MLK Day means more with athlete activism
Brandon Clarke and his father Steve visited the National Civil Rights Museum during his rookie season with the Memphis Grizzlies. Clarke has always admired Martin Luther King Jr., and, as a native Canadian, the museum exposed him to more African American history.
For Clarke, the game on Monday (4 p.m., Fox Sports Southeast, TNT) against the Phoenix Suns isn’t just a chance King’s legacy on his holiday. It’s a chance to reflect after 2020 saw a rise in social justice movements, protests and athletes speaking up against inequities in the United States.
“I just feel like I’m in awe being here, being able to play on that day, being able to go and visit the place where he was killed. Just being able to learn about all of that was great,” Clarke said.
King was assassinated April 4, 1968, at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis during the height of the Civil Rights movement. He would have turned 92 this past Friday, and Monday’s holiday celebrates his birthday.
In 2020, the Grizzlies took greater steps responding to social justice issues. Ja Morant sent a letter to a Kentucky judge calling for the removal of a statue of Confederate general Robert E. Lee in Murray, where he attended college at Murray State.
Kyle Anderson attended a Black Lives Matter march in New Jersey. Jaren Jackson Jr. lent his support to Memphians protesting downtown after the death of George Floyd.
While in Minnesota last week, the team visited a memorial to Floyd, who died in Minneapolis as police officer Derek Chauvin knelt on his neck for nearly eight minutes.
“We’ve seen some crazy things and we’re realizing a lot,” said Morant, who returned Saturday after missing eight games with a sprained ankle. “As far as the Memphis Grizzlies, to be able to play on that day, it’ll be real special for us and probably means a lot to me and some of my teammates.”
Faith Morris, chief marketing and external affairs officer for the National Civil Rights Museum, commended the Grizzlies’ efforts on voter education and registration. Jackson served as the team’s most outspoken advocate during the summer in encouraging fans to not just register but be informed as they vote.
With the museum focusing this year on King’s legacy of voting rights, she said it was important for the team and all athletes to add their voice and get involved by speaking their minds.
“They’re not just sitting on the sidelines and not just being the players in front of the screen,” Morris said. “They’re getting behind the screen to be able to talk about what they see and what they feel and what they are hoping we all will do to try and write these wrongs.”
Clarke said that with the rise of social justice movements, the game carries even more importance. He hopes it’ll be both a celebration and a chance for people to think about what has happened in the United States over the past year.
“I think that it’ll be really fun and just a game that I’m not ever going to personally forget,” Clarke said. “It’s such a big game for us because this has been a crazy year and there’s been a lot going on. So I think this just a great game that just shows that we got a bunch of resiliency.”