Shout-out to all the athletes on the collegiate and professional levels for their very public support of the movement to address police abuse and the usage of lethal force against unarmed African-Americans.

The Notre Dame female basketball squad donned "I Can't Breathe" pre-game T-shirts before their Saturday game.

Various NFL players have suited up with pre-game Jerseys indicating their solidarity for the cause. And NBA ballers, including elite players like Kobe Bryant and LeBron James, have joined the "I Can't Breathe" movement.

For example:

On Tuesday night, the Los Angeles Lakers players showed up to their pre-game warm up wearing a black t-shirt that read in white letters “I can’t breathe”. The t-shirts are in support of Eric Garner, who died the past July 17, 2014 after an altercation with the NYPD. A police officer put Garner on a chokehold, putting him down and leaving him unconscious, he was later declared dead.

A video that captured the altercation surfaced the internet and went viral, in the video, Garner can be seen saying the phrase “I can’t breathe” multiple times until he finally fell unconscious. The police officers involved in the altercation were not indicted by the grand jury, which decision sparked a set of public protests and became a national issue. source

It's a fresh breathe of air to once again have athletes more concerned with community and human rights issues than the materialism of their brand;

This sure beats Air Jordan and his refusal to take a stand against renown segregationist Jesse Helms by stating "Republicans buy sneakers too" ; and not to mention the round mound of rebound, AKA, the Mr. Loquacious himself (he's still running his mouth...talking loud saying nothing) Charles "I ain't a role model" Barkley.

These acts have NFL Hall of Famer Jim Brown applauding:

Jim Brown stood alongside Muhammad Ali in the 1960s when the boxing champion protested going to Vietnam.

An activist for 50 years, the Hall of Fame running back has never shied away from fighting for anything he’s believed in.

Brown has been the rare high-profile athlete unafraid to challenge or call for social change.

Now, during a time of racial tension and unrest, he has found hope, encouraged by what he’s seen from some prominent sports figures
.
On Friday, the 78-year-old Cleveland Browns great praised NBA superstar LeBron James and NFL players for speaking out and “bringing attention” to high-profile cases in Ferguson, Missouri, and New York in which black men had fatal encounters with law enforcement.

“The thing that I feel most about is the emerging of young players that are intelligently protesting what they feel are injustices, their willingness to step up and recognize that there has to be some changes in the methodology of engagement with citizens and police,” he said. source


Oh, BTW, speaking about MJ, here's another story about folks showing their holiday cheer by going crazy and acting a fool in the quest to cop some Air Jordans in Houston.


HOUSTON -

The latest Air Jordan attracted large crowds overnight across Houston. Some crowds got very rowdy, which resulted in broken glass doors at Willowbrook Mall and shots fired at Northline Mall.

Shopper Dorail Randell said, "It's bound to happen in Houston in every year.

Randell got in line at Champs at Northline Mall six hours before ticket vouchers were even issued. read entire article