Boston Celtics player Enes Kanter addressed the Massachusetts House of Representatives on Wednesday, and he delivered a powerful message about why he uses his platform to stand for freedom — even at great risk to himself and his family.
Kanter, a citizen of Turkey, has been a target of the Turkish government for his opposition to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, and his family, who still lives in Turkey, has paid the price for that.
“I am a basketball player, but I am more than an athlete,” Kanter said. “You guys probably know some of the stuff going on between me and my country, Turkey. Just because I talk about freedom — freedom of religion and expression and speech, just because I talk about democracy and human rights issues — of course, me and my family get affected by it.”
“My dad was a genetics professor and he got fired from his job, because I talk about these issues. My sister actually went to medical school for six years, and now she can’t find a job because of her last name,” Kanter continued. “So my family had to put a statement out their that said, ‘We are disowning Enes.’ I remember going to a practice that day, and it was probably the most awkward time in my whole life.” – READ MORE