Because we live in a white supremacist, capitalistic society in which Black people audition for their humanity on a daily basis and are routinely denied the luxury of police de-escalation tactics, the officer-related shooting murder of Ma’Khia Bryant is somehow a polarizing topic.
Imagine that.
In the immediate aftermath of Bryant being gunned down by Columbus, Ohio, police officer Nicholas Reardon, LeBron James called a thing a thing and demanded that Reardon be held accountable for his actions. James’ decision to do so hasn’t exactly been met with open arms, as just about everyone from Ted Cruz to Orethal James Simpson—no, really—have either voiced their displeasure at the four-time NBA champ having the audacity to demand police accountability or have accused him of inciting violence against the same people who harass Black people for a living.
The irony.
One such person who would love nothing more than for King James to shut up and dribble is Jay Linneman, owner of Linne’s Pub in Cincinnati, Ohio. Clearly displeased at James’ decision to speak up on behalf of Black lives, Linneman ran to his now-private Facebook page and issued a decree.
“If anyone wants to watch an NBA game, don’t come to Linnie’s Pub,” he wrote according to MSN. “We will not air them until Lebron James has been expelled from the NBA.”
Linneman, which is Wakandan for “bigoted piece of shit,” also added that NBA players “just need to play the game and that’s it” and “their opinion doesn’t really matter.” I wonder if he kept that same energy when Drew Brees accused NFL players of disrespecting the flag by taking a knee during the national anthem or when Brett Favre stood up for Derek Chauvin.
Probably not.
So since Linneman wanted LeBron’s attention, he got exactly that when the 17-time NBA All-Star offered a succinct response on Twitter:
“Aww Damn!” James tweeted. “I was headed there to watch our game tonight and have a drink! Welp.”
Clearly, LeBron wasn’t the only person who had something to say about Linneman showing his entire ass, because as previously noted, he’s since made the Linnie’s Pub Facebook page private. In a perfect world, he’ll also go out of business; which, if you let Yelp reviews tell it, now sounds like a strong possibility:
I suppose now would be an opportune time to inform Linneman that the only person’s opinion that “doesn’t really matter” is his own.