(WSVN) - The Miami Heat joined the growing protests around the country centering around racial injustice.
In an online meeting, head coach Erik Spoelstra and the entire team met to discuss the issues surrounding their community and how they can improve them. They also allowed fans to submit questions.
Spoelstra said, “We are protesting against systemic racism, against the social injustices, the social inequalities, and the cases of police brutalities against the black community that we see far too often. We’re fed up with it.”
Udonis Haslem recalled the first time he experienced racism, when he was already an NBA player.
Haslem said, “I had an incident where I was arrested. Before I could even roll the window down, I had a gun in my face. At that time I was just told it was because my windows were tinted. But having police family members, people close to me that are in law enforcement, that’s not the right protocol.”
Solomon Hill was recently active in the Los Angeles area protests, before returning to South Florida this week.
Hill said, “All we want is what is owed to us. That’s the same rights as everybody else.”
Jimmy Butler said, “Now that everybody’s coming together, we’ve just got to stay unified because it’s not one vs. another. It’s everybody. Everybody’s in this thing together and whether or not we want to accept it or not. It affects everybody.”
Meyers Leonard said, “I’ve honestly continued to learn, and just try to better myself and put myself in uncomfortable situations to truly try to understand and feel even what these guys are feeling because I care about my teammates.”
The NBA season is set to resume on July 30.
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