Naomi Osaka and Dozens of Other Athletes Are Going on Strike to Support Black Lives Matter

Kamala Harris, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and Nancy Pelosi Demand Answers In the Shooting o

He was shot seven times and is currently in stable condition.

In response to the shooting of Jacob Blake, a Black man who was shot seven times in the back by police, several athletes are taking a stand and striking major sporting events.

Since May, the Black Lives Matter movement has called for change as a result of continued police violence and systemic racism in the United States. In the past, many sports stars have shown their support by wearing BLM apparel, kneeling for the national anthem, and vocalizing their support during press conferences. This week, however, a tide seems to be turning and many of the top players are organizing strikes to call for change.

Tennis:

Naomi Osaka has stated that she will strike her semi-finals match in the Southern and Western Open in order to bring attention to police violence against Black people.

"Hello, as many of you are aware I was scheduled to play my semifinals match tomorrow," the grand-slam winner wrote in a note. "However, before I am an athlete, I am a black woman. And as a black woman, I feel as though there are much more important matters at hand that need immediate attention, rather than watching me play tennis. I don't expect anything drastic to happen with me not playing, but if I can get a conversation started in a majority white sport I consider that a step in the right direction. Watching the continued genocide of Black people at the hand of the police is honestly making me sick to my stomach. I'm exhausted of having a new hashtag pop up every few days and I'm extremely tired of having this same conversation over and over again. When will it ever be enough?"

MLS:

In a post on Twitter, Major League Soccer announced that they will postpone the remaining five games of the season due to player-organized strikes.

WNBA:

WNBA players have been leaders in the Black Lives Matter movement since the beginning. This week Mystics players showed up to their game wearing shirts that spelled out Jacob Blake's name and had seven holes in the back. The teams set to play – including Washington Mystics, Atlanta Dream, Los Angeles Sparks, and Minnesota Lynx– eventually decided not to play and instead strike. “The consensus is to not play in tonight’s slated game, and to kneel, lock arms, and raise fists during the national anthem. We stand in solidarity with our brothers in the NBA, and will continue this conversation with our brothers and sisters across all leagues and look to take collective action," Elizabeth Williams of the Atlanta Dream said.

NBA: 

After the Milwaukee Bucks decided not to play their scheduled game tonight — Game 5 of the NBA's first-round playoff series — in a protest to the shooting of Jacob Blake, the league decided to postpone all three games scheduled for tonight. According to ESPN, the NBA said the games (Bucks v. Magic, Houston Rockets v. Oklahoma City Thunder, and Los Angeles Lakers v. Portland Trail Blazers) would be rescheduled.

"We're tired of the killings and the injustice," Bucks guard George Hill told ESPN's Marc Spears.

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The Bucks play in Milwaukee, about 40 miles north of Kenosha, Wisconsin, where 29-year-old Blake, a Black man, was shot seven times by police on Sunday. Police shot Blake when attempted to enter his car and a video of the shooting was shared on social media.

"Today, we stand united with the NBA Office, the National Basketball Players Association, the Milwaukee Bucks and the rest of the league condemning bigotry, racial injustice and the unwarranted use of violence by police against people of color," the Orlando Magic and the DeVos family, the franchise owners, said in a statement.

Players from all over the league commended the Bucks's decision.

Alex Lasry, the Bucks's senior vice president, also supported the strike.

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ESPN also reports that MLB is also postponing scheduled games. The Milwaukee Brewers and Cincinnati Reds won't play their game tonight.

The Brewers's Josh Hader told reporters that the Bucks's decision was "an enormous stand," ABC News reported.

"It's more than sports," Hader said. "This is a time where we need to really not stay quiet and [to] empower our voices."