LeBron James said on Twitter on Monday that he “fueled the wrong conversation” when he sent a now-deleted post about the Columbus, Ohio police officer who fatally shot a Black teenage girl.
Two weeks ago, the NBA star tweeted “YOU’RE NEXT” with an hour-glass emoji and included a picture of the officer who shot 16-year-old Ma’Khia Bryant. But James quickly deleted the message after he received a wave of backlash from critics who said he was stoking anti-police rhetoric. James said he took down the post because it was being used to “create more hate.”
On Monday, James shared a Vox article titled “Why they’re not saying Ma’Khia Bryant’s name” and wrote that he owed “it to her and this movement to change” the conversation around her death.
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I fueled the wrong conversation about Ma’Khia Bryant and I owe it to her and this movement to change it. Thank you @fabiolacineas for educating us about Ma’Khia and her story and why this needs to be about her. https://t.co/Owh1vDJWXi #sayhername #Blacklivesmatter
— LeBron James (@KingJames) May 3, 2021
Body surveillance footage released from the April 20 incident indicated that Bryant was brandishing a knife and had another woman pinned against a car when the officer, Nicholas Reardon, opened fire.
Reardon has been placed on administrative leave while an independent police probe is being conducted.
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