LA Lakers star LeBron James has tweeted then deleted a post on the police shooting of Ma’Khia Bryant in Columbus, Ohio, after saying it was being “used to create more hate”.
The NBA superstar shared a picture of a cop with the caption “you’re next.”
The post caused so much outrage as people accused the star of promoting more hate. A U.S senator said he was ‘inciting violence’ against a police.
Explaining himself James said, “This isn’t about one officer. It’s about the entire system and they always use our words to create more racism.”
The cop posted by James, shot and killed 16-year-old Ma’Khia Bryant during a violent incident on Tuesday outside a home in Columbus, Ohio.
This shooting incident occurred after a jury in Minneapolis found former police officer Derek Chauvin guilty of two counts of murder and one count of manslaughter for the May 20 killing of George Floyd.
LeBron’s tweet sparked backlash including from the National Fraternal Order of Police that said the NBA star ‘should educate himself and, frankly has a responsibility to do so, on the facts before weighing in. The officer saved a young girl’s life. No amount of gas lighting will change that fact.”
Former ex-MLB star Lenny Dykstra also weighed in on LeBron’s comment saying, “Hey, @nba, have you disciplined #LeBronJames for making a real and ongoing threat to the life of the brave officer in Columbus who prevented a knife attack from being even worse?”
Meanwhile officials have said the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation will launch a full investigation into the incident.
