The Celtics welcome the Wizards to town Wednesday, but one Boston player found himself in Washington’s territory 24 hours prior.
He wasn’t there for basketball, though.
Enes Kanter was on Capitol Hill on Tuesday to help introduce the “Turkey Human Rights Promotion Act” with Massachusetts senator Ed Markey and Oregon senator Ron Wyden, per The Boston Globe’s Nicole Yang. The bill “condemns the Turkish government’s abuse of counterterrorism authorities to target political rivals.”
According to a press release from Sen. Ed Markey's office, Kanter is in D.C. to introduce the “Turkey Human Rights Promotion Act," which is "legislation that condemns the Turkish government’s abuse of counterterrorism authorities to target political rivals." https://t.co/bFyuPkttb9
— Nicole Yang (@nicolecyang) November 12, 2019
Kanter, a native of Turkey, has not left the United States since 2017 after President Recep Tayyip Erdogan canceled his passport that same year. Erdogan has accused the Celtics center of aligning with the group that participated in a failed coup of the Turkish government in 2016 and still is seeking Kanter’s arrest. (Coincidentally, Erdogan arrived in Washington D.C. on Tuesday ahead of his meeting at the White House with President Donald Trump on Wednesday.)
Now, Kanter hopes to highlight human rights abuses in Turkey, and he thinks the bill will do just that.
“You guys know my story because I play in the NBA, but there are thousands and thousands of stories out there that are worse than mine,” Kanter said. “So that’s why I’m trying to use my platform to be the voice of all those innocent people who don’t have one. I hope this legislation will pass and will highlight innocent people’s struggle.”
The America I know does not turn a blind eye to bullies.
I was just with my good friends @SenMarkey and @EnesKanter to announce the introduction of legislation to condemn Turkish President Erdogan for suppressing peaceful protests and silencing dissenting views in Turkey. https://t.co/W3y2biXHnD
— Ron Wyden (@RonWyden) November 12, 2019
(You can watch the full press conference here.)
