Steve Kerr has had enough.
On May 24, 18 children and three adults were killed in a mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott confirmed the deaths of the victims, as well as the deaths of the shooter, an 18-year-old man.
Ahead of the Western Conference Warriors-Mavericks’ Western Conference finals on Tuesday, the Golden State head coach took the microphone to condemn the shooting and deliver a passionate speech, urging U.S. senators to reconsider their positions on arms reform in the country.
Steve Kerr on today’s tragic shooting in Uvalde, Texas. pic.twitter.com/lsJ8RzPcmC
– Golden State Warriors (@warriors) May 24, 2022
Kerr’s full speech:
I won’t talk about basketball. Nothing has happened to our team in the last six hours. Tonight we will start the same way. Any basketball question doesn’t matter.
Since we left filming, 14 children have died, 400 miles from here, and a teacher. And in the last 10 days we’ve had big black people murdered in a Buffalo supermarket. We have killed Asian religious people in Southern California. And now we have murdered children at school. When will we do something?
I’m tired – I’m so tired of getting up here and offering my condolences to the devastated families out there, I’m so tired of the – I’m so tired of the moments of silence. Enough.
Right now there are 50 senators who refused HRA, which is a background check rule that the House (of Representatives) passed a couple of years ago. He has been sitting there for two years. And there’s a reason they won’t vote for it: to hold power.
So I ask you, Mitch McConnell, I ask all senators to refuse to do anything about violence and shootings in schools and shootings in supermarkets, I ask you: you will put your own desire for power ahead of life of our children. ? And our old people? And our faithful? Because that’s what it looks like. That’s what we do every week. So I’m fed up, I’ve had enough, tonight we’ll play the game.
But I want every person here, every person who hears this, to think of their own child, grandson, mother, father, sister or brother – how would you feel if this happened to you today?
We can’t fall asleep with that. We can’t just sit here and just read and say, “Well, let’s keep quiet.” Go to Dubs. ‘ “Come on Mavs, come on.” This is what we will do. Let’s play a game of basketball. And 50 senators in Washington will take us hostage.
You realize that 90 percent of Americans, regardless of political party, want background checks, universal background checks, 90 percent of us. We are held hostage by 50 senators in Washington, who even refuse to vote for us, despite what we want, the American people.
They will not vote for him because they want to maintain their own power. It’s pathetic. I’ve had enough.
Kerr has often been one of the league’s most open coaches on gun reform in recent years.
As Kerr mentioned, Game 4 of the Warriors-Mavericks on Tuesday night in Dallas, Texas is taking place as planned.