Enes Kanter is no stranger to being the subject of threats, but the Boston Celtics center hasn’t taken threats toward his New York basketball clinic lightly.
Kanter says he was forced to reschedule his July 25 clinic at the Islamic Center of Long Island after the Turkish Consulate in New York City threatened the mosque and encouraged Turks to leave threatening messages for the mosque leading up to Thursday’s scheduled event. Kanter is a well-known dissident of Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan and hasn’t left the United States since 2017 after Erdogan revoked his passport and put out an international warrant for his arrest.
In a statement Wednesday night, Kanter condemned the center for canceling “something positive for the kids” and failing to report the threats to the authorities.
“I do these camps as part of charity and giving back to all communities, whether they are Jewish, Muslim, Christian or have no faith at all,” he said.
New York representative Kathleen Rice called the act “shameful” and vowed to work with Kanter to find a new location for him to hold his camp: “These kids deserve this opportunity.”
This is shameful. My office is working with @EnesKanter to find an alternative location nearby that can host his camp.
These kids deserve this opportunity.
Stay tuned for an update. #NY04 https://t.co/ZF2koxv6vJ
— Archived: U.S. Rep Kathleen Rice (@RepKathleenRice) July 25, 2019
The Islamic Center of Long Island claimed the clinic was postponed “due to unforeseen circumstances,” but Kanter wasn’t having that one bit.
“Unforeseen?” he tweeted with a quizzical emoji. “… I will make a free camp for the kids elsewhere.”
Unforseen?🤔
You let a #TurkishDictator and @TRConsulNY run your mosque.
Muslims should understand we have freedom and do not need to bow to dictators
I will make a free camp for the kids elsewhere
We tell kids to stand up to bullies,but you allow Turkish Government to bully you https://t.co/Gn6N0YG6dA— Enes Kanter FREEDOM (@EnesFreedom) July 25, 2019
Kanter’s camp has indeed been rescheduled for Sunday (July 28) at the Island Garden in West Hampstead.
