It has been an intense journey from Switzerland to the Houston Rockets to the Atlanta Hawks for center Clint Capela, and when he looks back on it, he sees that things were a lot different back then to how they are now. Growing up as a black person in Switzerland to parents that immigrated from Africa, Capela says one of the biggest differences between his home country and the United States is the amount of racism he has had to put up with.
Although the USA is not perfect when it comes to race, and no country is, they are still more advanced as a society when it comes to diversity than our Swiss brethren. Capela opened up on how racism affected his upbringing and what his move to the U.S. did for his mindset in an article with The Undefeated, stating:
“Racism really affected me and I really learned that when I got here in the United States. Obviously, when you’re over there [Switzerland], you think that it’s normal because you don’t know better. A Black person has a voice, and we’re all human. And the way that I grew up wasn’t always like that. I didn’t necessarily understand why. It’s part of it, I guess. And when I was little, as a kid, you just don’t understand. Obviously, you hear the N-word a lot.”
Capela came to this country as a 20-year-old in hopes of a great career in the NBA and more importantly, acceptance as a black man. He has found that here at first with the Houston Rockets and now with the Hawks where the city of Atlanta has embraced him like one of their own.
Follow Us
Subscribe