Utah Jazz players, staff wear shirts denouncing racism before game against Brooklyn Nets
SALT LAKE CITY — Before each game, Utah Jazz head coach Quin Snyder meets with media, and he has become known for wearing a variety of T-shirts at these gatherings, from Jazz to Salt Lake City Stars gear.
On Saturday night before Utah took on the Brooklyn Nets at Vivint Arena, Snyder, along with many others in both the Jazz and Nets organizations (including players), donned a shirt that carried a message of anti-racism in the wake of Monday's incident between Oklahoma City Thunder point guard Russell Westbrook and a fan at the arena.
The gray shirt featured an image of black and white hands clasped together, and below the image was a quote from late activist Fred Hampton which says, "You don't fight racism with racism, you fight racism with solidarity."
On the back, the word "solidarity" was written in white capital letters.
Every player from both teams was wearing the shirts during warmups before tipoff.
Hampton was the deputy chairman of the Illinois chapter of the Black Panther Party. He and fellow party leader Mark Clark were killed by police in 1969 during a raid on the Illinois chapter's headquarters.
Hampton was just 21-years-old.