Sports Leagues Boycott Games In Response to Jacob Blake Shooting

On Wednesday, the Milwaukee Bucks of the National Basketball Association (NBA) refused to take the floor for their game against the Orlando Magic in response to police shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wisconsin. The Bucks' boycott prompted WNBA, MLS, the rest of the NBA and some MLB teams to cancel their Wednesday games. In a statement from the Bucks, the team said that after seeing the video of Blake's shooting several times in their home state, "our focus today cannot be on basketball." The players said the purpose of their boycott was to push for the "Wisconsin State Legislature to reconvene after months of inaction to take up meaningful measures to address issues of police accountability, brutality and criminal justice reform." The NBA held a meeting Wednesday night to discuss next steps; teams voted to continue the playoff season, though Thursday's games will be postponed. As of Wednesday evening, coverage was consistent across all sides of the political spectrum; some coverage from left-and center-rated outlets frame the players' boycott as a "significant step" toward racial justice. Updated 8/27/2020 at 2:18 p.m. ET