NBA legend Charles Barkley recently shared that he is not a fan of the political movement pushing to defund police departments. He argued that pulling officers off the street hurts lower-income black communities more than anyone else.
“We have to really be careful. I hear these fools on TV talking about ‘defund the police’ and things like that. We need police reform, prison reform, and things like that. Because you know who ain’t going to defund the cops? White neighborhoods and rich neighborhoods. So, that notion, they keep saying that, I’m like, wait a minute, who are black people supposed to call? Ghostbusters?” Barkley said.
Barkley also raised concerns with the radical left lumping all cases together in this political movement, saying that the murder of Breonna Taylor was different than the killings of George Floyd or Ahmaud Arbery. This led to other pro athletes and stars (such as Lebron James) blasting him on social media for defending the police officers who shot and killed Breonna Taylor
Charles Barkley and Shaquille O’Neal were recent panelists on TNT’s NBA “Tip-Off” show where they talked about the Breonna Taylor case. They discussed how it was not in the same vein as other instances of unarmed African Americans being killed by police.
“It’s just bad the young lady lost her life, but we do have to take into account that her boyfriend did shoot at the cops and shot a cop,” Barkley said.
O’Neal agreed that the cops were simply doing their job and firing back at the boyfriend who had initiated the gun violence.
The two then discussed no-knock warrants and how it is something we should get rid of across the board.
“You have to get a warrant signed and some states do allow no-knock warrants. And everyone is asking for murder charges. When you talk about murder, you have to show intent. A homicide occurred and we’re sorry a homicide occurred. When you have a warrant signed by the judge, you are doing your job, and I would imagine that you would fire back,” O’Neal said.
The cops had announced themselves and a witness confirmed it. There’s no excuse for shooting the cops in that situation. Even if the boyfriend didn’t hear the shots and felt he was defending his home, the police also legally have the right to defend themselves. Breonna was just in the wrong place at the wrong time.
People are starting to get pretty tired of the radical left’s twisted tales. Cops can’t both have a difficult job and be held to a lower moral standard.