Los Angeles Clippers‘ owner Donald Sterling has been banned from the National Basketball Association (NBA) for life, after a racist conversation between him and his girlfriend leaked. NBA commissioner Adam Silver made the announcement at a press conference, where it was revealed that Sterling, 80, has been banned from the association for life and will be fined $2.5million for his disturbing rant.
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver handed down the unprecedented punishment of banning an owner from his own team. Silver said Sterling will be prohibited from attending games, practices, league owner meetings, or participating in team or league business in any way. Silver said he would ask the other owners to exercise their authority to force a sale of the team—a move that could set up a heated legal battle.
“I am banning Mr. Sterling for life,” Silver said at a news conference in New York. He said the lifetime ban was effective immediately and would remain so regardless of whether Sterling sells the team. The fine will be donated to charity.
Sterling, 80, was caught on tape, forbidding his girlfriend, 20+, – who is half black, half Mexican, from publicly associating with black people, after she posted an image of herself with Magic Johnson.
Read the full conversation below;
On associating with black people: “How about your whole life, everyday, you could do whatever you want. You can sleep with them, you can bring them in, you can do whatever you want? The little I ask you is not to promote it on that [Instagram] and not to bring anyone to the games.
I love everybody! There is no negativity! I love everybody. I’m just saying, in your lousy %$#&* Instagrams, you don’t have to have yourself with, walking with black people. You don’t have to. If you want to, do it.”
Girlfriend: I don’t understand, I don’t see your views. I wasn’t raised the way you were raised.
Donald Sterling: Well then, if you don’t feel—don’t come to my games. Don’t bring black people, and don’t come.
G: Do you know that you have a whole team that’s black, that plays for you?
Donald Sterling: Do I know? I support them and give them food, and clothes, and cars, and houses. Who gives it to them? Does someone else give it to them? Do I know that I have—Who makes the game? Do I make the game, or do they make the game? Is there 30 owners, that created the league?
G: It’s the world! You go to Israel, the blacks are just treated like dogs.
V: So do you have to treat them like that too?
Donald Sterling: The white Jews, there’s white Jews and black Jews, do you understand?
G: And are the black Jews less than the white Jews?
Donald Sterling: A hundred percent, fifty, a hundred percent.
G: And is that right?
Donald Sterling: It isn’t a question—we don’t evaluate what’s right and wrong, we live in a society. We live in a culture. We have to live within that culture.
G: But shouldn’t we take a stand for what’s wrong? And be the change and the difference?
Donald Sterling: I don’t want to change the culture, because I can’t. It’s too big and too [unknown].
G: But you can change yourself.
Donald Sterling: I don’t want to change. If my girl can’t do what I want, I don’t want the girl. I’ll find a girl that will do what I want! Believe me. I thought you were that girl—because I tried to do what you want. But you’re not that girl.
G: Honey, if it makes you happy, I will remove all of the black people from my Instagram.
Donald Sterling: You said that before, you said, “I understand.”
G: I DID remove the people that were independently on my Instagram that are black.
Donald Sterling: Then why did you start saying that you didn’t? You just said that you didn’t remove them. You didn’t remove every—
G: I didn’t remove Matt Kemp and Magic Johnson, but I thought—
Donald Sterling: Why?
G: I thought Matt Kemp is mixed, and he was OK, just like me.
Donald Sterling: OK.
G: He’s lighter and whiter than me.
Donald Sterling: OK.
G: I met his mother.
Donald Sterling: You think I’m a racist, and wouldn’t—
G: I don’t think you’re a racist.
Donald Sterling: Yes you do. Yes you do.
Magic Johnson has responded to the controversy
“TMZ reported this morning that Clippers owner Donald Sterling doesn’t want me or other African-Americans to come to Clippers games. [My wife] and I will never go to a Clippers game again as long as Donald Sterling is the owner. I feel sorry for my friends Coach Doc Rivers and Chris Paul that they have to work for a man that feels that way about African Americans. LA Clippers owner Donald Sterling’s comments about African Americans are a black eye for the NBA.”