutality and systemic and institutional racism, emphasizing that such issues are not confined to the U.S. “This thing has erupted where now we have to talk about it and we have to confront it because you know what, it’s there,” Ujiri said. “There’s no dancing around it anymore. Even in my organization, even in Canada, we’re not immune to it.”
Toronto Raptors players and staff …
Toronto Raptors players and staff showed their support for people protesting racial injustice around the world in a video shared on the team’s social media channels. The video features members of the Raptors — including Pascal Siakam, Fred VanVleet, OG Anuonoby, head coach Nick Nurse and president Massai Ujiri — reading a spoken word poem titled “I can’t breathe.”
Dan Woike: Source tells @latimes that …
Dan Woike: Source tells @latimes that Raptors president Masai Ujiri powerfully shared his perspectives on George Floyd, racism and his life experiences with the NBA’s Board of Governors prior to the league voting on the 22-team return to play proposal.
In a 90-minute special conversation …
In a 90-minute special conversation that shares stories of hope, resilience, and the unifying power of sport, TSN’s Kayla Grey and Toronto Raptors president Masai Ujiri team up to co-host WALKING WITH GIANTS: EMPOWERED BY SPORT, airing tomorrow (Friday, June 5) at 7:30 p.m. ET on TSN.
The special also features interviews …
Masai Ujiri: The video was sent to me …
Masai Ujiri: The video was sent to me without explanation. Watching it, I was confused: What is this? At first, I thought it was from years ago and someone was sharing it to make a point. After all, there have been a lot of conversations recently focusing on interactions that ended with the violent deaths of black men. I watched it again, and again, before I understood. This was new. It was a police officer choosing to place his knee on the neck of a black man until he was bleeding from his nose, and he lost control of his bladder, and then he died. It began right there on the street in Minneapolis, as people pleaded for his life and he asked for his mother. That man’s name was George Floyd, and he was 46. I know all that now.
Masai Ujiri: No one can deny the police …
Masai Ujiri: No one can deny the police have a tough job. But they are peace officers. They are supposed to protect all of us. This is the profession they chose. I didn’t see any peace or protection when that officer had his knee on Mr. Floyd’s neck. I saw indifference. The “order” in “law and order” should not mean the deadly suppression of people of colour; it should mean preserving a society so we can all feel free and safe, to live in peace with each other. We all came into this world the same way – as humans. No one is born to be racist and none of us sees colour at first. I believe there are far more good people than bad people, but sometimes the good must do more than simply be good. They must overwhelm the bad.
Masai Ujiri: I can’t write about this …
Masai Ujiri: I can’t write about this issue without acknowledging what happened to me last June. It’s been widely reported, but I’ll summarize it again. Our team had just won the NBA championship and I was rushing to get on the court to celebrate. I was stopped, physically stopped, by a police officer, and the confrontation turned nasty. There’s a lawsuit that’s still before the courts – he is suing me – so I can’t say too much. But I will say this: If it was another team president heading for the court – a white team president – would he have been stopped by that officer? I’ve wondered that. I recognize what happened in Oakland last June is very different from what happened in Minneapolis last Monday. My own experience only cost me a moment; Mr. Floyd’s experience cost him his life.
Masai Ujiri: So many of you are asking: …
Masai Ujiri: So many of you are asking: What can I do? There is a sense of helplessness, but that must not paralyze us. Your voice matters, especially when you are a leader or influential figure, and especially if you are white. Leaders have to be bold enough to state the obvious and call out racism. The conversation can no longer be avoided because it is hard. We have to have it. Now.