Op-Ed: Kyrie Irving Needs to Be Set Straight

By: Zachary Draves

We live in an era where athletes are more prone to speak out on political and social issues than at any time in recent memory. A rich tradition rooted in the notion that sport can be an effective instrument for social change. The overwhelming majority of those who choose to speak up do so with good intentions. However, there are always exceptions to the rule and it is none other than Brooklyn Nets guard Kyrie Irving who’s the exception. 

(Courtesy: Steven Ryan/Getty Images)

This comes after Irving went on what seemed like an endless diatrib of bigotry. Last Thursday, he decided to use his Twitter page, which has over four million followers, to promote a 2015 book that later became a movie entitled Hebrews to Negros: Wake Up Black America. This material is riddled with anti-semitic tropes ranging from Jews worshipping Satan to denial of the Holocaust. It also is rooted in the idea that black people are the original Israelites,  that their identity was robbed of them, and that Jews somehow had a role in Slavery. 

This is part and parcel of a continuing pattern of behavior with Irving dabbling in dangerous talking points. Back in September, he posted on Twitter a 2002 video of notorious right wing conspiracy theorist and radio host Alex Jones speaking on a “new world order” which theorizes that there is some secret global totalitarian government at work to keep the human race compliant. A perspective that prides itself on being “anti-globalist” which happens to be embedded with anti-semintism. 

Keep in mind that this is the same Alex Jones who recently was issued a court order to pay over $1 billion to the families of the victims of the Sandy Hook massacre. Jones had the audacity to claim that the slaughter of twenty children and six teachers was somehow “staged”.  His followers harassed these families both online and in person, rendering them into a state of fear and despair as if they weren’t already suffering enough. 

Jones has also made vicious and vile statements about Muslims, LGBTQ+ people, and Immigrants. He promulgated the repeated lie that the 2020 election was “stolen” and was a major contributor to the January 6 attack on the US Capitol in which many of his followers joined him that day in a shameful attempt at overthrowing democracy. 

This is who Irving has chosen to legitimize along with trying to pit Black and Jewish communities against one another. 

He isn’t doing himself any good by continuing to double down on his behavior. Last Thursday, when confronted by ESPN reporter Nick Friedell on his Alex Jones post, Irving continuously demonstrates a woeful lack of understanding as well as common courtesy when accuses Friedell of trying to “dehumanize” him and being completely smuggish in refusing to answer the questions. The scariest response he gave was when he said that “ I’m only going to get stronger because I’m not alone. I have a whole army around me”. 

In this age of social media driven extremism, that rings serious alarm bells. 

Then on Monday against the Indiana Pacers, his refusal to respond after a group of fans showed up sitting courtside wearing “fight anti-semitism” shirts showed his apparent cowardice. 

(Courtesy: AP/Jessie Alcheh)

As if things aren’t going bad enough for the Nets who are just an unmitigated disaster on and now off the court. They are off to a 2-5 start, Coach Steve Nash is gone, Ben Simmons can’t be trusted, and Kevin Durant is largely on his own with no real support. Now they have to deal with Irving and his shenanigans again, but this is a much more serious infraction than claiming that the earth is flat or even his idiotic excuses for refusing to take the COVID vaccine. 

Already the NBA, the Nets, Nike, and the NBAPA have issued respective statements condemning Irving and decrying hate speech. The league, Nets owner Joseph Tsai, and a representative from Irving’s camp met with the Anti-Defamation League, the nation’s leading Jewish civil rights organization on Tuesday to discuss how to deal with this matter. According to sources, Irving himself has so far not participated in any of the conversations. 

All of which, with the expectation of Irving’s noticeable absence, is a step forward but it’s just that, a step. In this age of renewed demand for corporate social responsibility, that is simply not enough. 

The league and the Nets have to set Irving straight and there needs to be greater accountability for his actions because they are essentially letting him off the hook right now by letting him play. They should lay the law down by demanding that he take down those specific tweets and threaten him with suspension. If/when he complies he should work with the ADL on a regular basis so that he can understand the Jewish community and acknowledge the real world historical and present day effects of rampant anti-semitism. 

(Courtesy: Denis P. Gorman/Associated Press)

Furthermore, he should have a worldly educational experience at home and abroad, starting in the people’s republic of Brooklyn, where one in four residents are Jewish. 

He should visit the various community centers and synagogues so that he can get to know the people and their heritage and experience the community’s vibrancy. Then he should take a trip to Pittsburgh and pay his respects at the Tree of Life Synagogue where eleven Jewish people were massacred in 2018. From there, he should go to Washington DC and visit the Holocaust Museum followed by a visit to Auschwitz and Dachau so that he can bear witness to the REAL horrors of the Holocaust. Then he needs to take a trip to Munich, Germany and visit the apartment building Conollystrasse 31, where eleven Isreali athletes were murdered in cold blood at the 1972 Olympics fifty years ago. 

Finally, he should delve into books, films, and other material that speak to the accurate nature of the historical relationship between the Black and Jewish communities. 

Certainly a relationship that has had its share of conflicts, but also one of mutual solidarity. An example of that can be the brotherhood of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel during the Civil Rights movement. Also James Cheney, Andrew Goodman, and Michael Schwerner, one Black man and two Jewish men were three Civil Rights activists that were murdered by the Ku Klux Klan during the Freedom Summer of 1964. They gave their lives for freedom and justice rooted in a shared purpose. 

The hope would be that Irving can emerge from this educational journey as a truly enlightened man. 

All of this seems fantastical, short-sighted, and maybe unrealistic but its worth a try. That is the least that the NBA and the Nets can do at this point to ensure accountability. Suspending him would be understandable if not justifiable, but there needs to be follow up. 

In addition, this will at least give the NBA a small amount of legitimacy as the progressive sports league they are purported to be. They are often perceived as being on top of things when it comes to social justice and activism, but when there is for now no action taken against a top player who spews bigotry and misinformation, they woefully fall short. 

The question for the NBA is do you really want the Alex Jones’ of the world to be your fans, wearing jerseys, or even attending games? A line in the sand has to be drawn. 

In the end, Kyrie Irving, the Brooklyn Nets, and the NBA need to put up or shut up.