LeBron James Reveals His Mother Voted For the First Time Ever This Year — ‘They Don’t Give a F*** About Us, Why Should I Go Out and Help Create Change?’
LeBron James has never been shy about his humble beginnings. Born a poor kid in Akron, Ohio, he lived with his mom and never had much. The two of them struggled for a long time before he made it to the NBA, and his experiences as a child drastically influenced him.
Today, James is working to help disadvantaged groups become more active in their communities. Specifically, he’s been working with More Than a Vote to get more people registered to vote. James understands that historically, Black people have not always exercised the right to vote.
In fact, his own mother had never voted prior to 2020.
LeBron James is getting more involved with social justice initiatives
In the midst of the NBA’s resumed season, a historic moment occurred when the Milwaukee Bucks basketball team walked off the court in protest of George Floyd’s untimely death. All of the other teams soon followed, and the NBA postponed competition for several days.
The moment inspired James to become more active in social justice issues, specifically within the Black community.
“In the Black community, we always talk about we want to see change, but we never go out and do it,” James said during an interview with Uninterrupted. “And the reason we never go out and do it [is] because we’ve been so jaded and been so scared because everyone is saying that our word, or what we believe in doesn’t matter.”
LeBron James’ mother never voted before 2020
James knows firsthand how difficult it can be to get disadvantaged groups more active in their communities. He even revealed that his own mother had never voted prior to 2020.
“So over the course of time, that’s why if you had, like my mom, who is 52 years old, it’s the first year she ever voted. First year she ever voted, because she never believed that her vote mattered. She never believed—not only did it matter, she was like, ‘They don’t give a f— about us here in our community, why should I go out and help create change for somebody else when they don’t care about us?”
LeBron James didn’t know his mom had never voted prior to the 2020 election
As shocking as the revelation might sound to a casual fan, it was even more surprising for James. He had no idea his mother had never voted until she told him this year.
“[There are] some things … that your parents will not tell you,” James said. “It’s some things that when you get older, you’ll find out about your parents, your mom or your dad … that you was like, ‘I did not know that about you.’ Until they tell you, until they’re ready to tell you.”
James has been working with More Than A Vote, a nonprofit organization created to help people in disadvantaged communities exercise their right to vote.
