LeBron James has fired back at Zlatan Ibrahimović and vowed to always speak up on social causes after the AC Milan forward criticized him for sticking his nose in politics.
During an interview on Thursday, Zlatan Ibrahimović said sportspeople like basketball icon LeBron James, who has been among NBA’s foremost voices against police brutality and racial injustice, should not make the mistake of involving themselves in political matters and instead totally put their focus on sports.
After leading the Lakers’ to a 102-93 win over the Portland Trail Blazers, James reacted, saying:
“I will never shut up about the wrong things. I preach about my people, and I preach about equality, social justice, racism, voter suppression – things that go on in our community…”
“I’ll use my platform to continue to shed light on everything that’s going on around this country and the world. There’s no way I would ever just stick to sports because I understand how powerful this platform and my voice are.”
James also reacted to Ibrahimović’s comments in 2018 after the veteran forward claimed: “undercover racism” had made the media treat him in a way different way from players with traditional surnames such as Andersson or Svensson.
“He’s the guy who said the same thing in Sweden because his last name wasn’t a (traditional Swedish) last name; he felt like there was some racism going on,” James said.
“I speak from a very educated mind. I’m kind of the wrong guy to actually go at because I do my homework.” James added.
