Activism Rumors
Eric Nehm: Today, @Milwaukee Bucks guard @George Hill and Common Ground, a Milwaukee-based non-partisan organization, are canvassing through Milwaukee neighborhoods to encourage city residents to vote early in the 2020 general election. Here were Hill’s opening remarks from St. Mark AME Church: pic.twitter.com/kp2kOIykPr
“Polling places are supposed to be apolitical,” said Deputy Mayor Jennifer Moon, who oversees the Elections Department. “That was part of the discussion. Would it be an apolitical site?… I think we couldn’t conclude it would be completely apolitical. We don’t have control over the entire building.” At the time, the arena had a large “Black Lives Matter” sign facing Biscayne Boulevard, and NBA players had been active in the racial-justice protests that followed George Floyd’s May 25 death by Minneapolis police, including by sitting out games.
As part of a renewed commitment to social justice, the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA) is donating $350,000 to 19 voter engagement organizations across the country, including to two organizations in Cleveland — Cleveland VOTES and VoterDrive CLE — and one in Akron, FreedomBloc.
Danny Green is promoting an initiative he joined between the NBA players’ union and the company Dove. The initiative seeks to change the way Black men are represented in advertising and other forms of media as well as show support for policies that promote public safety and voting rights. One piece of legislation for which they advocate is the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, a comprehensive police reform legislation that was passed by the U.S. House of Representatives in June and is headed to the Senate.
