Isiah Thomas Recounts Emotional History on MLK Day: “First Person in My Family…”

Millions of people in the country celebrate Martin Luther King Day every year. The NBA honors the civil rights activist and has many events planned for this year as well. Besides this, NBA legends and superstars also pay homage to the King with their messages. Recently, Detroit Pistons legend Isiah Thomas shared an emotional message on his official Instagram handle.

Zeke wanted to remind the world about the struggles African Americans had to endure not so long ago while celebrating MLK Day. Thomas wrote, “I was the first person in my family to live outside of JIM CROW Laws which ended supposedly in 1965. Let this sink in as we celebrate Martin Luther King Day!”

The JIM CROW Laws enforced racial segregation. It was introduced in the late 19th century and ended in 1965. The Hall of Famer was born in 1961 and wanted to remind everyone about the racial discrimination his ancestors and family had to go through. He shared it with an image of his childhood self.

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A lot of fans shared their personal experiences in the comments section and also appreciated Zeke for sharing the message. It’s not the first time that the 12x All-Star has touched on racial issues in the country either. He once opened up about the things he witnessed during his childhood as well.

Isiah Thomas gave his honest thoughts in 2020

Isiah Thomas was born and raised in West Chicago, where he saw the Chicago riots in the late 1960s amidst the assassination of multiple leaders including Martin Luther King Jr. in 1968. In 2020, when racial tensions were high, the whole league stood in solidarity. Amidst this, Thomas talked about his childhood when asked about the problems.

Isiah noted that he grew up during all the mayhem associated with the riots from gunshots to looting, etc. The 2x NBA champion was frustrated that things had not improved. He was dejected by the persisting racial injustice in the country and gave his opinion.

“Watching this replay out over and over and over again, every decade. From the 60s, to the 70s, to the 80s, to the 90s, 2000s, and so on where we are now in 2020. This is the problem that has existed since our inception in terms of the United States of America,” Isiah Thomas said on NBA TV.

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He added, “The systemic racism, police brutality that we have to deal with in this country as classified colored, Negro, Black, African-American.” The Hall of Famer also claimed that “white privilege” still exists in the USA in various forms.