When Dana White revealed helping Israel Adesanya and Jon Jones amid George Floyd’s situation
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Dana White and Israel Adesanya
In 2020, the infamous incident took place which included the unfortunate death of George Floyd. The individual of black ethnicity was forcefully knelt by a Minneapolis police officer, Derek Chauvin for nine minutes. This resulted in Floyd dying on the spot after struggling to breathe properly. This resulted in a large number of public outbursts and many organizations then started to raise questions about the officers who were involved. This also started the popular movement, Black Lives Matter which later got widespread attention in many other countries.
During the post-fight press conference at UFC 250, Dana White was asked about UFC’s opinions on the movement. White initially looked confused and implied that he didn’t listen to the question. Later he gave a rather different answer including UFC superstars and their participation in such movements.
He said: “Israel Adesanya was very involved in his country, Jon Jones was out there doing his thing, [and] other African-American fighters for the UFC called me and asked me for advice. I gave them the best advice that I could give them. Everybody is dealing with all of this madness going on in the world right now in different ways. Everybody’s gonna handle it differently.”
White also mentioned how being an American gives people the luxury to express themselves without hesitation. “I would never try to tell somebody how to express themselves — whether it’s fear, anger, whatever it might be. The beautiful thing about America is everybody can and however they want to, so I would never do that,” said White. However, the reporter wasn’t satisfied with the answer and said: “My question is was the UFC, you all considering making a statement as an organization?” White had nothing to add and said: “I don’t even know how to answer that question.” It seemed like White either misunderstood the question or was just trying to avoid any form of criticism for speaking on such a sensitive topic.
Also Read: BACK IN TIME! Dana White’s first-ever introduction to the world as UFC president
Dana White comments on paying tribute to George Floyd
Even though Dana White likes to stay out of politics, protests, and other incidents, the UFC did its part to show respect and support to George Floyd. At UFC on ESPN 9, the promotion paid a tribute to Floyd and another important individual from NSAC.
He said: “We did for him and for the Nevada State Athletic Commission doctor who just passed away, too, who was a great guy,” White said at a post-fight news conference following the event. “(We did it) because we should,” White said. “What happened was horrible and it’s something that’s really affecting this country right now and the world. There are riots going on everywhere across the world right now. It was the right thing to do.”
It was not just UFC but many other sports organizations who equally participated in the movement and spread awareness on the matter.
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Soumya Ranjan
(2167 Articles Published)