Thirty years ago, as his stardom reached dramatic heights, Michael Jordan uttered a line that has stuck with him as a symbol of his reticence toward taking political stands.
“Republicans buy sneakers, too,” Jordan said in 1990, in the midst of a politically contentious North Carolina Senate race.
The implication wasn’t hard to parse: By choosing sides on an issue, Jordan risked jeopardizing the support — financial or otherwise — of those who disagreed with his stance.
It was striking then to see Jordan break from his own history Sunday to offer thoughts on last week’s death of George Floyd in the custody of Minneapolis police and the ensuing protests demanding justice around the world.