National Basketball Association (NBA) star Enes Kanter Freedom is blasting venture capitalist and minority owner of the Golden State Warriors Chamath Palihapitiya for declaring that “nobody cares what’s happening to the Uyghurs.”
In a tweet, Freedom wrote, “When says we stand for justice, don’t forget there are those who sell their soul for money business like the owner of @warriors, who says “Nobody cares about what’s happening to the Uyghurs.”
“When genocides happen, it is people like this that let it happen Shame!” he added.
The basketball player, an outspoken critic of human rights abuses, added “Freedom” to his name and made Kanter his middle name after he became a U.S. citizen last year.
In October, he held a rally to urge lawmakers to take “tangible” actions to stop the forced labor of Uyghurs in China.
During a segment of Palihapitiya’s podcast “All-In,” Jason Calacanis, a co-host of the show, praised President Joe Biden’s policy regarding China and a “strong” statement he put out about the treatment of Uyghurs.
“Nobody cares what’s happening to the Uyghurs, OK?” Palihapitiya responded. “You bring it up because you really care, and I think that’s nice that you care. The rest of us don’t care. I’m telling you a very hard, ugly truth. Of all the things that I care about, it is below my line.”
When another co-host suggested that people care, “but it’s not top of mind for them,” Palihapitiya said, “That’s not caring.”
He went on to say he cares about the economy and climate change, but added, “If you’re asking me do I care about a segment of a class of people in a different country, not until we can take care of ourselves will I prioritize them over us…Every time I say that I care about the Uyghurs, I’m really just lying if I don’t really care.”
Watch the video below (beginning at 14:45)
Palihapitiya received criticism on social media for his comments:
https://twitter.com/TVietor08/status/1483124510471581701
The NBA has previously been accused of ignoring human rights abuses so they can continue to conduct business in China.