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Kevin C. Cox / Associate Press
The Los Angeles Lakers arrived for Tuesday’s playoff game against the Portland Trail Blazers wearing modified “Make America Great Again” hats, demanding justice for Breonna Taylor.
LeBron James and his teammates wore the hats that had the original message crossed out to read: “Make America Stop the Cops Who Killed Breonna Taylor”:
Taylor was a black woman from Louisville, Kentucky, who was shot and killed by police officers in March in a no-beating search warrant in which his family said police did not identify themselves before breaking down the door and shooting at his apartment. Taylor’s boyfriend Kenneth Walker fired a shot at police before retaliating, although Walker said he and Taylor were unsure who was breaking into the apartment.
Taylor has been shot at least eight times and police have found no evidence that Taylor was involved in the drug trafficking ring for which the search warrant had been issued. His family has filed a wrongful death complaint against the three officers involved, Brett Hankison, Myles Cosgrove and Jonathan Mattingly. Hankison was fired in June, but Cosgrove and Mattingly remain employed by the Louisville Police Department and none of the officers have been arrested or charged with Taylor’s murder.
Along with the murder of George Floyd, the murder of Taylor helped spark massive protests against police brutality in the country and around the world.
The WNBA dedicated the 2020 season to Taylor, while players wore shirts with his name on them.
NBA players have also focused on social justice throughout the NBA recovery, including wearing league-approved phrases such as “Black Lives Matter” on the back of jerseys. The Lakers’ statement is another example of the league pushing for justice.
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