Taking on China 

   Would we dare to risk our well-being by publicly criticizing China? 

   Enes Kanter, raised in Islamic Turkey, is a 6-foot-10 center for the Boston Celtics. He can put one hand on the rim - 10 feet high - and dunk a basketball like we would toss crumpled paper into a waste basket. 

   But he doesn't define himself by his God-given size and talent. To celebrate his becoming a U.S. citizen in November he legally added "Freedom" to his name. 

   With freedom of speech, he calls attention to those suffering persecution and genocide in China, Uyghur Muslims. Last fall he led a rally at the Capitol urging Congress to pass an act that prohibits goods made in that region from being sold in the U.S. President Biden signed the bill in December. 

   "All the gold medals in the world aren't worth selling your values," Freedom wrote in The Wall Street Journal. He has also criticized China's aggression toward Hong Kong, Taiwan and Tibet. 

   Freedom's courage rises above the National Basketball Assn., big sponsors and bankable stars, who avoid offending China and avoid risk of losing potentially billions of dollars. 

   He opposes Nike and LeBron James, the NBA's biggest star, who use their notoriety to speak out for groups in America they deem oppressed. But when it comes to China, their financial interests win out over those who suffer under the communist regime. 

   Will James listen to Freedom, his fellow NBA player? He is "someone I wouldn't give my energy," James says. 

   James, who we used to respect, publicly blasted an NBA team manager for supporting pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong. Nike makes many of its products at sweatshops in China, paying workers dismal wages. 

WORLD magazine

   We all need some of Enes Kanter Freedom's courage, while leftists here in the states are bent on dunking our freedoms in the dirt. 

         Jimmy