Andrew Bogut slams Aussie cricket's 'cultish' decision to take the knee, says it's 'not right'
“I just hope they’re not doing it because everyone else is.”
Andrew Bogut says the Australian cricket team's decision to take a knee before their Test series against the West Indies was 'not right', describing the act as 'cultish'.
It was the first time that the Aussie cricket team had done such a thing on home soil with News Corp reporting that the move was a direct protest against racism.
It's also understood the team consulted the West Indians, who took a knee too.
The act received plenty of praise at the time, but not everyone was onboard with it – it seems.
NBA Championship-winning centre Andrew Bogut has questioned whether the players had the right intentions and if they fully understand what the Black Lives Matter movements means.
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“I just hope they’re not doing it because everyone else is,” Bogut told Sky News Australia.
“I’d hope they have all read what what’s come out of the US the last 6-12 months regarding BLM.
“I think initially it had the right things in mind with everything going on over there, but it’s been pretty well exposed.
“It’s not just about race, it’s about breaking up the nuclear family, and its pivoted towards other causes. I believe even funded some drag queen type projects.
“And if that’s your thing, cool. But I hope they know about all that.”
He added: “There would be players on that team that don’t want to do it, that are very, very pressured to do it and they don’t want to be that odd man out and then be questioned by media. And that in itself is not right.”
Bogut also opened up about his own experiences before claiming the players need to put their personal feelings to one side when on international duty.
“I was one that always, when I represented Australia – especially abroad – I’d sing the national anthem. No matter how frustrated I was at times,” he said.
Bogut added: “Look I grew up being called a 'wog', right. But I still am very thankful and my family is very thankful for what Australia has given me.
“I’m not going to let a small percentage of people who use that slur dictate that Australia is bad as a whole.”
“I think you’ve got to separate the two. Especially when you’re abroad and are representing your national team.”
Topics: Australia, Cricket, Basketball, NBA, Black Lives Matter
Max Sherry