In order to help the victims’ families after the spa shooting in the Atlanta region last month, NBA star Steph Curry has decided to auction off a pair of specially designed sneakers.
The Golden State Warriors player wore the yellow, white, and black kicks in Sunday’s loss to the Atlanta Hawks to demonstrate support for the Asian population in the face of rising anti-Asian bigotry.
In honor of Bruce Lee’s legacy, the shoes were co-created with the Bruce Lee Foundation and featured his likeness alongside the immortal words, “Under the heavens, there is but one family.”
Shannon Lee, chairwoman of the Bruce Lee Foundation board of directors, remarked, “I think Stephen’s gesture is a beautiful example of allyship and solidarity in action.”
I am humbled that he would use my father and my family to represent the notion that, as my dad often said, we are all members of the same family and must look out for one another.
The March shootings at three spas in the Atlanta area, in which six Asian women were among the eight dead, drew national attention to the surge of anti-Asian violence in the United States.
Since the start of the pandemic, advocates and authorities claim to have received thousands of allegations of xenophobic violence against Asian people.
NBA champion and first Asian-American player Jeremy Lin has spoken out about how the Covid-19 pandemic has exacerbated an issue in the country. Lin won the crown with the Toronto Raptors in 2019.
He mentioned how he believes some of the discourse around the virus has fueled prejudice against Asians.
In particular, former US President Donald Trump was criticized for his use of the terms “Chinese virus” and “Kung flu” to refer to the coronavirus.
Curry expressed his disgust at the shootings in Atlanta to The Undefeated before Sunday’s game.
“Disgust, horror, and outright anger at why any violence keeps happening in our country,” he stated.
People still have to deal with needless tragedy and fear for their lives despite everything that has happened in the past year, let alone in the history of our country. We need to improve.