GenY on D&I: The King’s Promise

Earlier this month, LeBron James made yet another incredible mark on his community of Akron, Ohio by opening the ‘I Promise School’ for at-risk youth. This new school provides resources for 240 3^rd and 4^th grade students (and their families) that would normally be inaccessible to them. These resources include breakfast and lunch for the students, GED and job placement services for their parents, and GUARANTEED tuition to the University of Akron for every student who graduates.

LeBron was quoted mentioning that his primary reason for opening this school was that “Everything these kids are going through – the drugs, the violence, the guns – everything they’re going through as kids, I know. For me to be in a position where I have the resources, the finances, the people, the structure and the city around me – why not?”

Aside from identifying with the challenges these children face, in an interview with Don Lemon about why he decided to open the school, LeBron also mentioned the divisive nature of this country under the current President. He went on to say that “[Trump] is dividing us” and when asked what he would say to the President in person, LeBron shared that he would never sit across from him.

Shortly after, drama ensued. President Trump took to twitter to spread hateful words towards both Lemon and James, calling them “dumb” and ending the tweet with “I like Mike!” referencing the NBA great, Michael Jordan. Yes, President Trump’s tweet was certainly inappropriate, though not surprising.  His online degradation of people of color and their intelligence is unfortunately not a new conversation. But, I urge you to focus on the last twelve characters of that tweet, as the phrase serves as a tangible example of this divisive behavior.

I doubt that superstar LeBron James was incredibly hurt by being called dumb or by the President’s claims to like Michael Jordan better. LeBron himself has shown great respect to the NBA hall of famer. To mention “liking Mike” after openly disrespecting another NBA black superstar is an intentional attempt to create more division and distract us from the great work that people of color are doing in the community. That tweet was intended for us. We must continue to call out these attempts to dissuade and distract as inappropriate and preach positivity rather than a polarized message.

Even as I gathered my thoughts around this situation, I found myself losing focus on the I Promise initiative. In the age of social media, it’s easy to get carried away by divisive, petty stories, but the stories like that of the I Promise school are the real stories. This school brings access and opportunity to many children and their families and that is what we should be giving our energy to. We should be striving for more peace and more inclusion.

My generation, the GenY generation, grew up watching LeBron James perform and amaze us over the course of his career. Now it is time for us to follow his lead in focusing on positive thoughts and change. Let’s not allow this ill-willed comment or any others like it to divert our attention from initiatives that empower marginalized groups, especially our youth.