Boston Celtics center Enes Kanter in recent days has publicly condemned the Chinese Communist Party for their enslavement and oppression of Uyghur Muslims, calling Chinese President Xi Jinping a “brutal dictator” and urging the Chinese government to “stop the genocide.”
But on Monday, the Turkish basketball star and progressive activist set his aim on those he claims are profiting off the slave labor — such as global sports brand Nike as well as NBA legends Michael Jordan and LeBron James.
In a video posted to his various social media accounts, Kanter lambasted Nike CEO Phil Knight for failing to speak up about the atrocities in China.
“Dear Nike, your company says that you’re making a positive impact in our communities,” Kanter began. “And that is true. Yes, you are. Here, in the United States, Nike stands with Black Lives Matter, Nike stands with Stop Asian Hate, Nike stands with the Latino community, and Nike stands with the LGBTQ community. And Nike remains vocal about injustice here in America.”
“But when it comes to China, Nike remains silent,” he continued. “You do not address police brutality in China, you do not speak about discrimination against the LGBTQ community, you do not say a word about the oppression of minorities in China. You are scared to speak up.”
The Celtics star then went on to argue that Nike’s products are produced using forced labor and that, in fact, “almost the entire apparel and footwear industry is tainted by Uyghur forced labor.”
“Who makes your shoes in China? Do you even know? There are so many forced labor factories in China,” Kanter said, referring to the situation as “modern-day slavery.”
“Many well-known global brands are implicated,” he continued. “And yes, that includes one of the NBA’s biggest sponsors, Nike. Nike claims that they do not allow any forced labor in their supply chains. Yet, they don’t have the receipts to prove it.”
Nike ha… (Read more)
Dear @Nike
Stop the modern day SLAVERY, now!!!#HypocriteNike#EndUyghurForcedLabor pic.twitter.com/tvX2k3wE4X— Enes Kanter (@EnesKanter) October 25, 2021Sponsored Links
Comments are closed.