New Chicago Bulls addition Dwyane Wade brought some topics to light during his charity foundation's community bike ride in Miami on Saturday.
The bike ride brings together disadvantaged youth and police officers, among others, to ride along a six-mile course.
Wade took the opportunity to address some issues head on, saying that athletes should do more than just symbolic acts of protest.
“Actions speak louder than the words you say,” Wade told ESPN's Michael Wallace. “We have to continue to do things in our communities to try to raise the bar. The great thing about being an athlete today is you can make a stand for what you believe in, and it's okay.”
Shortly after signing with his hometown of Chicago, Wade's cousin — Nykea Aldridge — was shot and killed while pushing her child in a stroller, becoming one of the 524 Chicago murders reported to-year.
“When something hits you the way it hit us, it becomes (more) real,” Wade said. “And the great thing about my family is we come together more and try to be stronger and make more of an impact as much as we can. No matter what shape, size or color you are, you were invited (to the bike event) today to understand how important community is and how strong we are when we come together.”
Wade emphasized that the solution does not lie on placing blame or to pin the community against law enforcement or viceversa — but in an open dialogue between the two to settle differences.
“First of all, it's not okay,” Wade said when asked about a suspected anti-police shooting rampage in Philadelphia on Friday night. “I'm not promoting that killing is okay. I'm a supporter of my community, the African-American community. I'm a believer in Black Lives Matter, 100 percent. But I'm also a believer that it's not okay for anyone to kill. It's all about communication.
“I think police need to do a better job of communicating to the community of what they're looking for and what they're out there doing,” Wade continued. “And it's important for the community to have an opportunity to communicate back to them as well.”
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