Former first-overall pick Anthony Edwards recently made the rounds for the wrong reasons. The young star from the Minnesota Timberwolves posted an IG story mocking a group of gay people, using derogatory language as well.
The league and his team released statements calling him out for his immature, unnecessary, and offensive behavior. He later took to social media to apologize and claim that he wasnothomophobic.
But the cat was already out of the bag, and Los Angeles Lakers legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar doesn’t think a simple apology is gonna cut it. Instead, he believes Edwards should actually volunteer and work with the LGBTQ+ community.
NBA News: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Says Anthony Edward’s Apology Is Not Enough
(Via Kareem’s Substack)
“My Take: Another athlete, another anti-gay slur. Last year, Kevin Durant was fined $50,000 fine for using “offensive and derogatory language on social media” after texting messages that included threatening language and anti-gay and misogynistic slurs. He also apologized.
It would be easy to dismiss Edwards’ immaturity—he’s only 21—if not for the fact that we’ve seen so many cases of famous athletes and owners in the news spouting racism, misogyny, and anti-LGBTQ+ sentiments. This damages sports in general and their teams specifically, and revives the old stereotype of the dumb, bullying jock.
But more important, it perpetuates prejudice against a group and that prejudice often leads to restricting rights and to violence. I don’t think an apology—however heartfelt—is enough. Edwards needs to repair the damage with some voluntary community service with LGBTQ+ organizations, particularly youth groups, to show his support. If he can’t do that much to undo the harm he’s caused, then his apology is meaningless.”
Kareem is one of the biggest activists in sports history, so it’s only natural to see that he’s not going to tolerate this kind of behavior. Now, whether Edwards will actually listen to him,remains to be seen.