During Saturday’s postgame presser, Brooklyn Nets star Kyrie Irving got into a heated debate with a journalist who demanded to know if Irving was an antisemite.
After the Nets dispatched the Indiana Pacers 125-116 on Saturday, a reporter asked Irving about his early September retweet of a video that featured Alex Jones talking about the “New World Order” and warning that “plagues” have been “unleashed” on the nation.
ESPN reporter Nick Friedell claimed that Irving “promoted” Alex Jones over the video post, Fox News noted.
“We’re in 2022. History is not supposed to be hidden from anybody, and I’m not a divisive person when it comes to religion,” Irving said. “I embrace all walks of life.”
Irving added that he wouldn’t apologize for his beliefs. “I’m not going to stand down on anything I believe in. I’m only going to get stronger because I’m not alone. I have a whole army around me,” he said.
Irving went on to explain what happened that got so many hot under the collar.
“My post was a post from Alex Jones that he did in the early ‘90s or late ’90s about secret societies in America, of occults, and it’s true,” Irving said. “So, I wasn’t identifying with anything, being a campaignist (sic) for Alex Jones or anything. Just there to post. And it’s funny; it’s actually hilarious because out of all the things I posted that day, that was the one post everyone chose to see. It just goes back to the way our world is and works. I’m not here to complain about it. I just exist.”
Still, the reporter continued to assert that Irving was “promoting” Alex Jones. But Irving interjected, saying, “Can you please stop calling it a promotion? What am I promoting?”
The two began talking over each other as Irving repeated that he was not promoting antisemitism as reporter Friedell insisted he was. It ended with Irving refusing to take any more questions from Friedell and claiming that all Friedell was trying to do was to “become famous on Instagram” for attacking the player.
Irving was hit with a different accusation of posting antisemitic material this month when he posted a link to the 2018 film “Hebrews to Negroes: Wake Up Black America.”
The film claims to reveal “the true identity of the Children of Israel” and expose “what Islam, Judaism, and Christianity has covered up for centuries in regards to the true biblical identity of the so-called ‘Negro’ in this movie packed with tons of research.”
Brooklyn Nets Owner Joe Tsai said he was “disappointed” that Irving would post about a film accused of pushing antisemitism.
“I’m disappointed that Kyrie appears to support a film based on a book full of anti-semitic disinformation,” Tsai tweeted on Oct. 28. “I want to sit down and make sure he understands this is hurtful to all of us, and as a man of faith, it is wrong to promote hate based on race, ethnicity, or religion.
Irving later explained the tweet away, saying that he is an “omnist,” or someone who believes in all religions.
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