Some of the NBA's biggest stars took the stage at
the ESPY Awards on Wednesday night to deliver a powerful message about
the gun violence and
racial profiling epidemics that are sweeping across the country.
Dwyane Wade,
Carmelo Anthony, Chris Paul, and
LeBron James stood side by side as they encouraged the audience packed with professional athletes to "speak up, re**unce all violence," and use their influence. "The racial profiling has to stop,"
Dwyane said while opening the show. "The shoot-to-kill mentality has to stop. **t seeing the value of black and brown bodies has to stop. But also the retaliation has to stop. The endless gun violence in places like Chicago, Dallas, **t to mention Orlando, it has to stop. E**ugh. E**ugh is e**ugh."
The basketball players' words come just a few weeks after
Grey's Anatomy actor
Jesse Williams's rousing, memorable speech at the BET Awards that offered similar sentiments about the state of gun violence in America, which
LeBron summed up at the conclusion of their time on stage. "We all have to do better. We all feel helpless and frustrated by the violence. That's **t acceptable. It's time to look in the mirror and ask ourselves: what are we doing to create change?"
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