Charles Barkley on Police Violence: ‘We As Black People, We’ve Got to do Better’

Former NBA great Charles Barkley ignited furious backlash over comments he made during a radio interview Wednesday morning. Commenting on the recent tension spurred by the police killings of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile and the fatal ambush of police officers in Dallas, Barkley told ESPN radio host Dan Lebatard that while “cops make mistakes,” he believes that “black people have to do better.”

Barkley also trotted out the popular trope that black people “never get mad when black people kill each other,” and added that black people “can’t demand respect from white people and the cops if you don’t respect each other.”

We’ve got to do better as black people. The cops have made some mistakes, but there’s a lot of blame to go around.

Reaction to Barkley’s comments on Twitter was blistering:

Someone ask Charles Barkley what a Black child has to “do better” to avoid having a complying parent shot dead in front of them by police.

— Pup from the Shire (@PupsherLive) July 13, 2016

Only reason why blacks have a ‘respect’ issue is b/c of people like Charles Barkley who give credence to racist beliefs that one even exists

— El Deucé (@ab_deuces) July 13, 2016

@USATODAY ask Charles Barkley why he thinks human rights are conditional on good behavior for Black people

— Wild Cougar (@WildCougConfess) July 13, 2016

It is a pure act of God that Charles Barkley has survived this long on his own as an adult while still holding on to such antiquated ideas

— Lauren Chanel Allen (@MichelleHux) July 13, 2016

Not everyone was displeased with Barkley, such as this Breitbart editor:

LISTEN: Charles Barkley Calls Out Black Community, Gives POWERFUL Defense of Cops https://t.co/sBDKSNejRF

— John Nolte (@NolteNC) July 13, 2016