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Hong Kong Protesters Are Burning LeBron James Jerseys

By Stephen Douglas | Oct 15 2019

HONG KONG, CHINA - OCTOBER 15: A basketball fan wearing Miami Heat jersey with a Lebron James mask on licking a 100 Chinese yuan bill on October 15, 2019 in Southorn Playground, Wan Chai, Hong Kong, China. Anti-government demonstrations in Hong Kong stretched into its fifth month after the Chinese territory's government invoked emergency powers earlier this month to introduce an anti-mask law. Protesters continue to call for Hong Kong's Chief Executive Carrie Lam to meet their remaining demands since the controversial extradition bill was withdrawn, which includes an independent inquiry into police brutality, the retraction of the word "riot" to describe the rallies, and genuine universal suffrage as the territory faces a leadership crisis. (Photo by Lampson Yip - Clicks Images/Getty Images)
Lampson Yip - Clicks Images/Getty Images

Protesters are burning LeBron James jerseys in Hong Kong. This is an expected part of the fallout from LeBron's semi-no-comment about the Daryl Morey / China situation. It's a rough look for LeBron, who talked to Jon Stewart just a couple months ago on HBO about speaking up about social issues.

LeBron said that he would speak up even thought it meant losing popularity. With his brief comments on Morey this week LeBron may have lost fans in Hong Kong and America, but he kept the door open to grow his popularity in China. And ultimately, increase his wealth.

If you look at the pictures in these tweets, you'll see protesters are wearing all sorts of NBA gear. Easy to imagine that they will turn to those once they run out of LeBron jerseys.