The Biden administration and Democrats generally are running into a problem with selling the idea that hesitancy about the Trump vaccine is an issue only for Trump voters.
In recent days a few NBA stars, led by superstar guard Kyrie Irving and all of whom are black, have pushed back on disclosing their vaccination status or on policies that make getting jabbed mandatory.
The controversy seemed to arise after Rolling Stone recently reported that a family member shared that Irving was unvaccinated. Irving told the media he wanted the situation to remain private.
Irving, who plays for Brooklyn, has continued to decline to disclose whether he got the shot, which puts him in jeopardy of missing home games because he would not comply with New York City’s draconian mandate on crowd events.
Since then, though, other NBA stars have come forward.
Bradley Beal of Washington said he is not vaxxed because he didn’t see the need. He told reporters he contracted COVID at the Olympics in Tokyo.
He also said his decision was based on “personal reasons.”
“Some people have bad reactions to the vaccine,” Beal added. “Nobody likes to talk about that. What happens if one of our players gets the vaccine and can’t play after that? Or they have complications after that? Because there are cases like that.”
More recently, Beal has backtracked, saying he is still considering getting the shots. Yet he still maintains it is an individual’s decision.
Golden State’s Andrew Wiggins actually sought a religious exemption from the vaccine – which the NBA denied last week.
In response, as The New York Times reported on Monday, he noted, “Who are you guys where I have to explain what I believe? Or what’s right or what’s wrong in my mind?”
In an Associated Press story on Tuesday, Wiggins said, “I’m going to keep fighting for what I believe is right. What’s right to one person isn’t right to the other and vice versa.” When asked what his beliefs are, he replied, “It’s none of your business, that’s what it comes down to.”
And this week, when asked about his own hesitancy, Orlando’s Jonathan Isaac said he, too, has had COVID and believes he had natural immunity. He also said he felt he was a low risk, given his age and level of physical fitness.
“It would decrease my chances of having a severe reaction [to COVID],” Isaac said of the jab. “But it does open me up to the, albeit rare, chance of the possibility of having an adverse reaction to the vaccine itself.”
“I don’t believe that being unvaccinated means being infected,” he added.
Isaac further noted that being “demeaned” or “talked crazy to” for asserting that getting the shot is a personal choice, which is something he supports, is not helping convince people to get vaccinated.
“Loving your neighbor is not just loving those that agree with you,” he said.
Even the NBA’s biggest, most recognizable star has rejected the idea of forcing people to get a vaccine.
James admitted this week that he initially was “very skeptical” about getting a jab, but then opted for it after deciding it was the right thing to do. But that only pertained to himself, he noted.
“We’re talking about individual bodies. We’re not talking about something political or racism or police brutality,” he told reporters.
“I don’t think I personally should get involved in what other people do for their bodies and livelihoods. I know what I did for me and my family … But as far as speaking for everybody and their individualities and things they want to do, that’s not my job.”
Yes, what will Biden do with all those Trump supporters in the NBA?
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