Lakers Hire Dr. Karida Brown As Director Of Racial Equity And Action

The Lakers hired Dr. Karida Brown as Director Of Racial Equity And Action, the team announced Thursday.

In her new role, Brown, a tenure-track assistant professor at UCLA in African American Studies and Sociology, will help increase the team's understanding of "today's most urgent topics" and figure out ways to implement real change.

“We are very happy to have Dr. Brown join the team,” Lakers COO & President of Business Operations Tim Harris said in a statement. “She will play a key role in implementing educational programming on race and racism for our employees and helping us focus on racial equity in our day-to-day functions, as well as empowering the organization to identify ways to be more active participants in affecting real change.”

Many Lakers players have spoken out against racism and police brutality amid nationwide protests following George Floyd's murder. Floyd, a 46-year-old black man, died after white police officer Derek Chauvin knelt on his neck for 8 minutes and 46 seconds in Minneapolis on May 25.

James recently helped found a nonprofit group named More Than A Vote to fight black voter suppression and excite minority voters across the nation. He's also been very active on social media to his combined 112 million followers on Twitter and Instagram condemning racial injustices.

James, a three-time NBA champion and four-time MVP, hasn't said a word about basketball, including the impending resumption of the NBA at Walt Disney World's ESPN Wide World of Sports complex on July 30, since Floyd's death.

Dwight Howard has been very vocal about his fear that the season would distract from the momentum around the Black Lives Matter movement. He said Tuesday in a statement to CNN that he wants to prioritize "My People" over competing for his first NBA championship.

Avery Bradley, a co-leader of a players coalition with Kyrie Irving, told ESPN that he wants to hear that the NBA will take distinct action before players go to Orlando, including hiring more black head coaches and front office executives and partnering with black-owned businesses and arena vendors.

Kyle Kuzma wrote an essay for the Players' Tribune in which he discussed the racism he experienced as a biracial child in Flint, Michigan, and encouraged people to demand change.

According to the Lakers, Brown will create a curriculum to increase the education of the team's staff and help them contribute to societal change.

Brown has authored two books, Gone Home: Race and Roots through Appalachia and The Sociology of W.E.B. Du Bois: Racialized Modernity and the Global Color Line.

She is currently working on her third book, Separate and Unequal, which delves into the history of racially segregated education and how it continues to impact our current education system.

It's an area of study that greatly interests James, who founded the I Promise School in 2018 in his hometown of Akron, Ohio, to help at-risk children. In fact, James, who is widely considered to be one of the best basketball players of all-time, told reporters in February that giving children options for their future is his greatest accomplishment.

"It's probably the best thing I've ever done," he said.

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