Chase Center erupts after Dubs’ announcer calls for ‘sensible gun laws’
Ahead of Game 5 of the Western Conference Finals on Thursday night, the Golden State Warriors held a moment of silence for the victims of Tuesday’s mass shooting in Uvalde, Texas.
Unlike past moments of silence, the announcer at Chase Center concluded by providing resources for individuals seeking “sensible gun laws in America.” Even though the arena had only about a third of its fans in their seats at the time of the announcement, the cheers were very loud.
On Wednesday, the Miami Heat had a similar ending to its moment of silence. The team announcer told fans, “The Heat urges you to contact your state senators by calling 202-224-3121 to leave a message demanding their support for common sense gun laws.”
Warriors head coach Steve Kerr, a longtime advocate for stronger gun laws, had previously expressed his displeasure with the fact that moments of silence tend not to accomplish much.
“I think it’s the right thing to do to have a moment of silence but I’ll be honest, it’s probably the ninth or 10th moment of silence that I will have experienced as coach of the Warriors when we mourn losses of people who have died in mass shootings,” he said after a shooting in Sacramento in April. “I don’t think moments of silence are going to do anything. At some point, at some point, our government has to decide, ‘Are we going to have some common sense gun laws?’ It’s not going to solve everything, but it will save lives.”
After this week’s Texas shooting, he struck a similar tone.
“When are we going to do something?” the coach said. “I’m so tired of getting up here and offering condolences to the devastated families that are out there; I’m tired of the excuses; I’m tired of the moments of silence. Enough.”
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