Miami Heat forward Meyers Leonard has been placed on indefinite leave after a clip of him saying an anti-Semitic slur went viral. Leonard was streaming himself playing “Call of Duty: Warzone” March 9 when he said: “F—ing cowards. Don’t f—ing snipe me, you f—ing k— b—-.”
Leonard subsequently issued an apology. “While I didn’t know what the word meant at the time, my ignorance about its history and what it means to the Jewish community is absolutely not an excuse and I was wrong,” he said. “I am now more aware of its meaning and I am committed to properly seeking out people who can educate me about this type of hate and how we can fight it. I acknowledge and own my mistake and there’s no running from something like this that is so hurtful to someone else.”
Miami Heat center Meyers Leonard releases statement apologizing for saying anti-Semitic slur on a livestream: pic.twitter.com/AOi7ZE6nCy
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) March 10, 2021
The Miami Heat announced in a statement that Leonard will be away from the team indefinitely while the team and league investigate the matter. “The words used by Meyers Leonard were wrong and we will not tolerate hateful language from anyone associated with our franchise,” the statement read. “To hear it from a Miami Heat player is especially disappointing and hurtful to all those who work here, as well as the larger South Florida, Miami Heat and NBA communities.”
New England Patriots wide receiver Julian Edelman tweeted an open letter to Leonard inviting him to a Shabbat dinner. “I get the sense that you didn’t use that word out of hate, more out of ignorance,” Edelman wrote. “Most likely, you weren’t trying to hurt anyone or even profile Jews in your comment. That’s what makes it so destructive. When someone intends to be hateful, it’s usually met with great resistance. Casual ignorance is harder to combat and has greater reach, especially when you have influence… Hate is like a virus. Even accidentally, it can rapidly spread.”
An open letter to @MeyersLeonard pic.twitter.com/bJcoupfbur
— Julian Edelman (@Edelman11) March 10, 2021
Actor Michael Rapaport, on the other hand, tweeted out a video blasting Leonard, saying that the “k—” slur is “like a gold antique” that “stabs you in the heart” when used. “F— your written explanation, I want an apology on video, motherf—er, explaining yourself, the same way you explained yourself about standing for the national anthem, which I think was very heartfelt and made sense to me.”
Rapaport also called for the Heat to cut Leonard and for the NBA to suspend him and that Leonard needs to “reeducate and reprogram” himself.
Myers Leonard, I’m 100%
Ashkenazi Jew, I don’t accept that apology. I need way way more.#MyersLeonard @MiamiHEAT @NBA @JewishJournal @StopAntisemitesPart 1@iamrapaport is live here:https://t.co/Q8XeE6KyIf pic.twitter.com/r2XsbCg0vs
— MichaelRapaport (@MichaelRapaport) March 10, 2021
More #MyersLeonard pic.twitter.com/6DO2xT08fq
— MichaelRapaport (@MichaelRapaport) March 10, 2021
Jewish groups also denounced Leonard’s use of the anti-Semitic slur. “.@MeyersLeonard”s use of an antisemitic slur while playing Call of Duty is unacceptable,” American Jewish Committee Director for Combating Anti-Semitism Holly Huffnagle said in a statement. “As antisemitism is rising in our country, we ask the players of the @MiamiHEAT and the rest of the @NBA to speak out against all forms of hatred and bigotry.” She also thanked the Heat for “taking antisemitism seriously” by placing Leonard on indefinite leave.
.@MeyersLeonard's use of an antisemitic slur while playing Call of Duty is unacceptable.
As antisemitism is rising in our country, we ask the players of the @MiamiHEAT and the rest of the @NBA to speak out against all forms of hatred and bigotry. https://t.co/fdIV7K0MrL
— Holly Huffnagle (@HHuffnagleAJC) March 10, 2021
The Miami Heat announced @MeyersLeonard will step away from the team “indefinitely.” Leonard also posted an apology following the incident. Thank you @MiamiHEAT for taking antisemitism seriously.
— Holly Huffnagle (@HHuffnagleAJC) March 10, 2021
The Stop Antisemitism.org watchdog similarly tweeted, “We’re not sure what to be more horrified about — @NBA’s Meyers Leonard dropping a horrific antisemitic slur so casually or the people trying to excuse it as ‘just gaming language.’ THIS is how normalized antisemitism has become.”
We're not sure what to be more horrified about – @NBA's Meyers Leonard dropping a horrific antisemitic slur so casually or the people trying to excuse it as "just gaming language".
THIS is how normalized antisemitism has become. pic.twitter.com/QwIUTX43i5
— StopAntisemitism (@StopAntisemites) March 9, 2021
