The new Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Social Justice Champion award.

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Image courtesy of the NBA’s Instagram.

Carolyn Malman, Co-Editor of Arts and Entertainment
May 16, 2021

By Carolyn Malman

On May 12th, the NBA announced that their newest annual award would be titled the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Social Justice Champion award. This award hopes to “recognize a current NBA player for pursuing social justice and upholding the league’s decades-long values of equality, respect and inclusion” according to the NBA’s Instagram. Through his positive work in improving schools in low income communities across the United States,  Kareem Abdul-Jabbar continuously inspires others to make a difference in an effort to create more equal opportunities for all. Despite achieving many honors in the NBA, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar strives to make a positive impact outside of his honorable basketball career. Therefore, it is completely fitting that the award be named after this distinguished player. 

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This award is especially impactful this year following the Black Lives Matter protests that have spread across the United States as it showcases the importance of recognizing efforts to establish a more equitable society.

In naming the winner of this award, each team in the NBA will nominate one of their players who they think demonstrates the characteristics of this award. Then, the committee of NBA and WNBA stars, including Kareem Abdul-Jabbar himself, will decide upon five finalists and the overall winner. Aside from the incredible honor of this award, the winner will also choose an organization to receive an $100,000 donation. 

This award is especially impactful this year following the Black Lives Matter protests that have spread across the United States as it showcases the importance of recognizing efforts to establish a more equitable society. Overall, this award demonstrates the NBA’s commitment to making a positive impact outside of basketball as they want to recognize a player’s efforts off of the basketball court, and in communities in need.