Obama and LeBron James are working together to overcome voter suppression

[blitzen]

https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/29762633/lebron-james-chris-paul-received-advice-barack-obama-stalemate

Following a contentious players' meeting Wednesday that left the NBA bubble on the verge of bursting, LeBron James and Chris Paul led a subcommittee of players who reached out to former President Barack Obama for advice.

The Los Angeles Lakers star, along with his good friend and the president of the National Basketball Players Association, Paul, sought the input of Obama after talks among the players about resuming the season stalled. The league found itself in that predicament after the Milwaukee Bucks chose not to play their first-round playoff game earlier that day -- leaving their opponent, the Orlando Magic, and everyone else on the NBA campus in Florida caught off-guard by the unilateral decision -- in order to protest the shooting of Jacob Blake, a Black man, by police Sunday in Kenosha, Wisconsin.

James' More Than a Vote organization issued a statement shortly after the league announced its three-pronged plan to effect change once games returned.

"We stand ready to support the NBPA's and NBA's effort to convert every NBA arena possible into [a] polling location for this fall's election. More Than A Vote has been laser-focused on this for months -- creating new opportunities in cities like Atlanta, Cleveland, Detroit, and Los Angeles among others -- and welcomes the comprehensive effort to provide a safe in-person voting option for our communities during this pandemic that is disproportionately killing Black people," it read, in part.

"We know that voting will not end our pain. Voting cannot bring back those killed by the police officers sworn to protect us. Voting cannot erase the scars of slavery and segregation. It cannot change our history, but it can change our future.

"If it couldn't, those in power wouldn't be trying so hard to take the right to vote away from us. They wouldn't be trying so hard to erect barriers to the ballot box."

[Cha]

1. Mahalo LeBron & Pres Obama!!!!! Well Said!

"We know that voting will not end our pain. Voting cannot bring back those killed by the police officers sworn to protect us. Voting cannot erase the scars of slavery and segregation. It cannot change our history, but it can change our future.

"If it couldn't, those in power wouldn't be trying so hard to take the right to vote away from us. They wouldn't be trying so hard to erect barriers to the ballot box."

[mahina]

2. Beautiful

🤙🏼🤙🏼

[Cha]

3. YES!

[Sherman A1]

4. +1000

[blitzen]

5. kick n/t