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Former MVP James Harden of the Houston Rockets is currently in hot water over the design on his face mask that he has been flaunting since joining the team in the NBA bubble.
The image of James Harden in said face mask was posted by the Houston Rockets as well as the NBA on their official Twitter handles.
The mask depicts the 'thin blue line', a flag that is often used as a pro police symbol. In light of recent events of police brutality against the African American community, critics believe the use of this mask by James Harden is ignorant and tone deaf at the very least.
Some also say that the mask is a representation of the 'Punisher skull' which is a symbol associate with various far right extremist groups. This symbol has been used by the police and military groups. This has been done despite the creator of the Punisher, Gerry Conway, denouncing the use of his character by the extremists that the character itself is against.
It is yet unclear whether this was an honest mistake by James Harden or a calculated decision. Either way, Twitter trolls have replied to the tweets featuring James Harden in this mask with disgust, mocking him for his choice of mask. Many are calling this a disgrace to the Houston Rockets whose GM Daryl Morey had last year created an uproar in China due to his tweet on Hong Kong protest.
Many pro police supporters are hailing this as a positive move towards the police who have recently faced a lot of backlash over multiple cases such as that of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor.
The Houston Rockets and James Harden have been heavily trolled on social media for this botched photo-op.
Houston Rockets' James Harden speaks out about BLM protests
Yesterday evening, during a press conference after practice, James Harden spoke about the protests in Houston saying:
"The way the city rallied, it was amazing. I think the world saw it. How so many people could come together so close. Obviously it was for a tragic reason but the marching and everything that we’re standing for is very powerful."
This has been very confusing since Harden clearly has shown his support for protesters who are fighting for equality and civil rights all over the country. These statements juxtaposed with his use of a face mask representing pro police and far right symbols is confounding to all.
There has been no statement from either James Harden or the Houston Rockets regarding this controversy.
Guess the Lakers players!
