In the wake of the events at Fenway Park in Boston this week, in which Baltimore Orioles center fielder Adam Jones was taunted with racial slurs by fans, other athletes have come out to speak about their experiences with racism in sports, including Warriors' players Draymond Green and Stephen Curry.
Speaking with The Undefeated on Tuesday, Green said,
"I’ve gotten the N-word, all of that. I’d rather not get into [where]. A few places, especially being that it is me. Athletes are just not protected in that regard. Maybe something like [the Adam Jones incident] will help."
"Cheer for your team. Do what you want. But if I’m playing in the game and you’re cheering for your team, it doesn’t give you the right to say whatever you want to say to me."
"This is my job, and I can’t go to your job and say whatever I want to you. If I went to someone else’s job and said whatever I wanted to say, I’d get arrested for harassment. It’s a fine line. … We are in a position where if you naturally react, you’re screwed, you’re losing money. But there are great fans out there, and all fans shouldn’t be put in that category.”
Stephen Curry added that while there has been some progress there is still a lot of work to be done. He and Draymond are both part of an advisory board for the Ross Initiative in Sports for Equality, aka RISE.
Curry told The Undefeated,
“There has been progress, but people want to sweep stuff under the rug and turn a blind eye to what people go through every single day in terms of prejudice and racism. Obviously, there are plenty of groups, initiatives and people trying to attack the problem, RISE being one of them. As long as I have the platform I do, I plan to use it."
“It’s keeping people woke and understanding that there is still an issue like we talked about with Adam Jones up in Boston.”
“With racism, are you born with it or is it taught?” Green said. “That was the whole initial thought behind [RISE]. And honestly, I think you’re taught it. You’re not born a racist. … There is a huge need for it because of instances like [Jones’]. You just try to reach as many people and educate as many people as you can. Hopefully, you can make a difference.”