Yesterday's NBA news should have prompted the United States to take action, even if that action is no more than just speaking out.
Turkish officials have issued an international arrest warrant for New York Knicks (and former Utah Jazz) player Enes Kanter, accusing him of involvement in a terrorist organization.
Kanter now fears for his life, fearing a follower of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan might take him out. Kanter has has been vocal in his opposition to Erdogan, referring to him as "the Hitler of our century."
"People have been killed, thousands are unjustly imprisoned, and countless lives have been ruined," Kanter said of conditions in Turkey.
At this juncture, some kind of statement seems appropriate from the United States -- from President Trump -- condemning Erdogan and Turkey. Our president -- or leaders somewhere in Congress or the White House -- should respond. Turkey should be condemned, not only for seeking Kanter's arrest and endangering his life, but for all the civil rights abuses it is heaping upon its people.
Where is the American leader stepping up to decry what is going on? We shouldn't be just sitting silently by. We should be coming to the defense of Kanter, who is an adopted member of American society. We should honor Kanter for the courage he has had in defying Erdogan and we should back him up in his claims of abuses in Turkey.
We should list the offenses against humanity, spelling them out clearly and condemning them.
We should demand that Turkey drop charges against Kanter, and express outrage at the way Turkey is treating its people. We should demand an end to those abuses and call on Erdogan to tell us how he is going to do to rectify what he has done.
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