Steve Kerr Makes Emotional Plea For Gun Control: ‘Our Government Is Insane’

If you want your athletes and coaches to be devoid of opinions and beliefs, then you might want to look away.

Warriors coach Steve Kerr joined San Jose Mercury News’ Tim Kawakami for a podcast Friday, and most of the discussion surrounded Golden State’s NBA Finals loss and the team’s future. However, just as Kawakami went to sign off, Kerr asked if he could wade into politics for one moment.

What Kerr, whose father was assassinated in 1984, said next came straight from the heart.

“… 90 percent of our country wants background checks on gun purchases and we’ve got our senate and our house not only voting it down but using the Bill of Rights as a reason for people to have rights to carry these automatic weapons, and we’re getting people murdered every day at an alarming rate,” Kerr began, via USA TODAY Sports.

He was far from finished.

“… Our government is insane. We are insane. And what bugs me is this adherence to the right to bear arms, you know. That was back in 1776. People didn’t own automatic rifles. You had to have a musket in case the Redcoats were coming. The British were coming. And the beautiful thing about the Constitution is they left open amendments to change things because things change over time.

“I kind of think that our forefathers would not have OK’d automatic weapons to be sold to everybody if they existed back then. Let’s have some checks. It’s easier to get a gun than it is to get a driver’s license. It’s insane. And as somebody who’s had a family member shot and killed, it devastates me every time I read about this stuff — like what happened in Orlando — and then it’s even more devastating to see the government just cowing to the NRA and going to this totally outdated Bill Of Rights, right to bear arms. If you want to own a musket, fine, you know, but come on. The rest of the world thinks we’re insane. We are insane.”

You can listen to the entire interview, including the gun control part which begins around the 30-minute mark, below.

Thumbnail photo via Gary A. Vasquez/USA TODAY Sports Images

H/t USA TODAY Sports