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LeBron James supports Colin Kaepernick‘s decision to take a knee during the national anthem, but reveals, he will not be joining him.

The NBA star opened up about current racial tensions during the Cleveland Cavaliers Media Day, sparking social media backlash.

“I think you guys know when I’m passionate about something I’ll speak up on it, so me standing for the national anthem is something I will do, that’s who I am, that’s what I believe in,” he said. “But that doesn’t mean I don’t respect and don’t agree with what Colin Kaepernick is doing. You have the right to voice your opinion, stand for your opinion and he’s doing it in the most peaceful way I’ve ever seen someone do something.”

James touched on the shooting deaths of Terence Crutcher and Keith Lamont Scott.

“None of us have the answer,” he said. “But the more times we can talk about it, the more times we can conversate about it. Because I’m not up here saying all police are bad because they’re not. I’m not up here saying that all kids are great and all adults are great, because they’re not.”

He added, “But at the same time, all lives do matter. It’s not black or white, it’s not that. It’s everyone, so, it’s just tough being a parent right now when you have a pre-teen.”

In other words, LeBron isn’t jeopardizing his endorsement checks.

James, who has three children, including two young boys, says the cop killings are “scary.”

“You see these videos that continue to come out, it’s a scary-ass situation that if my son calls me and said if he got pulled over, that I’m not that confident that things are gonna go well and my son is going to return home,” he said. “My son just started the sixth grade.”

It didn’t take long for Twitter to respond with backlash:

While some criticized James’ for his comments, other fans defended him:

How do you feel about LeBron’s comments?

PHOTO CREDIT: Getty | VIDEO CREDIT: YouTube

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LeBron James Sparks Controversy With ‘All Lives Matter’ Comment  was originally published on hellobeautiful.com