On Monday night, a group of Brooklyn Nets fans sat courtside and wore t-shirts with the message, “Fight anti-Semitism”— a message directed at Nets guard Kyrie Irving.
The protest came after Irving tweeted a clip from a documentary called “Hebrews to Negroes: Wake Up Black America.” Alex Jones promoted the documentary, and the film contained many anti-Semitic tropes.
On Saturday night, Irving got into a back-and-forth with ESPN reporter Nick Friedell about the tweet he posted. Irving got defensive after Friedell asked why he would promote a hateful movie and book.
“Can you please stop calling it a promotion?” Irving snapped back. “What am I promoting?”
Nets owner Joe Tsai quickly condemned Irving’s action to tweet out the clip from the film.
“I’m disappointed that Kyrie appears to support a film based on a book full of anti-Semitic disinformation. I want to sit down and make sure he understands this is hurtful to all of us, and as a man of faith, it is wrong to promote hate based on race, ethnicity, or religion,” Tsai tweeted Friday night.
A group of protestors sat courtside in Brooklyn as the Nets defeated the Indiana Pacers Monday night and donned t-shirts with the message “Fight anti-Semitism” across the front.
Aaron Jungreis, a Nets season ticket holder, spoke to Ian O’Connor of the New York Post.
“They
Jungreis said Irving responded to the eight fans in the t-shirts and told them he appreciated them, but “he said it sarcastically,” according to Jungreis.
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