NBA superstar and current Cleveland Cavalier LeBron James has hit the nail on the head often enough times when it comes to the travails of being an African American in the US nowadays. Last year he said a thought-provoking piece about race in sports alongside Dwayne Wade, Carmelo Anthony and Chris Paul at the ESPY awards.
And quite recently his concerns have been proven spot on yet again. It didn’t matter that he had just led the Cavs to a third Finals appearance in a row (and against Golden State all times to boot), or that he had beaten Michael Jordan’s record as all-time playoffs scoring leader.
LeBron still won’t be immune from the haters, as a vandalism act on one of his LA home indicates.
Racist slur on gate
During a press conference leading into the first game of 2017, NBA Finals LeBron James spoke about an incident that took place at his Los Angeles residence sometime between evening May 30 and sunrise of 31 that involved vandalizing his front gate with a spray-painted racial slur. The act was only reported to the LAPD well into the morning of Wednesday, but by the time officers arrived at the scene management of the house has already painted over the offending graffiti.
LeBron minced no words about the vandalism, describing the effects even random acts can do for their community.
"No matter how much money you have, no matter how famous you are, no matter how many people admire you, being black in America is tough," the NBA superstar said, adding that equality for African Americans in today’s America remains a long way off. James was not present when the incident occurred at his LA home, which according to public record was purchased by the Cavs small forward for $21 million two years ago.
Investigation continues
Because the perpetrator only intended to vandalize the gate and nothing further, LeBron James expressed relief during the pre-Finals press conference that his family was kept safe. Now he can focus his mind on leading the Cleveland Cavaliers to overcome their third-time nemesis the Golden State Warriors in the first game of the 2017 NBA Finals, which will take place in Oakland this Thursday, June 1.
LA Police Department spokesperson Aareon Jefferson says that they currently can’t indicate if LeBron’s LA residence shows any signs of having been burgled. Investigators are now checking security camera footage to identify any suspects. Owing to the racist bent in the reported vandalism of the NBA superstar’s home, they are investigating the incident as a possible hate crime.
