Why LeBron James Ignores Genocide and Stands With Israel 為何 LeBron James 無視種族滅絕，選擇與 Israel 站在一起 https://i.imgur.com/k8L6ZuR.jpeg 來源：https://bit.ly/4aAUr4n 作者：Dave Zirin The basketball great once said he wanted to be like Muhammad Ali. He can’t do t hat and shrug off Israeli war crimes. 這位籃球巨星曾說，他想成為像 Muhammad Ali 那樣的全球偶像。但若對 Israel 的戰爭罪 行視而不見，他不可能走上那條道路。 Twenty-two years ago, I wrote this about a preternaturally mature 19-year-old ho ops phenom named LeBron James and his aspirations off the court: 二十二年前，我曾寫到當時年僅 19 歲、卻展現出超齡成熟的籃球天才 LeBron James，以 及他在球場之外的抱負： James has said he has two goals in his life. One is to be “a global icon like M uhammad Ali,” and the other is to be the richest athlete in the history of the world. And while these may be two great goals, they don’t exactly go great toge ther. That’s because people like Muhammad Ali didn’t become global icons becau se they were rich, but because they were willing to sacrifice everything—includ ing sponsorship deals—to stand up for what they believed in. James 說過，他人生有兩個目標：一是成為「像 Muhammad Ali 那樣的全球偶像」，另一個 是成為世界史上最富有的運動員。這兩個目標聽來都很宏大，卻未必相容。因為 Muhammad Ali 之所以成為全球偶像，並不是因為財富，而是因為他願意為信念犧牲一切——包括代言 與商業利益。 In the last two decades, we have seen how James’s desires have conflicted. Duri ng the early days of Black Lives Matter movement, he was outspoken in his suppor t for racial justice. In 2012, he posed with his Miami Heat teammates in hoodies to protest the murder of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin, and after the police killi ng of Eric Garner in 2014, he wore a T-shirt that said “I can’t breathe” duri ng warm-ups alongside Cleveland Cavaliers teammate Kyrie Irving. 過去二十年，我們清楚看見 James 的理想如何彼此拉扯。在 Black Lives Matter 運動初 期，他曾積極為種族正義發聲。2012 年，他與 Miami Heat 隊友穿上連帽衫，抗議 17 歲 的 Trayvon Martin 遭到殺害；2014 年，警方殺害 Eric Garner 後，他與 Kyrie Irving （當時同為 Cleveland Cavaliers 隊友）在熱身時穿上印有「I can’t breathe」字樣的 T 恤，以示抗議。 https://i.imgur.com/aPNmSES.jpeg Yet over the last several years, as his fortune has exploded into the 10-figure category, James’s silence has been noticeable. Neither ICE’s killings nor the Trump regime’s relentless racism has moved him to speak forcefully. One perfect encapsulation of this untenable balancing act was in 2022 when he filed a trade mark for the phrase “shut up and dribble.” When Fox News’s Laura Ingraham fir st bleated this at James in 2018, his supporters were enraged, and it became a r allying cry against the racism that Black athletes have long faced. Now one of J ames’s corporations says it will put it on items such as “downloadable virtual goods, namely, computer programs featuring footwear, clothing, headwear, eyewea r, bags, sports bags, backpacks, sports equipment, art, toys and accessories for use online and in online virtual worlds.” The phrase will go from protest cry to branding exercise. 然而，近幾年隨著他的財富突破十位數等級，他的沉默也變得格外醒目。無論是 ICE 的致 命執法行動，還是 Trump 政權持續不斷的種族主義言行，都未能讓他強烈表態。這種理想 與利益之間的緊繃關係，在 2022 年出現了一個極具象徵性的時刻——他為「shut up and dribble」申請商標。當 Laura Ingraham 於 2018 年在 Fox News 節目中對他說出這句話 時，他的支持者群情激憤，這句話也成為反抗黑人運動員長期遭受種族歧視的口號。如今， James 旗下公司卻計畫將這句話用於「可下載的虛擬商品」，包括鞋類、服飾、配件、運動 用品、藝術品與虛擬世界商品。抗議的口號，最終變成品牌經營的一部分。 This week, the effort to balance the spirit of Muhammad Ali with his life as a 4 1-year-old billionaire tipped away from Ali. Actually, it didn’t just tip. It c rashed to the ground. During NBA All-Star weekend, James was asked for his thoug hts on Israeli All-Star Deni Avdija of the Portland Trailblazers. He took the op portunity to speak about Israel more broadly, saying, “If I have fans over ther e, then I hope you’ve been following my career. I hope I inspire people over th ere to be better in life. Hopefully someday I can make it over there. I’ve hear d nothing but great things.” 本週，他在維持Muhammad Ali所代表的精神，以及作為41歲億萬富翁身分之間的平衡，開始 出現傾斜。 NBA 全明星週末期間，James 被問到效力於 Portland Trail Blazers 的 Deni Avdija 時，順勢談到 Israel，並表示：「如果我在那裡有球迷，希望你們一直關注我的 生涯。我希望能激勵那裡的人在人生中變得更好。希望有一天我能親自去那裡。我聽到的全 是好話。」 James always speaks with great intentionality, and no one should think this was an off-the-cuff comment. It was a statement of support during the second year of a genocide in Gaza alongside the accelerating annexation of the West Bank. Isra el has launched a project of ethnic cleansing, and James wanted the world to kno w that he was unbothered by it. Not only that—he seemed to want to follow in th e footsteps of his good friend Draymond Green and take a propaganda trip to do p ublic relations for the Israeli state. James 向來發言謹慎，這不會是即興之語。這番話，是在 Gaza 種族滅絕進入第二年、同時 West Bank 併吞加速的背景下所做出的表態。Israel 正推動一項種族清洗計畫，而 James 的態度顯示他對此毫不動搖。不僅如此，他似乎還有意追隨好友 Draymond Green 的腳步 ，前往進行一場為 Israel 國家形象加分的公關之旅。 If James’s defenders say that he doesn’t know what’s been happening and we sh ouldn’t expect more from “just an athlete,” they are being as ignorant as Ing raham. James knows what’s been going on in Gaza, and it’s ludicrous to think t hat he’s heard “nothing but great things” about Israel. He certainly hasn’t heard great things from his old Cavaliers running buddy Kyrie Irving, who has no t been shy about showing his solidarity with the Palestinian people. He hasn’t heard great things from current and former NBA players like former teammate Dwig ht Howard or Tariq Abdul-Wahad or Etan Thomas and more who have spoken out again st genocide and for a free Palestine. Hell, during this past weekend’s All-Star Game, Irving wore a PRESS shirt in solidarity with the journalists in Gaza kill ed by the Israeli army and Spike Lee wore the colors of the Palestinian flag cou rtside. 若有人為 James 辯護，稱他不了解 Gaza 的情勢，或認為我們不該對「只是一名運動員」 有更高期待，那樣的說法與 Ingraham 無異。James 不可能不知道 Gaza 發生了什麼事，更 難以相信他「只聽到好話」。他不可能沒聽過 Kyrie Irving 對 Palestinian 人民的公開 聲援；也不可能沒聽過前隊友 Dwight Howard、Tariq Abdul-Wahad、Etan Thomas 等現役 與退役球員反對種族滅絕、支持自由的 Palestine。就在這次全明星賽期間，Irving 穿著 印有「PRESS」的上衣，聲援在 Gaza 遭 Israel 軍方殺害的記者；而 Spike Lee 也在場邊 穿上 Palestinian 旗幟配色。 https://i.imgur.com/LhUJ74v.jpeg https://i.imgur.com/Gf0RNmg.jpeg James knows what’s going on. Instead of fulfilling his teenage goal of being a hero to the downtrodden, he has chosen to turn his back on war crimes, permittin g his fans to do the same. Perhaps he fears what a backlash will do to that othe r youthful dream of unfathomable wealth. Or maybe he just doesn’t care. James 知道世界正在發生什麼。然而，他沒有實現少年時期立志成為弱勢者代言人的願望， 反而選擇對戰爭罪行轉身離去，也讓他的球迷得以同樣保持沉默。或許，他擔心強烈表態會 危及另一個年少時的夢想——難以想像的鉅額財富；又或者，他只是選擇不在乎。 In contrast to James, Ali visited Palestinian refugee camps and went to Free Pal estine demonstrations in the 1970s and ’80s until he was physically unable to d o so. When asked why he would visit a refugee camp in Southern Lebanon, he said he had a responsibility to be there since “the United States is the stronghold of Zionism and imperialism.” Ali knew this would entail sacrifice, and he did i t anyway because he both consciously and instinctively sided with the oppressed. And that’s why you can go to any outdoor market on earth today and find a knoc koff Ali T-shirt for sale. That’s why he remains adored. 與 James 形成對比的是，Muhammad Ali 在 1970 與 1980 年代曾親自造訪 Palestinian 難民營，並參加 Free Palestine 示威活動，直到身體狀況不允許為止。當被問及為何前往 Southern Lebanon 的難民營時，他回答說自己有責任到場，因為「the United States 是 Zionism 與 imperialism 的堡壘。」Ali 明知這樣做意味著犧牲，仍然義無反顧，因為他 在理性與本能上都站在受壓迫者的一邊。正因如此，今日在世界各地的露天市集裡，依然能 看到印有 Ali 圖像的 T 恤販售——他仍被深深敬愛。 James came to a fork in the road and spit on the path laid by Ali before taking the path most traveled. One wonders what 19-year-old LeBron would think about hi s current self’s making this choice: the choice to reject Ali’s legacy and bec ome just another billionaire stepping over Palestinian bodies to praise the Isra eli state. James 來到人生的岔路口，卻背離了 Ali 所走的道路，選擇了較為安穩、也最常見的那一 條。不禁令人想問：19 歲的 LeBron 若看到今日的自己，會作何感想？這是一個拒絕 Ali 精神、選擇成為另一位在 Palestinian 屍體之上讚揚 Israel 國家的億萬富翁的決定。 - 阿里、還是億萬富翁？ 究竟怎樣才能不只是個運動員呢？ -- ※ 發信站: 批踢踢實業坊(ptt.cc), 來自: 114.44.164.166 (臺灣) ※ 文章網址: https://www.ptt.cc/bbs/NBA/M.1771387791.A.A06.html