Charles Barkley Shares His Unpopular Opinions on Racial Profiling and Police Shootings

Charles Barkley shared his unpopular opinions on racial profiling and police shootings on 'The Dan Le Batard Show With Stugotz' on Tuesday.

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Complex Original

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In case you somehow haven’t noticed this by now, Charles Barkley has some very strong opinions about all things related to the NBA. Whether he’s talking about how much NBA fans hate Dwight Howard, trying to figure out LeBron James’ place in NBA history, or discussing Kevin Durant’s decision to join the Warriors, Barkley isn’t afraid to take a stand on just about any topic. And he gets paid a lot of money to do it.

Barkley’s opinionated ways extend beyond the basketball court, too. Over the last few years, he has also shared his thoughts on important social issues, and more often than not, he’s caused controversy by doing it. There was the time he admitted he didn’t think George Zimmerman deserved to be found guilty, the time he defended police after the Mike Brown shooting in Ferguson, Mo., and the time he said he didn’t believe Eric Garner’s death should be classified as a homicide. These opinions haven’t gone over well with most people, especially those in the black community, and Barkley has been called a hypocrite, a sell out, and worse as a result of them.

But that hasn’t stopped Barkley from continuing to share his opinions on issues like racism, racial profiling, and police shootings, and on Tuesday, he did it again during an appearance on ESPN Radio’s The Dan Le Batard Show With Stugotz. At first, his appearance seemed like it was going to be pretty lighthearted—Barkley claimed he’s been offered $3 million to join Twitter at one point and applauded Draymond Green for allegedly assaulting a heckler at another—but it took a turn for the worst when Barkley decided to address the police shootings that took place in Louisiana and Minnesota last week. For more than five minutes, he shared many of the same unpopular opinions he’s shared in the past. And by the end of his rant, Le Batard had this look on his face:

Barkley: There’s a lot of people at fault. The cops have made some mistakes. Black people have made some mistakes. Until we stop…We have to sit back and be honest with each other. The cops have made some mistakes. That don’t give us the right to riot and shoot cops. We need the cops, especially in the black community. We as black people, we’ve got to do better. We never get mad when black people kill each other, which that always has bothered me. It’s always bothered me. And then, somebody is gonna scream like, ‘Well, you can’t change the subject.’ Well, first of all, I’ve never changed the subject. I’ve always said that, ‘We as black people, if you want respect, you have to give each other respect.’ You can’t demand respect from white people and the cops if we don’t respect each other.

You can listen to what Barkley had to say in the video above. You can also read a complete transcript of the video—complete with Le Batard's reactions to some of the things Barkley said—below:

As you might imagine, some of Barkley’s words did not sit well with people on social media. Within minutes of his appearance, there were quite a few emotional responses to the opinions that Barkley shared. There were some people who agreed with his take on racial profiling and the recent shootings, but for the most part, the overwhelming majority of people disagreed with Barkley. You can read their responses to him here:

Barkley hasn’t backed down from giving his opinion on social issues in the past, and we wouldn’t expect him to back down now. But he clearly touched a nerve with his latest interview.

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