On Aug. 26, 2020, Milwaukee Bucks guard George Hill made a small choice, creating ripples that eventually brought sports to a brief, unplanned halt. He decided he couldn’t play basketball in a bubble while Kenosha, Wisconsin, just south of Milwaukee, was erupting with protests after Jacob Blake, a 29-year-old Black man, was shot multiple times and paralyzed by Kenosha officer Rusten Sheskey.
The players flipped the script: If sports are a distraction, what do sports owe society in exchange? Perhaps a vested interest in social justice on behalf of billionaire team owners.
The NBA was quick to get on the players’ side, to voice support for what was essentially a wildcat strike from its employees.