Following Enes Kanter’s posts on social media in support of free Tibet – in which he called Chinese president Xi Jinping a “brutal dictator” – Celtics games have been pulled from the Chinese internet, according to a New York Times report.
According to the Times, Boston games were unavailable for replay through Tencent, the streaming partner of the NBA in the country, and upcoming games won’t be streamed either. The 76ers – employers of Daryl Morey, who set off a firestorm two years ago for tweeting in support of pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong – are also on Tencent’s blacklist.
During the fallout from that 2019 incident, Morey was criticized by members of the league who have business interests in China, including LeBron James, who called him “misinformed” and “not educated about the situation.” Morey and the NBA apologized after the incident, creating backlash in the US.
Kanter has a history of activism, having spoken out against Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan. He has said in the past that Turkish agents might kill him overseas, and his Turkish passport has been revoked.
In addition to posting the video, Kanter also tweeted a picture of shoes with “Free Tibet” emblazoned on the side, calling attention to the self-immolation of over 150 Tibetans. In the video, wearing a shirt with a picture of the Dalai Lama, Kanter called out a “cultural genocide” in Tibet.
“I say, ‘Shame on the Chinese government,’ ” he said. “The Chinese dictatorship is erasing Tibetan identity and culture.”
A Celtics fan account on Weibo, a popular Chinese social media platform, with over 600,000 followers posted that it would stop giving updates on the team because of the incident.
“Resolutely resist any behavior that undermines national harmony and the dignity of the motherland!” the post said.
China has ruled Tibet since 1950, and has imprisoned people calling for independence.
“Brutal dictator of China, Xi Jinping, I have a message for you and your henchman,” Kanter said in the video. “Free Tibet, free Tibet, free Tibet.”