When was murder ever worth it?” Stephen Jackson, Jamie Foxx and others speak in high-profile rally in Minneapolis today
Former NBA player Stephen Jackson, a friend of George Floyd, led a press conference with actor Jamie Foxx and Leslie Redmond, president of the Minneapolis chapter of the NAACP.
Timberwolves players Josh Okogie and Karl Anthony-Towns were also present, with Towns appearing less than two months after his mother died from coronavirus complications.
Stephen Jackson, a member of the 2003 NBA champion San Antonio Spurs, retired from the NBA in 2015. “I’m here because they’re not gonna degrade the character of George Floyd, my twin,” Jackson said.
In an interview with Today, Jackson talked about his long friendship with Floyd and its endurance through his NBA career, which saw him play for seven different teams across seven different cities. Jackson said that no matter what city he played in, he and Floyd always kept in touch.
“A lot of times when the police when they do things wrong the first thing they try to do is cover it up, is bring up your background to make it seem like the [stuff> that they did was worth it. When was murder ever worth it?” Jackson said.
Jackson described finding out about Floyd’s death while spending time with his daughter. “I just haven’t been the same since I seen it,” he said.
Jamie Foxx, a Texas native like Jackson and Floyd, also spoke during the press conference. “All I wanted to do is let you know that we're not afraid to stand,” Foxx said. “We're not afraid of the moment.” The usually energetic Foxx was soft-spoken, saying, “What it does is it over-complicates everything as a black man trying to tell his son or his daughter how to function in life. Even the things we’ve taught them don’t seem to work.”