Students at the University of Florida say NBA star LeBron James is “hypocritical” for using police escorts after publicly spreading anti-police rhetoric.
Campus Reform correspondent Leana Dippie asked students if they agreed with James’ anti-police rhetoric. While many students expressed that they would like to see police “reform,” they nonetheless agreed that the NBA star is “hypocritical” for using police for his personal security and protection.
With regards to whether or not James is engaging in hypocrisy, one student said, “100 percent,” adding that it was “not entirely surprising, given that so many celebrities do so many similar things.”
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“I guess so, but I don’t really think that much, because I think he was referring to general public, and, like, public police forces,” another student said. “I see the point, but I think he’s using that for his own security, and he knows and he trusts them, rather than referring to, like, the pubic police forces done bad things for bad reasons.”
When the student was told that James was actually using public police for his security, not a private security firm, the student said, “Yeah, I can see how, like, it can be hypocritical in some sense.”
A third student expressed that while the NBA star is being hypocritical, it “doesn’t take away from the fact that there still needs to be reform, and that there are existing issues with the police that need to be addressed.”
The students also agreed that James — and other celebrities — are out of touch with the average American.
“Yes, the amount of money, and the amount of influence that they have is not at all correlated with basically what the average person experiences,” one student said. “Their experience is going to be much different, so I don’t think they can comment on what the average person does, compared to what they do.”
“I think that their celebrity status and that their wealth provide them with a certain level of, like, extra luxury, and security, and comfort,” another student answered.
When it comes to whether the student believe the celebrities realize the implications their ideas have on everyday Americans, one student said, “No, I think it is a matter of ignorance.”
James faced heavy backlash last month, after tweeting — and then deleting — a photo of a Columbus, Ohio, police officer who was present during the fatal shooting of Ma’Khia Bryant, with the caption, “YOU’RE NEXT #ACCOUNTABILITY,” in all-caps.
Former President Donald Trump reacted by slamming the NBA star for his “racist rants” that are “doing nothing to bring our country together.”
You can follow Alana Mastrangelo on Facebook and Twitter at @ARmastrangelo, on Parler @alana, and on Instagram.
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