[ad_1]
The National Basketball Association (NBA) players who boycotted the games as part of a protest against racial injustice agreed to resume the playoffs on Saturday in a deal that includes greater access to voting in the U.S. presidential election, the league and the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA) have said.
The decision ends a three-day hiatus in action as part of a player-led protest that was sparked by the police shooting of Jacob Blake, a black man in Kenosha, Wisconsin, and led to cancellations of games in other sports as well. .
As part of the agreement, the NBA and its players will establish a coalition that will focus on access to voting for the November 3 general election, promoting civic engagement and advocating for meaningful police and criminal justice reform.
“These commitments follow months of close collaboration around designing a safe and healthy environment to restart the NBA season, providing a platform to promote social justice, and creating an NBA Foundation focused on the economic empowerment of the community. black, “said NBA Commissioner Adam Silver. and NBPA CEO Michele Roberts said in a joint statement Friday.
“We look forward to the resumption of the playoffs and to continue working together, in Orlando and across all NBA team markets, to drive meaningful and sustainable change.”
Player strike
The players’ outcry began when the Milwaukee Bucks refused to go to the court for Game Five of their first-round playoff series against the Orlando Magic on Wednesday.
Bucks players said they couldn’t focus on basketball due to protests and violence in Kenosha, which is about 40 miles (64 km) south of Milwaukee.
The Milwaukee Bucks did not take the court for Game 5 of their playoff series against the Orlando Magic. [Ashley Landis/Pool via AP Photo]
After the Bucks boycott, the NBA postponed all three games on that day’s schedule, as well as all three on Thursday.
The 13 teams still on the NBA campus at Disney World in Orlando, a group that includes defending champion Toronto Raptors and LeBron James’ Los Angeles Lakers, are practicing Friday.
The back-to-play agreement was announced a day after players, coaches and team managers had a candid discussion about next steps to advance collective efforts and action in support of social justice and racial equality.
As part of the agreement, the teams that own and control their stadiums will work with local election officials to convert their facilities into polling places to allow a secure in-person voting option for areas vulnerable to COVID-19.
The new coronavirus outbreak has pushed several states to expand voting by mail. US President Donald Trump has been criticizing mail ballots for months as a possible source of fraud, although millions of Americans, including many members of the military, have cast absentee ballots by mail for years without such problems.
The NBA also said it will work to include advertisements in each playoff game dedicated to promoting greater civic engagement in national and local elections and raising awareness of voter access and opportunities.
SOURCE:
Reuters news agency
