Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to NBA Players: Get Vaxxed or Get Out

BIANNA GOLODRYGA: Well, the new NBA season is here. And with it, a debate on vaccine hesitancy. 90 percent of players returning to the court are vaccinated, but some high-profile skeptics are refusing to get protected. With no vaccine mandate for this season, some are wondering how much sway these anti-vax voices have behind the scenes. Hall of Fame legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is calling out these players, no farm no foul approach. He believes as high-profile figures the ball is in their court to set an example and get the vaccine. Here he is talking with Michel Martin.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHEL MARTIN, CONTRIBUTOR: Thanks, Bianna. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, thank you so much for speaking with us today.

KAREEM ABDUL-JABBAR, FORMER NBA PLAYER AND BEST-SELLING AUTHOR: Not a problem, Michel. Nice to be with you.

MARTIN: As we are speaking, you have had some very strong words for athletes who are refusing to get the COVID-19 vaccine. You wrote a (INAUDIBLE) piece for Substack and you talked about how shocking and disappointing it is to see so many people, especially people of color, treat the vaccination like a matter of personal preference, like ordering no onions on your burger at a drive-through. What is it that made you feel like you needed to speak out right now?

ABDUL-JABBAR: Well, I think the status that black athletes have in the black community is, you know, out of the roof. And especially, young people, but the whole black community looks up to a lot of the athletes for a lot of different reasons. I know I get the award, the Social Justice Award through the NBA. To guys on different teams that are making a difference, spending their money instead of (INAUDIBLE) and putting it in the bank, they’re investing in the community where they lived and worked. This is meaningful and this is going to make change happen quicker. So, you know, there’s a lot there that the black athlete is giving to us freely (ph). But when you try to shoot down something that you have no idea what you’re talking about, I mean, we have had enough examples on this virus to know that the vaccines are safe and most importantly, effective. So, you know, what are people waiting for?

MARTIN: Did you get wind of this? I know you have a lot of contacts within the league. I’m sure people consult with you all the time. I’m sure people seek out your advice or they just want to be in your company. Did you get wind that this was going on or how did you sort of hear that there was this kind of hesitancy? Was it just like everybody else seeing these interviews?

ABDUL-JABBAR: You know, I think it’s just — the scuttlebutt started to spread that certain people might not be vaccinated. Lebron came out and made an announcement that he is vaccinated and his family is vaccinated. But he didn’t want to be drawn into the controversy. But as a father and as a parent and as a husband, he got the family vaccinated. So, you know, there’s different ways of making a statement here. But let’s make sense.

MARTIN: What do you think is behind this?

ABDUL-JABBAR: I don’t know. For a certain individual, it might just be like they don’t feel like being bothered with finding out what the virus is all about. And, you know, getting an understanding of how dangerous it is and that it spreads through a community. So, I think that’s the thing that — you know, people think that this is so much an individual choice. As I mentioned in my article, you know, like ordering onions on your fries at the drive-through. It’s not that simple.

MARTIN: You said, athletes and other celebrities have a public platform to help alleviate this crisis and to save lives. To not take on that responsibility harms the sports and entertainment industries, the communities and the country. And you said, those who claim they need to do “more research,” you have that in quotes, are simply announcing that they have done no research because the overwhelming consensus of immunologists and other medical experts is that the vaccine is effective and safe and will prevent unnecessary deaths of thousands. The other thing you go on to say in your column is that, you know, I assure you that when an athlete has a broken leg or heart attack or their child is in an accident, they don’t say go to the doctors, don’t anything until I do more research. They beg the medical experts to help. So, you on pointed out a number of sort of inconsistencies here. I guaranty you that most of these, they have to have gone at last through high school to be old enough to play in the league. In order attend high school, they had to have been immunized against all the, you know, childhood diseases. They all have had their flu shots. So, they’ve all had their tetanus shots, they’ve all had their MMR, and all of those things. So, why this vaccine, why now? What’s your take on that?

ABDUL-JABBAR: It’s hard to get a take on because none of it makes sense. I remember when I was a kid seeing kids going into iron lungs and, you know, having to spend, you know, a lot of time in there and, you know, polio was the cause of this. And, you know, when they came around to give us our shots for polio, I was happy to get it, you know, I’m just a kid. Nothing’s changed. We have a problem that is attacking the whole country and vaccination and immunization work. So, why the hesitancy? I don’t get it. And, you know, it’s just a big question mark. I don’t think anyone who has thought this through for five minutes can come up with any solution, that most effective and the closest at hand are masks and vaccination. So, let’s get on it.

MARTIN: I wonder if it has something to do with a sense of agency? I mean, you are frankly one of the greatest examples of that, of an athlete who was expressing his own agency on issues other than sports, and you sort of have been an advocate for that. And I wonder whether this is sort of an example of these athletes expressing that agency?

ABDUL-JABBAR: I don’t think that it comes down to that. I think it comes down to just a whole need to have your own personal choice be aligned on this. And everybody else’s choice, you know, they can go with it. But that doesn’t work in this circumstance. These players play with other players who have families. They play with people in close corners. The people in the front office and the other people that they have to work with. And spreading this virus is a great way to see that people die. So, we need to do everything we can to see people don’t die.

MARTIN: You know, of course, one of the ironies of this moment is that one of the people who have been most vociferous in supporting these athletes in refusing the vaccine are conservative politicians who otherwise have zero sympathy for many of the causes that many of these athletes embrace, like, you know, police violence, for example, or other social justice issues. I wonder how that went. And I also — just from a more sort of larger demographic perspective, I mean, it’s just a fact that certain political groups, certain religious groups like white evangelicals, for example, are the most resistant to these vaccines. And it’s just sort of interesting because these players are not part of any of those groups from what we can see. So, I just sort of wonder, do you think they’re getting the same information, false information from the same sources?

ABDUL-JABBAR: I think that they are ignoring certain information. The information that they should be paying attention to is that the COVID epidemic is strongest in the states that have the least vaccination. That’s what they should be paying attention to. The least vaccination you have, the more you’ll be prone to catching the COVID virus. And if you don’t understand that, given the evidence that we have now, you just enjoy throwing the dice.

MARTIN: You’ve called on the league, the NBA to take stronger measures. I mean, currently, certain teams have taken stronger measures because they are located in cities that have vaccine mandates. But you called upon the league to take stronger measures, to impose a vaccine mandate across the league. Tell me more about that. Like why do you think that’s necessary and why now?

ABDUL-JABBAR: Well, I think if the league does it, it just will have the – – you know, the authority of the league and no one individual other than Adam Silver will be responsible for that. You know, so I think that makes sense in that way. But the league has one issue that it has to deal with. It will have to negotiate with the Players Association to work out the — you know, the format for that mandate. But other than that, the league can do something about it. You know, all they have to do is just get in cahoots there with the Players Association and they can work something out that suits the needs of our health. I mean, that’s what’s important. Our health is what’s important here. So, I think that’s how it should be done.

MARTIN: How do you understand the Players Association position on this? I mean, it seems like to this point, they have resisted a mandate. How do you understand their position on that?

ABDUL-JABBAR: I don’t know if they’ve met and given a formal statement on that. Have they? I haven’t seen that. 90 percent of the people on all the teams have gotten vaccinated. So, you know, I think there’s just a little bit of fog there.

MARTIN: I mean, really, it’s just a few high-profile holdouts. Would be that accurate?

ABDUL-JABBAR: Yes. And I think —

MARTIN: Just a few high-profile holdouts?

ABDUL-JABBAR: I think that hits it right on the head.

MARTIN: What kind of reaction have you gotten to your speaking out about this? You have not minced words. You said, look, if individual athletes can’t muster courage to do the right thing, then the NBA and every other lead governing body must step in and mandate vaccinations for players, coaches, and staff in order to protect the team, the fans, and the community. You said, players are free to choose not to get vaccinated, but they should have the courage of their moral convictions to sit out the season, sustained in the righteousness of their choice. They’ve already proven they’re not team players. What reaction have you gotten?

ABDUL-JABBAR: Well, people seem to think that’s — those words were appropriate. 100 percent of the people know that I made that statement agreed with it.

MARTIN: And before I let you go, I wondered if you’ve considered reaching out to some of these players on a personal level. You have a lot of credibility, obviously. And I also want to mention, that you also have a deep interest in science. I mean, one of your many books, you published the book sort of profiling a number of significant African-Americans in science, for example. So, you have a deep interest in science among your other interests. So, I just was wondering, have you thought about reaching to these players individually?

ABDUL-JABBAR: Well, I have to say, generally, really applies to them individually. But I think that they need to listen to somebody that they care about and get a good idea of what’s going on here. Go to a doctor that you know. Go to someone that you trust that is in the medical industry and ask them how they feel about the vaccinations. You know, get informed. Go to your pastor. And if you — knowledge is power. When you get the knowledge about what this is all about, I’m sure that you’ll do the right thing.

MARTIN: Well, let’s hope that your words carry weight. Kareem Abdul- Jabbar, thank you so much for talking to us today.

ABDUL-JABBAR: Thank you so much.