Even Mark Cuban, the brash, outspoken owner of the Dallas Mavericks, is afraid to criticize China’s human rights abuses.
In a Twitter spat with Ted Cruz, the Texas senator asked Cuban to condemn China’s Uighur concentration camps or to say, simply, “Free Hong Kong.” Cuban then showed his bravery by saying that “Black Lives Matter” and criticizing China’s economic policies.
If you think I wont criticize China and what they do as it concerns American Citizens watch this https://t.co/RXEJxjMeO8 and this movie https://t.co/U5NnAwTFbQ. But I have never gotten involved in the domestic policies of ANY foreign country. We have too much to do here. And..
— Mark Cuban (@mcuban) July 20, 2020
In taking his brave stance, Cuban described China Uighur concentration camps, where Uighur Muslims are tortured and forced into abortion and sterilization, as “domestic policies.”
In other words, Mark Cuban is a coward. He knows that criticizing China’s trade practices is nothing like criticizing its human rights record. The Chinese Communist Party’s tantrum over Daryl Morey’s pro-Hong Kong tweet showed that. The NBA’s revenue from China is conservatively estimated at $500 million. When Morey showed his support for Hong Kong, his Houston Rockets saw their team merchandise removed from Nike’s China stores.
Cuban’s “domestic policies” dodge doesn’t stand up to much scrutiny either. He’s not being asked about the political situations of random countries such as Cambodia or Kenya. He’s being asked about a country that helps pay his bills, one where his own team plays and has worked hard to reach the local market and that also happens to be the world’s biggest abuser of human rights.
Cuban is not the only wannabe political analyst in the NBA who clams up when it comes to China’s human rights atrocities. LeBron James, Steve Kerr, and Gregg Popovich, among others, are all willing to speak their mind (especially against Republicans) until it comes to the Chinese government.
Cuban can act tough on Twitter, but if he really had any guts, he would stop hiding behind such pathetic dodges. He would take a real, unpopular stand for human rights. He won’t, though — he will instead go back to pretending to be interested in running for president to land himself a couple days of publicity once every three months. Anything for that almighty dollar.
